NASCAR tweaks Cup stage lengths and lower series rules

[SBR Drew]

Since the introduction of stage racing in 2017, NASCAR races outside of the Coca-Cola 600 have featured three stages with the final being longer than the first two (which are identical in length). If weather were to force a race to be cut short, the event must reach the end of Stage #2 in order for it to be called official. In 2020, NASCAR will return to pre-stage rules for official races, now allowing events to be called at the halfway point even if it is not necessarily the conclusion of the second stage.
For 2020, Stage #3 for sixteen races have been adjusted to allow for more balance between the three segments. For example, the season-opening Daytona 500, which used to have 60-lap Stages #1 and 2 and an 80-lap Stage #3, will now be split into 65, 65, and 70. Texas Motor Speedway, whose final stage was 164 laps long compared to the 85 of the first two, now consists of two 105-lap segments followed by one of 124 laps.

[SBR Drew]

Daytona 500	65, 65, 70	65, 130, 200	60, 60, 80	60, 120, 200
Atlanta	105, 105, 115	105, 210, 325	85, 85, 155	85, 170, 325
Darlington	115, 115, 137	115, 230, 367	100, 100, 167	100, 200, 367
Daytona 2 (Coke Zero Sugar 400)	50, 50, 60	50, 100, 160	50, 50, 60	50, 100, 160
Dover	75, 162, 163	75, 237, 400	120, 120, 160	100, 240, 400
New Hampshire	75, 100, 116	75, 185, 301	75, 75, 151	75, 150, 301
Phoenix	75, 115, 112	75, 190, 312	75, 75, 162	75, 150, 312
Pocono 1	25, 52, 53	25, 77, 130	50, 50, 60	50, 100, 160
Pocono 2	30, 55, 55	30, 85, 140	50, 50, 61	50, 100, 161
Richmond	80, 155, 165	80, 235, 400	100, 100, 200	100, 200, 400

The change was spurred to allow teams to only make one pit stop under green rather than two. NASCAR had also considered adding a fourth stage to divide the race into quarters like the 600 (which features a balance of 100 laps per stage).