P1racenews AI automatic summary:
NASCAR’s Elton Sawyer doesn’t want officiating to be the story at Circuit of the Americas and said they are reviewing their procedures for the facility. “COTA is very challenging,” Sawyer said Tues…
Elton Sawyer, NASCAR’s official, expressed concern about officiating overshadowing competition at Circuit of the Americas and confirmed they are reassessing their procedures for the venue. Sawyer emphasized the complexity of officiating at COTA compared to other tracks like Daytona, Talladega, and Atlanta. He acknowledged the challenges faced during the recent races at COTA in terms of penalizing drivers for shortcuts through the esses section. Sawyer mentioned the possibility of not returning to COTA in 2025 and emphasized the need to focus more on athletes, teams, and race strategies rather than officiating. NASCAR’s enforcement of track limits primarily focuses on the esses section due to the potential for lap time gains when drivers go off-course. Sawyer highlighted the unique challenges of officiating at COTA due to the track design and expressed the importance of maintaining the focus on competition rather than penalties.
