NASCAR Confirms Massive OEM Rule Changes Days Before Daytona 500

February 5, 2025
5:38 pm

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Kauy Ostlien

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What’s Happening?

With 11 days until the Daytona 500, NASCAR has officially changed its wording regarding “Performance Obligations” and added a section on OEM penalties to the rule book. NASCAR announced the change and addition on Jan. 10; however, this is the first visible change in the rule book.

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The 2024 Xfinity 500 at Martinsville

Last season, when the Cup Series rolled into the Championship Four cutoff race at the Martinsville, very few had a clue what they were about to witness. What was a relatively normal race turned into a major story both on and off track as the lands wound down.

With Ryan Blaney pulling away toward victory, Toyota’s Christopher Bell and Chevrolet’s William Byron faced off for the final spot in the Championship Four.

If Byron lost a spot, he would be out of the Championship Four; if Bell gained a spot, he would be in the Championship Four.

All this resulted in Chevrolet teammates Austin Dillon and Ross Chastain blocking for Byron’s worsening car. Toyota teammate Bubba Wallace slowed until he came to almost a complete stop in turns three and four to allow Bell to pass.

Ultimately, Byron did make it in as Bell’s pass—which saw him momentarily ride the wall—was deemed illegal. NASCAR COO Steve O’Donnell said the following week that these teams and OEMs knew what they did.

“What I saw in Martinsville pissed me off and pissed everyone off at NASCAR,” O’Donnell said. “Because we all know better, and we know what happened. So, we do have rules in the rulebook where we can address it. And we did.”

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OEM Penalties

In that same press conference, O’Donnell further hinted at more rules to punish its three OEMs for future similar actions. “Will we have a rule next year? One thousand percent, and they’re aware of that.”

NASCAR did not directly penalize Chevrolet and Toyota because they had no rules to do so. Likewise, at that time, none of the drivers were suspended; rather, NASCAR suspended one executive, the Spotter, and the Crew Chief for all three drivers for one race. The teams and drivers were fined $100,000 and 50 points.

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Wednesday’s changes confirm that OEM Manipulation will change in 2025. This new section of the rule book outlines how NASCAR will act against its three manufacturers for violating rules.

In Section B, the new rule clarifies:

OEM Penalties may include, but are not limited to:

Violations of the Wind Tunnel Testing Policy.
Violation of engine Rules with respect to submitted parts.
Violations of Restricted CFD Policy.
Violations of the Vehicle Testing Policy.
Violation of the Body Submission Process.
Violation of the Performance Obligation.

In Section C, NASCAR claims, “All Penalties will result in a Penalty(ies) listed in the Penalty Options Table.”

That table of penalties looks like this:

Manufacturer’s Points	Loss of Wind Tunnel Hours	Loss of RCFD Runs	Loss of Vehicle Testing
25-50	30-60	250-500	2-4

Performance Obligation

Furthermore, NASCAR has officially updated the Performance Obligation section of the rule book to address what Chastain, Dillon, and Wallace did at Martinsville. This section clarified what it means to manipulate a race’s finish and how NASCAR will punish offenders.

NASCAR changed the wording of the Performance Obligation rule, including changing the word “Competitor” to “Member” and “Manipulate” to “Improperly Influence.” This changed wording makes the effects of this obligation more sweeping, affecting more than just the individual drivers and teams.

Along with changing the wording, NASCAR has added a sentence stating, “Prohibited actions include, but are not limited to, intentional planning or conduct that prioritizes objectives other than achieving the best possible

competitive result for their team.”

These changes prove that NASCAR kept its word on OEM penalties. With a superspeedway race literal days away, we could see these rules in effect sooner rather than later.