By racedaysaeditor

Texas Motor Speedway and Circuit of The Americas have implemented fan-friendly shifts for their premier NASCAR Cup Series race dates in 2025.

The “Texas Two-Step” Promotion announced Thursday will see COTA’s world-class, 3.41-mile/20-turn natural terrain road-course in Austin move up to NCS Race No. 3 of the season on Sunday, March 2. Meanwhile, TMS’ high-banked/1.5-mile oval in Fort Worth has been slotted for Sunday, May 5. Fans who purchase Cup tickets for either COTA or TMS can save 20 percent off the additional Texas race via the “Texas Two-Step” initiative.

COTA and TMS operated with a three-week separation between their NASCAR race weekends in 2024. The announced break from March to May between NCS events is designed to allow NASCAR fans additional time to plan their trips in the Lone Star State.

Circuit of The Americas’ FIA-approved layout will play host to the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix on Sunday, March 2. The season’s first road-course event moves from late March in 2024 to immediately after the 2025 season-opening Daytona 500 on Daytona International Speedway’s high-banked/2.5-mile oval and NCS Race No. 2 on Atlanta Motor Speedway’s 1.5-mile oval in 2025.

Texas Motor Speedway is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports, LLC, a leading marketer and promoter of motorsports entertainment in the United States. TMS slides from its mid-April date in 2024 to Sunday, May 4, in 2025 for the fourth running of the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400. “The Great American Speedway” will now play host to the 11th race of the 36-event season, following a stop at Talladega Superspeedway’s high-banked/2.66-mile trioval.

“Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth are destination markets for NASCAR fans from across the country and around the world,” Speedway Motorsports President/CEO Marcus Smith said in a news release. “This new schedule allows fans not only from out of state, but also Texas-based fans to have more convenient dates to plan vacation time with family and friends.

“We received a lot of feedback earlier this year from fans who said they’d like to attend both races but they were just too close together on the calendar. NASCAR worked with us to create a 2025 schedule that is more accommodating for fans to enjoy everything that both Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth have to offer.”

Speedway Motorsports’ “Texas Two-Step” promotion will give ticket purchasers of either NCS race a 20-percent discount if they would like to attend both races, which will fall on notable dates. The EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix will be held on Texas Independence Day and the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400 is scheduled just before Cinco de Mayo.

COTA and TMS also will play host to additional NASCAR national series events during their respective Cup weekends. The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) will compete at COTA on Saturday, March 1, with the Focused Health 250.

The event weekend in Austin also will feature the IMSA-sanctioned VP Racing SportsCar Challenge in its COTA debut. The series showcases three different classes and includes exotic, Prototype sports cars racing alongside GT-style cars from many of the world’s marquee manufacturers. The weekend will include a pair of 45-minute sprint races _ no pit stops, no driver changes _ just an all-out battle from the drop of the green flag until the checkered flag falls.

The NXS, along with the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS), will head to TMS for a tripleheader weekend in May. Race action will open with the NCTS SpeedyCash.com 250 on Friday, May 2, followed by the NXS Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 on Saturday, May 3. In addition, the dirt-throwing, side-by-side and sideways action of the Kubota High Limits Racing Sprint Car Series will return to the TMS Dirt Track during NASCAR Race Week with full nights of practice, qualifying, heats and features on May 1 and May 3.

TV/radio broadcast start times and network affiliations will be announced at a later date, along with additional support series and entertainment.

Tickets for children 12-and-under are $10 for the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix and AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 NCS races and free for the Focused Health 250 and Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 NXS races, SpeedyCash.com 250 NCTS race and IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge. For individual tickets, weekend packages and camping, visit NASCARatCOTA.com or TexasMotorSpeedway.com.