The pylon that shows the leaderboard during NASCAR races was removed at Talladega, along with several other race tracks.
It was an outdated structure that only displayed roughly 10 drivers’ car numbers. As the scoring pylon at Talladega had needed repairs over the years, some parts weren’t even able to be purchased anymore, a NASCAR official explained to The Charlotte Observer.
NASCAR has been encouraging fans to look at the big screens that it added following a recent $50 million renovation project. In lieu of the scoring pylon, the back sides of both massive video boards facing the grandstands along the front-stretch have LED ribbon boards cycling through parts of the running order, the official said.
This follows a trend at other tracks, including Texas, the site of last week’s race, and has stirred a buzz on social media. Bristol and Watkins Glen have also taken down their scoring pylons in recent years.
“I miss it, because under cautions, you get an opportunity to kind of look at where you’re at,” two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch said. “Instead, now I’m actually having to count cars in order to figure out where I’m at, so I can figure out what I want to do on my choose.
“Having a scoring pylon definitely helps us, being the drivers, have an opportunity where we can’t see video boards.”
Auto racing’s highest circuit has seen six different winners entering this season’s 10th race, which is scheduled to go green at 3:20 p.m. Sunday, pending rain.
The scoring pylon had been intended to help people on the infield know the current running order at all times. Now, they have the ability to see even more race information in the NASCAR app if they’re walking around in the pits, the official said. And then the video boards visually reveal drivers’ colors, logos, car numbers and last names to the spectators in the grandstands who may not have been watching the pylon much anyway.
Denny Hamlin told reporters that he spoke to Chip Wile, NASCAR’s Chief Track Properties Officer, who emphasized that the scoring pylon mainly serviced fans on the infield and not as much those fans up in the stands.
“The reasoning is that (the pylon is) just for the people in the infield — it’s not for anyone at home or anyone in the stands,” Hamlin said. “I think what created so many exciting times during qualifying was when the number would pop up on the scoring pylon. P1 for Dale Jr., whoever it was. That’s what people were looking at, and now it’s just a little different.”
Kyle Larson, the Cup Series’ current points leader who didn’t qualify for Sunday’s race due to unapproved adjustments, said he didn’t really care much for the pylon until he was on the race track at Texas last week. He found himself not knowing which spot he was running in and was hesitant to ask his team over the radio.
As he drove down the backstretch, Larson made an effort to look at the big screens, but he found those ribbon boards difficult to follow as they cycled through different positions.
“You don’t want to ask your crew chief, ‘Hey, what position am I running in?’” Larson said. “They’re like, ‘24th.’ When there’s a scoring pylon, it’s nice to glance up there and look. I mean, yeah, I was bummed to not have it.”
Unless drivers ask their spotter, the scoring pylon has always been the quickest way to realize positioning in a race.
Even for those who are used to hopping on their radios to inquire about where they’re running, such as recent winner Christopher Bell, not having it is an adjustment.
“I used that a lot, and I didn’t realize how much I used it until it was gone last week in Texas,” Bell said. “It was super convenient to just look up at the pylon and know where we’re at. I don’t really care about the running order, but it would be nice to have a lap count or lap ticker somewhere visible for the drivers.”
Hamlin gets the loudest boos — and the most consistency
When Denny Hamlin was growing up in central Virginia, in his words, he thought he’d be a “local Southside Speedway short-track guy.”
The 43-year-old NASCAR Cup Series veteran from Chesterfield, Va., has been a student of the game for as long as he’s been racing. Whether it was when he was going short-track racing near his hometown, or eventually as a young Joe Gibbs Racing competitor, Hamlin has always been picking the brains of the greats who have come before him.
Hamlin, who’s earned two of his illustrious 53 career wins in this season’s early goings, may currently be series’ most consistent driver. The only one who has held the lead in all nine races, Hamlin leads the Cup Series in average running position, driver rating, green-flag speed and laps in the Top 15.
“We’ve been one of the fastest each and every week — they weren’t accident laps that happened under caution or something like that,” Hamlin said. “We’ve legitimately led races, and it’s fun. Even though last week was a tough ending — me and (crew chief) Chris (Gabehart) talk about this — it’s just such a fun time to go to the race track. Because every seven days, we can win, legitimately win and be one of the favorites to win.
“It is fun. It’s a fun time in my career right now. Especially the way things are going, and I’ve got huge win numbers that I’m trying to get to in a season where we’re running the way we are.”
Hamlin has led in 13 consecutive races dating back to last season. A winner at Bristol and Richmond, Hamlin sits third in the Cup Series standings behind Larson and Martin Truex Jr.
The victories haven’t come easily. His triumph in the spring race on Bristol’s concrete required 54 lead changes, and he took the checkered flag at Richmond after infamously jumping the restart to beat a dominant Truex.
Consequently, Hamlin receives the most boos during driver introductions each week. Even at Richmond Raceway, some 21 miles from his hometown of Chesterfield, Hamlin was met with a louder greeting than any other driver.
Hamlin’s next win ties NASCAR Hall of Famer Lee Petty
The next time Denny Hamlin winds up in Victory Lane, he’ll tie Lee Petty for 12th on the all-time wins list.
Petty, the father of Richard, won 54 races and championships in 1954, 1958 and 1959. There was a point in Hamlin’s life when names among those likes were nothing more than ones to which he looked up.
“I thought I’d just be a local Southside Speedway short-rack guy,” Hamlin said. “I certainly didn’t think that any of this was possible by any means. I’m just so blessed to be in the situation that I am. I happened to get with companies like FedEx, and Joe Gibbs Racing, that just put me in a race-winning team right from the get-go.”
When will a Ford driver finally win?
“It’s no secret where we’re at. We haven’t won a race yet.”
That’s how Joey Logano summed it up. The two-time Cup Series champion for Team Penske is 15th in the standings with three top-10 finishes.
Chase Briscoe and Chris Buescher are ahead of Logano, but all are outside the top 10. Defending series champion Ryan Blaney, with four top-five finishes but no wins to show for them, won the last race at Talladega and currently sits seventh in the standings.
“The (original equipment manufacturer) matters more than ever,” Logano said. “Whereas before, the teams were building the cars from steel racks, so they were able to do a lot. Now, you’re buying the same chassis as everybody. You’ve got the same brakes as everybody. The only thing you’re racing is engine, body and car setup — that’s where we have some ability to move around as a race team itself.
“But outside of car setup, you’re relying 100% on the OEM now. Because there’s only certain areas where we can race. We’re not developing new parts and pieces anymore; It’s definitely changed the game a lot.”
