Posted on 01/20/2004 8:09:19 AM PST by pro libertate
CONCORD, N.C. -- NASCAR changed its scoring system Tuesday, setting up a showdown for the Nextel Cup over the season's last 10 races.
"I'm confident it is going to work and the drivers and teams are going to like it after they hear all the details," NASCAR chairman Brian France said.
NASCAR has been criticized in recent years for using a points system that rewarded consistency more than winning. Matt Kenseth won the 2003 championship despite finishing first in just one race. Ryan Newman was sixth in the standings despite winning a series-high eight races.
The new system will change after the first 26 races. The drivers in the top 10 and any others within 400 points of the leader will earn a berth in the "chase for the championship."
Those drivers will have their point totals adjusted. The first-place driver will begin the final 10 races with 5,050 points, the second driver 5,045 and so on, with incremental drops of five points.
The drivers not involved in the championship will keep the points they have earned to that point in the season.
NASCAR will award a race winner an additional five points, beginning with the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 15.
Kinda like the NBA or NHL.
I look at the new rules as just setting up a new series with the Elite 10 class and everyone else in the Consolation Series running in the same race. Why doesn't Brains France just come out and run the 10 car 10 race Trophy Dash and a 10 race Suckers Series. This is going to make the fans of the Schraders, Bensons and the others feel like second tier supporters. To make it complete France should tell them they have to sit in the cheap seats...
They qualified. It doesn't matter, what I think would work just fine would not be implemented anyway, I was just making a statement.
If someone blows an engine five laps in, he didn't earn anything, so cut off the points somewhere like halfway down the field. That will also cut back on some of these drivers who are just in the way 100 laps down joyriding for points.
You're brutal. lol
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