NASCAR is examining changes to a section of Phoenix Raceway ahead of the return to Arizona in March 2027. The goal is to reduce the hard impacts that drivers take as they go over the dogleg section of the 1-mile track.
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Cup Series Managing Director Brad Moran provided comments about the possible changes on Wednesday during an appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. He did not detail exactly what will change, but he specifically mentioned the cars bottoming out as a problem.
"Those hits are pretty hard, and so there is a lot of talk of we're going to improve that for next year," Moran said.
"And it'll probably be the transition. Just getting rid of the transition and making it easier on the drivers when they go down there. That's where we plan on trying to get the problem rectified."
The dogleg is the section past the current start-finish line as the drivers head into Turns 1 and 2. This area, which had grass as recently as 2011, sets up opportunities for drivers to go four-, five-, and even six-wide while battling for position.
The European mind can’t comprehend the dog leg at Phoenix Raceway pic.twitter.com/AByT8O3yEe
— Peyton (@TowryPeyton) October 17, 2026
The drivers slamming onto the apron of the track creates quite the visual, especially under the lights when sparks shoot out from under the cars. However, the custom mouth pieces created by Wake Forest School of Medicine to register impacts have shown that this line may not be the healthiest.
The drivers choose to take the pain because they know how crucial it is to gain track position. If they can go even slightly faster by using the dogleg, they will do so. It doesn't matter if it's qualifying or during the actual race.
This is not the first time that NASCAR has sought to make changes to a track based on gathered data. Back in 2024, NASCAR removed some curbing from the Bus Stop area of Watkins Glen International after discussions with the drivers and teams.
The previous races had featured the cars hitting the curbs and then going up on two wheels. This led to hard hits upon landing. The mouthpieces showed nearly 1,000 "impact events" during the August 2023 race at the road course. This surprised NASCAR considering the lack of cautions in the race.
Smoothing out the section led to drivers taking a more direct path through the Bus Stop, and it prevented the more violent collisions.
"I think it's a good change," AJ Allmendinger said about Watkins Glen in 2024. "You know, the (O'Reilly) car was a little violent through there, but it wasn't that bad. Man, the Cup car, you would, at least I felt like, I would almost cringe every lap as you'd roll through there, because you had to use the curb, because it's a lot of speed there.
"But it was definitely violent and a little bit painful having to do that every lap. So I'm very happy that they've taken that away. And you know, your head doesn't get rattled in between the headrest for 90-100 laps."
NASCAR will now aim to make similar changes at Phoenix Raceway while working with drivers, teams, engineers, and other interested parties. This will certainly alter future races at the 1-mile Arizona track, but it will potentially provide a long-term benefit.
