When to throw the yellow? NASCAR’s last-lap caution conundrum

NASCAR’s race control has been struggling to decide when a wreck warrants a race-ending yellow in the first two races of the 2025 season. But to understand why it’s been so difficult to answer them, we need to jump back before this year’s Daytona 500 even got underway.

NASCAR’s sanctioning body’s stance on last-lap cautions has normally been to throw it if there’s any major incident, no matter what. That stance would see a change, though, as it came under fire at the end of the second Duel qualifying race. Austin Cindric and Erik Jones were side-by-side in what was about to be a photo finish as some cars crashed mid-pack. The field was mere seconds from the finish line and due to the timing of the caution, Cindric was declared the winner despite Jones nosing ahead of him at the finish line. It was an awkward few minutes as Jones, believing himself to be the victor, pumped his fist and parked on the frontstretch while Cindric returned to the pits. 

Erik Jones AdventHealth Toyota Daytona 500 Duel #2

Photo by: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

The question was clear. What difference did that caution make when the crash occurred just before the start/finish line? Most agreed that the yellow didn’t change anything due to how close the field was to the line, except who won the race. Due to mounting criticism, NASCAR admitted that the caution call was a mistake and took a more laid back approach to last-lap incidents for the rest of the weekend. This approach left many shocked and surprised as the Daytona 500 remained green as the five drivers leading the race all crashed, spinning wildly in front of the pack on the final lap.

NASCAR maintained this same posture into last weekend at Atlanta, allowing the field to race back as several cars crashed wildly on the backstretch during the Xfinity race. This resulted in new pushback, this time from drivers who didn’t like how cars were recklessly speeding through an accident scene while those who lifted lost several positions. Yet again, NASCAR said they made a mistake and switched up their position once more. Should an incident like that unfold at the end of the Cup race the following day, they declared that a caution would be triggered.

Well, as fate would have it, that exact scenario played out. Josh Berry spun on the backstretch at the end of the Cup race, collecting several other cars. NASCAR threw the caution, but unfortunately, doing so denied those watching another historic finish. The leaders were three-wide racing through the final corner, but the yellow flag put a stop to the photo finish this time around. Naturally, fans were angry, and the question of safety versus entertainment moved into the forefront of the conversation.

Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports Chevrolet, Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Photo by: Jonathan Bachman – Getty Images

What really is the answer, then?

The problem they face is this: Throwing the caution will surely ruin some finishes, but not throwing it could endanger the well-being of the drivers on track. And the sanctioning did themselves a disservice going back-and-forth like this over the past two weeks, causing more confusion and a lack of clarity by changing their position so much — regardless of where they ultimately land.

But they also did themselves a disservice by overcorrecting from where they were in Duels to where they were entering Atlanta. There’s no situation where that caution at the end of the Duel qualifying race helped from a safety standpoint. Speaking just for superspeedways, NASCAR shouldn’t be throwing a caution for a wreck that happens from the exit of Turn 4 to the start/finish line. And they also shouldn’t be forcing drivers to floor it through an incident on the backstretch or risk losing several positions and critical points. A spin in the back is a not a race-ending caution, but the leaders crashing in front of the field on the backstretch surely is, and there’s no reason for a yellow once the checkered flag is in sight. That is the best of both worlds.

Last-lap crash, Daytona 500 (Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing; Cole Custer, Haas Factory Team; Cody Ware, Rick Ware Racing; Ty Gibbs, Joe Gibbs Racing; Austin Cindric, Team Penske; Alex Bowman, Hendrick Motorsports)

Photo by: James Gilbert / Getty Images

NASCAR is not alone in trying to guarantee a green-flag finish, sometimes to their own determinant. In recent years, the Indianapolis 500 has been employing the use of red flags to ensure there are enough laps to finish under green (since there are no overtime rules in IndyCar). Marcus Ericsson slammed race control for a stoppage that led to a one-lap dash to decide the 2023 Indy 500, which left him as a sitting duck out front. And of course, Formula 1 infamously twisted its own rule book in order to let the 2021 title-decider at Abu Dhabi go back green for a one-lap dash to decide the world championship in a race finish people are still stewing over.

Another way of calling cautions

But is there more NASCAR can do? Some have suggested allowing for last-lap cautions to simply push the race into another overtime restart, but I would caution against it. NASCAR used such a rule in 2022 during the All-Star Race, which resulted in a [questionable] caution just as Ryan Blaney was taking the checkered flag. The yellow came so late, he thought the race was over and even took down his window net. He actually had to physically hold it up while fending off the field for one final restart.

Allowing for subjective calls that close to the finish just feels like closing one Pandora’s box only to open another. The truth is that some races are going to end under caution. There’s no avoiding that. And yes, it sucks. But NASCAR can certainly handle it better than they have over the last two weeks. 

But to be fair, the Cup race at Atlanta presented a really difficult one for race control as the leaders were three-wide as a wreck unfolded mid-pack. And perhaps there’s another alternative in those situations — a caution that freezes the field behind the race leaders or around the accident scene, allowing for those up front to settle the battle for the win naturally while drivers in 20th aren’t plowing through a wreck to finish 15th. 

And no matter what path they chose to take, we just need consistency — something NASCAR has historically lacked when making some of these calls. Too often we see Elton Sawyer [senior VP of competition] having to explain race control’s decisions in a post-race media scrum. And too often fans leave race finishes frustrated and confused. While it would be nice if drivers could stop crashing into each other one lap shy of the checkered flag, NASCAR needs to be better prepared to handle it when these very fluid situations present themselves. No two wrecks are the same and they won’t always get it in right, but NASCAR needs to be able to make calls on the fly that sit right with the majority of drivers and fans afterwards. Clear procedures for what is caution worthy and what is not need to be put in place and most of all, consistency is needed or else they risk losing the trust of those watching every Sunday.

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