There's plenty of testing in NASCAR's 'No Testing' policy

   When NASCAR announced in September it was banning all private team testing, the perception was teams would not likely see the opportunity to do much on-track testing. 

   NASCAR at the time said it hoped to incorporate more teams into the 12 to 15 tire tests done each season by Goodyear but that plan seemed to hit logistical roadblocks in recent months.

   The finished product, outlined in the 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Rulebook, actually provides teams many opportunities to test on series tracks in the coming season. 

   At Atlanta, an extra testing day has been added to the regular weekend schedule. In addition, an extra day of open testing as been added to Goodyear tire tests at Charlotte; Richmond; Kentucky; Indianapolis; Dover, Del.; Darlington, S.C.; Chicagoland; Bristol; Homestead, Fla.; Kansas; Phoenix; and Fontana, Calif.

   Proposed 2015 NASCAR testing dates for Sprint Cup Series
   Date                   Type of test

   Jan. 19               Goodyear tire test, Las Vegas
   Feb. 26              Open team test, Atlanta 
   March 2-3          Goodyear tire test, Atlanta
   March 10            Goodyear tire test, Charlotte
   March 11            Open team test, Charlotte
   April 7                 Goodyear tire test, Richmond
   April 8                 Open team test, Richmond
   April 13-14          Goodyear tire test, Kentucky   
   April 15               Open team test, Kentucky
   April 27-28          Goodyear tire test, Indianapolis
   April 29               Open team test, Indianapolis
   May 11-12           Goodyear tire test, Dover
   May 13                Open team test, Dover
   June 9-10            Goodyear tire test, Darlington
   June 11               Open team test, Darlington
   July 13-14           Goodyear tire test, Chicagoland
   July 15                Open team test, Chicagoland
   July 28-29           Goodyear tire test, Bristol
   July 30                Open team test, Bristol
   Aug. 24-25          Goodyear tire test, Homestead
   Aug. 26               Open team test, Homestead
   Sept. 14-15         Goodyear tire test, Kansas
   Sept. 16              Open team test, Kansas
   Oct. 12-13           Goodyear tire test, Phoenix
   Oct. 14                Open team test, Phoenix
   Oct. 27-28           Goodyear tire test, Fontana
   Oct. 29                Open team test, Fontana

   Note: All Goodyear tire tests typically involve four teams.

Brian France: No changes to Chase format in 2015

   Considering how well-received the Sprint Cup Series season finale race at Homestead-Miami Speedway was and the TV ratings boost during the Chase, it should come as little surprise that NASCAR Chairman Brian France said in an interview Tuesday there would be no changes to the championship format in 2015.

   France was a guest on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Tuesday afternoon and was asked if he anticipated any tweaks or changes to the format. Here is France's answer: 

   “No, I don’t. We’re obviously pleased with everything. And there may be some adjustments down the road. They’ll be very small. Nothing, for ’15, nothing anybody would notice. But if we can make an already great thing better we will always look at that but we are very content that we have the right positioning of elevating the drivers to have moments as I just described, and then also balancing this whole thing in auto racing, which is very difficult to balance, which is how do you balance winning and consistency? And they don’t necessarily always go together. And how do you have any kind of a championship run that represents that? I think we’ve done the best job that we think we can do to balance that.”

   In an interview during championship weekend but before the series finale, France had said he thought there could be "very modest to zero" changes made to the format.