Talladega will no longer be NASCAR elimination race in 2017

Everyone gets wrecked at Talladega

NASCAR has decided that the guaranteed carnage every race at Talladega Superspeedway won't be an elimination race in next year's championship Chase, instead taking the pivotal stop to Kansas Speedway.

The two tracks swapped dates Thursday in the most significant change to the 2017 schedule.

To the frustration of many drivers, Talladega had been the third race in the second round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. The chaotic finish last year, when a wreck prevented Dale Earnhardt Jr. from having a chance to race Joey Logano for the victory, only underscored those opinions.

Logano was already locked into the next round of the Chase, but Earnhardt needed a win to advance. NASCAR's most popular driver finished second under caution and was eliminated from championship contention.

Things were just as chaotic at Talladega last weekend, when several multi-car accidents involved 35 cars. Some drivers opined that they'd rather sit at home than run at the restrictor-plate track.