Chat Transcript: Brian France

Brian France: First of all I am excited about my new rule and this is an exciting time for NASCAR. We have so many young and talented drivers mixed with great veteran drivers that the future looks very bright and I am looking forward to doing everything I can to keep delivering on the NASCAR promise, which is great, competitive racing.

24JG25BV48JJ: Brian, you must be excited about this new opportunity for you, and with Nextel coming on board starting next year for Cup races, does this mean bigger and better for NASCAR?

Brian France: Absolutely, in fact, given that they are a company that is focused on wireless communication, they are going to be doing so many neat things that our fans will feel very good about 2004.

SETXFan: Given the numbers for viewership and attendance at Texas Motor Speedway, not to mention the prize money and amenities afforded the drivers, what is preventing NASCAR from scheduling a second weekend of Busch and Nextel Cup racing at that venue?

Brian France: Well, the reality of not enough time in the year to be able to accommodate a new weekend of any sort is our biggest challenge, but we try to look at that on an annual basis to see if that needs changes. Right now there is too much pressure on our teams and drivers to be adding weekends, as much as we might like to.

Mallory: Mr. France, what do you think about redoing the points system? Should changes be made?

Brian France: Well, we look at the points system over a 10- or 15-year cycle, not just from one year. We are going to look into it in the fall to see if we can make some improvements in the points system. Historically it has worked well and it has rewarded the right points for consistency and winning, but if something new is found there, we are going to be open to it.

Steve: What are your plans for the Weekly Racing Series? Will it be status quo or is realignment in the future?

Brian France: The Weekly Series and Touring divisions have had some good changes in the last several years to reorganize all the grassroots racing that NASCAR is responsible for. We are confident that we have that going in as good a direction now that we can.

jj48fan: Just wondering who makes the decision on when to red flag a race? On Sunday we saw the cars run over 20 laps and 30 minutes under caution when in my opinion the race should have been red flagged in order to repair the outside retaining wall.

Brian France: That is a tough call. The call is made by whoever is running the control tower for NASCAR, and they are trying to balance how long a repair might take, and sometimes it actually takes longer. They prefer not to throw the red out, but at Dover, I think the repair took longer than they anticipated.

luvdalejr8: What are you looking forward to most about being chairman of NASCAR?

Brian France: It is to work with the great people in our industry and keep delivering on our promise to millions of fans for the competitive racing we have been known for, and this is a big challenge and we are anxious to do our part. With Nextel, our young drivers, and the venues and tracks doing such a great job hosting the events, this is a great time to be running NASCAR and I am looking forward to it.

TooRollingStoned: I hear a lot of talk about new tracks being built, but I've also heard that the number of events will not increase. Will NASCAR expand the current Winston Cup schedule or will it develop a divisional schedule like ball sports?

Brian France: I am not sure how many tracks will actually get built in the future -- I guess less, not more. The reality of it is that the realignment we announced back in January should help some of these instances of possibly having new venues opened, and we always look at the week in and week out stress to the drivers and teams.

I don't foresee a "National" and "American" League at this time because this works so well. Our fans expect to see all the same drivers at all the same tracks at all times, so I would be hesitant to make any changes there.

NascarRulz: You said on the "Countdown to Green" at Dover that you were going to make the competition on the track more competitive. How are you planning on doing that?

Brian France: I said I was anxious to help do my part, and right now we are looking at the rules packages for 2004 with John Darby and Mike Helton. I am anxious to help make the most passing and excitement for our drivers and fans for what they expect, which are great finishes at great events, and we will continue with our charge to do that.

BradDulny: With night racing being so much more favorable (regardless of the day of the week or venue) to fans, TV viewers, broadcast partners/ratings, drivers, crews and so forth, why aren't more races at night, particularly at the tracks that already have lights?

Brian France: We have been increasing the amount of events, and Charlotte is a good example, and Darlington is now putting lights in. We have a lot of events that also work very well on Sunday, too, so we want to make sure that if those events are doing well, they stay where they are.

TRAVINSC: With the addition of soft walls and the new driver roof hatch, do you foresee improvements to the driver side impact area of cars in the near future? Thank you.

Brian France: I do, and it is all for the good. The soft walls data is coming in and it is improving things at a solid rate and while there are still tracks that we have not tested yet in race simulation, we are optimistic that the soft walls will be everything we hoped for.

Thor0719: If NASCAR is so concerned with giving it's fans "exciting side-by-side racing" then why are they constantly giving tracks like New Hampshire repeat Cup race dates when tracks like Kentucky Speedway, "testing capital of the world," can't get a Cup race?

Brian France: First of all, Loudon and Homestead have made dramatic changes to their surfaces to get better side-by-side racing, but we also have partnerships with every track that host events and we wouldn't want our current partners to look over their shoulders wondering when we would pull a date from their track because we think it should be somewhere else. That would be a blow to our business model and it would not be fair to our fans.

csispdteam: Will NASCAR ever have a traveling safety team or on-track doctor?

Brian France: There are on-track doctors that are familiar with the local circumstances and we do look at the idea of a traveling rescue team race in and race out, but right now we feel our system is the best one that works for NASCAR. That doesn't mean we aren't looking at improvements, but we feel we have a good system that is getting good results when it comes to safety.

swekkak: Is there anything in the works to have a Cup race held in Canada, or is there any hope of having a TV deal so that Canadian viewers can see all the races live?

Brian France: They can see most races live today, as a matter of fact our TV viewership in Canada is almost as strong as the US. There would be no way at this time to add a new Cup date in Canada, nor do I know of a venue that would showcase our racing best anyway, but we are doing well on TV there. There are a lot of Canadian fans that love NASCAR.

Rich: Will NASCAR be looking at the fuel cell size in the future? Racing has become more of a pit stop race then actually a driver race.

Brian France: Pit stops should play an important role in the strategy of the race, and we have changed the fuel cells for of course Talladega this weekend, but we think fuel strategy is always part of winning a race in NASCAR and we wouldn't want to see that totally go away.

gee6162: Mr. France, I would like to know what is the status of your diversity program? I heard so much about it earlier this year and have not heard any more. Being a black female, I am looking for information that I can pass along to others in my community.

Brian France: It is going well, and NASCAR is an American sport and we want everyone in this country to be welcome to NASCAR. We have a variety of initiatives that we are responsible for. We are growing our African-American fan base. There are a lot of ways to get involved in NASCAR and it is an exciting sport to be part of.

SMITHKART: What is NASCAR's next safety project after soft walls?

Brian France: Safety initiatives never end at NASCAR, and that is why our R&D center spends every waking moment building on our success today. In my lifetime, this will never end. This is an ever-growing portion of our industry.

derekgurtler: Mr. France, what do you think about getting more races out west, like giving Las Vegas another race and maybe racing again at Sonoma later in the year?

Brian France: We are working on that with a new event in California via the realignment package from 2004 under the lights in the LA market, so that is one more out West, and we think that is a good thing.

24FANCalgary: Good day to you Mr. France. In light of the fact that Ryan Newman appeared to have won the last race due to the latest rule change, will NASCAR look into the idea of changing who and how drivers get their laps back?

Brian France: No, not right now. We just debuted the rule last week and we think on balance it is a good rule. Ryan did benefit from that rule, and he may not benefit next week. The idea that you can get a lap back has always been part of NASCAR, but someone has always benefited in the past by racing back to the flag, which puts the drivers in a difficult position. This is why we made the rule change and we feel it is good for the safety of our drivers.

jj48LowesFan: Brian, have you thought about trying to get some fresh faces in the NASCAR organization? It's nice to see that your family has been in for so long, but some of the leadership of NASCAR seem so hesitant to change the rules and use logic while doing so.

Brian France: We have added a great deal to our management team over the last five years and we have a lot of people outside of the France family that are dedicated and want to keep the legacy going forward. I can assure everyone that that is my responsibility too, and we will.

carsoftco: Why was Jeremy Mayfield not fined for his post-race language after Dover? It seems everyone was after Richmond!

Brian France: That is under review and I would just say stay tuned! We are examining that now and we will be reacting to that shortly.

jr8budcar: Hi Brian, can you give us any ideas Nextel is coming up with that we can look forward to next year? Good luck in the future! NASCAR is in great hands!!

Brian France: Thank you! I really can't get into the details because there are some great surprises that Nextel wants to release in their own way, but the plans they have are very interactive for our fans and they are going to be bringing the racing action to our fans in ways that are very different, and our fans are going to love the Nextel relationship. They are going to be a great partner for NASCAR.

BradDulny: Cup/Busch/Truck combined weekends are very popular and successful. Are there plans to create more combined weekends for everyone's benefit?

Brian France: The scheduling, especially with the Truck Series, is something that we do every year and we have made a variety of changes of how we are combining events up, like a Truck race in Atlanta and Charlotte, and Busch races that moved as well. But there are some stand-alone Busch races that do very well for our fans and tracks in different parts of the country.

MikeB: I'm one of the many avid NASCAR fans in the NYC area that would be thrilled to see a race in the area. Are there any plans to construct a facility in the area?

Brian France: I can't comment to the timeline, but we have always said that New York is a very interesting market for NASCAR and it has a large population base that includes many NASCAR fans. That is a place that a track in that area would work out in NASCAR's favor.

Massingcc23: A lot of Junior fans are anxiously awaiting the decision on if he can race on Sunday and make it five wins in a row. Have you heard anything yet and where the process is? Thanks from all of the Junior fans out there.

Brian France: My understanding is that they may have already released something from the team. As a matter of fact, he has been cleared according to NASCAR.com!

NASCAR_MARY: Mr. France, do you have any final thoughts?

Brian France: First of all, thanks to the millions of fans who support NASCAR in every way you know how. You just need to know that we have so many people in our organization that are so dedicated at delivering the NASCAR promise for the best racing in the world. Talladega is one of my favorite events with all the lead changes and we are very excited about the weekend, and everything else coming up.