New race director Beaux Barfield is introducing changes to the way that full course cautions and restarts are handled in the remaining races of the 2012 season.
A pit-road penalty that was all but unavoidable helped spoil a promising run by three-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson in the Pocono 500, having a long-term effect on his result.
The Kobalt Tools 500 had eleven cautions during its eventual 330-lap duration, but none was more bizarre than that thrown to cover the actions of Jimmy Watts, gas man on the #47 Toyota driven by Marcos Ambrose.