New NASCAR rules for wet weather races coming into effect from Richmond

NASCAR has come up with a new set of rules for wet weather races that is expected to come into effect from August 11th onwards at Richmond Raceway. After a two-week break due to the Paris Olympics, NASCAR will return for the 23rd race of the season; the Cook Out 400.

Previously, several NASCAR races have been jeopardized by unfavorable weather conditions. For example, the street race in Chicago in July was haunted by rain for the second year in a row. Come Richmond, recent reports suggest that there is a 10-15% chance of rain during the weekend.

On that note, journalist Kelly Crandall has recently confirmed NASCAR's new set of rules for wet races.

"NASCAR has updated the procedures for wet weather races, which will begin this weekend at Richmond Raceway," said Krandall.

The rules, as reported by Jayski.com, are as follows:

"•Tire changes permitted (wets for wets)

•Teams will manage how they will use the wet weather tire allotment of four sets

•Team’s option to stay out on the track and gain positions in relation to those who entered pit road."

There have been instances of NASCAR running wet races earlier this season. The Cup drivers stayed out of caution over the opening 30 laps of the rain-delayed Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway before switching back to slicks.

It was also the first time that NASCAR hopped on wet tires for a point-paying race on an oval track. Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin won the race.

Richmond Raceway to make NASCAR Cup Series history thanks to its second race of 2024

Richmond Raceway is about to become the first racetrack in the NASCAR Cup Series history to utilize tires made of two different kinds of rubber. Each team will be allotted 8 sets of tires, 6 of which are the standard Goodyear "prime" tires. The other two will be softer counterparts of the "prime" tires, called "option" tires.

The "prime" tires will have Goodyear written in yellow whereas, the "option" tires will have red lettering on them. The "option" tires will help the drivers pack speed in their machines quickly. However, they are more likely to lose grip due to their softer build. These tires do not include the wet tires.

"The option tires are going to possibly throw a new wrench in things, but with everyone in the same boat, the playing field is even," William Byron, driver of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevy said in an official HMS statement. "Getting the most out of practice on Saturday will be crucial to prepare strategy-wise for Sunday. I'm interested to see how it will play out and hopefully we come out on the good end of it."

Watch the 400-lap race live on the USA Network and NBC Sports. Fans can also listen to radio updates on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.