Kyle Larson and Dale Jr. Team Up: NASCAR Should Follow NFL’s Lead At FireKeepers Casino 400

This weekend saw a rain-induced reschedule of the FireKeepers Casino 400, which led to the race moving from the planned Sunday afternoon start to a Monday start at the Michigan International Speedway. NASCAR champions Kyle Larson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. have both admitted their preference for earlier start times, prompting the sport to follow NFL.

Originally set for 2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, adverse weather saw the start delayed to after 5 p.m., with the race eventually red-flagged at the end of Stage 1. This postponement forced a continuation on Monday morning at 11:00 a.m. ET.

Kyle Larson, who finished P14 at Stage 1 and was placed seventh during Stage 2 before the delay, posted the following to social media:

“I miss the 1pm start times from my rookie season…,” Larson wrote.

The Californian driver wasn’t alone in his opinions. NASCAR veteran Dale Earnhardt Jr. previously expressed a similar thought, suggesting that starting races just after lunch could increase viewer engagement, much like the NFL’s successful scheduling of games at 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.

“I’ve always been for 1:00 starts right after the lunch getting the race going. I feel like people are just coming off of if they’re going to church or just a family lunch or whatever it may be, right after the lunch, BAM! Get the race started,” Earnhardt elaborated.

“There’s reasons why the networks run it at 3:00 and 3:30, and there’s good reasons why they do it that way. For me, I prefer the 1:00 starts.”

With race times this year ranging from as early as 2:00 p.m. to as late as 7:30 p.m, there’s a lot of variability in NASCAR’s racing schedule. This inconsistency contrasts sharply with the structured timings seen in NFL fixtures, which have arguably led to better ratings and viewer retention.

As the NASCAR playoffs approach, most races are slated to begin at 2:00 p.m., 2:30 p.m., or 3:00 p.m., with the exception of the Bass Pro Shops Night race at Bristol Motor Speedway, scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start.

But with more and more of the American motorsport fanbase slowly getting used to the likes of the Formula 1 season – a race calendar that sees Grands Prix at a mix of times throughout the year, I do wonder what effect a stable race calendar would actually have. Of course, the majority of NASCAR fans are based in only one country, the US, which is why this is more of a conversation.

Whether significant changes will be made remains to be seen, but the FireKeepers Casino 400 will return today (Monday).