NASCAR to Enforce Restarts More Tightly

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NASCAR threatened to enforce restarts more tightly beginning with Sunday's race at Chicagoland Speedway, cautioning drivers in a pre-race meeting to restart the proper way.

"Drivers, it's your responsibility to restart correctly," Sprint Cup Series director Richard Buck said. "This is your warning."

Buck re-read the restart rules aloud – they were also played in an instructional video – and acknowledged drivers' increasing complaints about NASCAR's lack of enforcement. Restarts have been a hot topic for the last month or so because drivers feel they can take advantage of the restart zone and go early without penalty, leading to competitors calling for NASCAR to crack down.

"There's been a lot of dialogue and a lot of discussion on restarts, and we thank you for that," Buck said. "We understand the stakes are very high, so we want to be crystal clear on the restart rules and how they will be enforced.

"The restart rules have not changed. We will continue to monitor every restart using the technology available to us. " (USA Today)