What are the Basics of NASCAR?

Question

I have enjoyed watching racing for a few years now. Espically Nascar. Unitl recently it has been a tightly kept secret from a lot of my family. Meaning until just recently I only got to watch it on TV for about five minutes at a time.
So Now that it is out in the open I want to learn more about it
My Question is
What are the main Basics of NASCAR? What is the Point system and ranking system? What are the rules of the sport?

Answer 1

One day, not so long ago, I was a CART fan. I married into a NASCAR family and had no clue what was going on. Now, CART has fallen apart and NASCAR is pretty much all there is to watch as Indy cars are glorified lawn mowers.

Here are the basics.

Anway, lets start with points:

Each driver that starts the race earns points. First place earns 175 points and 43rd place earns 34 points. A driver can earn 5 additional points for leading a lap. The driver that leads the most laps earns another 5 bonus points (for a total of 10 bonus points for the race).

The point increments between each position reduces at certain intervals. For some positions, it is a 5 point difference between positions, for some positions it is 4 points and for the rest it is 3 points (I am not sure of the exact range of positions for each point spread...5 points difference between positions is for the drivers that finish near the top and the 3 point difference is for the positions near the end of the field)

The points are accumulated over the entire season and this creates the driver rankings. The 10 drivers with the most points with 10 races left in the season are eligible to win the Nextel Cup. Both the drivers in the top 10 and below the top 10 are racing for position in the final standings during the last 10 races.

The rest is pretty much standard in all racing leagues.

The cars must meet certain critera to be legal. Some examples are car weight and height. Certain tracks require the spoiler be set at a minimum angle or higher. Some tracks require what are called restrictor plates to reduce the speeds of the car (these plates are put in the engine to restrict airflow and reduce the horesepower the engine can put out as a result). There are a ton of various restrictions on the car that can change from track to track. The point of all the restrictions is to keep the cars somewhat "even" mechanically.

NASCAR doesn't race in the rain on oval courses. I believe all series race in the rain on road courses though.

As far as rules...

Rules and NASCAR is kind of an oxymoron. There obviously are rules, but either rules seem to contradict or they are not enforced the same for all drivers.

The only rules that are consistantly enforced in NASCAR are the pit road rules. There is a speed limit on pit road (that changes from track to track). Each car has a pit "box" and no work can be done on the car outside the box. There is a limited number of crew workers that can go over the wall to service the car. All pit road equipment and tools must be removed from the car before the car leaves its box.

On the track, the rules are fuzzy at best. If a driver bumps a driver on the track and wrecks them, it is usually OK. A driver can be penalized for intentionally wrecking another car or for driving wrecklessly. When a driver in penalized for a driving infraction, the penalty varies widely. In 2001, Tony Stewart was put on probation for having an on-track conflict with Jeff Gordon. Stewart was penalized again while on probation, and his probation was only extended (which I thought defeats the point of probation) In 2002, Harvick got into an altercation with Biffle and was benched for the next race.

When the yellow flag is thrown, the field is frozen. This rule made a bunch of fans mad at the Daytona 500 this year as the yellow flag wasn't thrown on the last lap when Harvick and Martin were racing to the finish. The flag should have been thrown, giving the victory to Martin (probably). NASCAR didn't throw the flag and Harvick won while everyone from 3rd position on back wrecked.

Anyway, that's the basics of NASCAR. You'll pick it up as you watch it.

Answer 2

I think it's great that you want to know more. Basic of NASACAR is go fast and turn left. Driver get points for where the finish in a race and weather or not they led a lap. This is a loaded answer so I'll refer you to the website below for everthing else. But I do recomend you going to a race. I was a fan when I went to my first race and I left a fanatic! NASCAR is trully a way of life.

Answer 3

Basics of Nascar racing get in car, go fast, make left hand turns, check with crew chief making sure its not a road course. Points dont matter until the end of the season and who makes the chase.

Answer 4

NASCAR Basics:

1. GO FAST

2. TURN LEFT

3. Be ahead of the wreck on the final lap.

Answer 5

First of all, NASCRAp is to racing what AOL is to the internet. It is a good "starter" package - but it is not the best product.

For the best product, watch the Champ Car World Series. Their season starts in about 5+ weeks when they hit the streets of Vegas for the Las Vegas Grand Prix - April 6-8, 2007.

Now, the goal of all racing (even NASCRAp) is to cross the finish line first. Each series has their sets of rules. Teams setup the car to get as much speed out of it as possible - sometimes breaking the rules.

Cars have to weigh so much, they can only hold so much fuel, etc.

In top level racing, cars get inspected several times over the course of a weekend. Including after qualifying sessions and after the race.

Series to avoid watching - as they may cause blindness - the .1RL. Tony George has taken the world's greatest race and ruined it. Besides, the .1RL cars sound like farting bees.

NASCRAp. Rubbin is not racin. Cars that can be repaired with duct tape & hammers are inferior to the sleek, turbo charged Champ Cars.

2007 is a perfect season to take interest in the Champ Car World Series(formerally CART) as they have an all new chassis - the DP-01. Their engines sound cool (turbo charged) and they race all over the world. There is a 3 time defending champion (Sebastien Bourdais) that may be the best driver on the planet.

Answer 6

Go to nascar.com and, click on the tab at the top of the page, that says nascar 101.

Answer 7

Number one today seems to be - Hate Jeff Gordon
Number two seems to be - Love Earnhardt Junior
Number three is wreck Jeff Gordon
number four is belittle Jeff Gordon
number five is to slow down and let Earnhardt Junior Pass if he is out of the top ten as the season must end with Junior and Gordon in the top ten as the most loved and most hated sells tickets. Junior would never be there if they did not wreck Gordon often enough and stop to let Junior pass. NASCAR requires all other drivers to ensure these ticket sellers are in the top ten or the others do not get paid as much.
I get so aggravated as everyone is so down on Poor Jeff because he is articulate, pretty, and popular. These are the three most hated traits by rednecks and so Jeff is not considered human by most in NASCAR.
I only watch the last 40 to 60 laps as it gets boring.
The stupid points system is supposed to be changed or dumped this year as it just doesn't have any rational relationship to racing.
They race all year and then before the last ten races everyone goes back to zero (0) and starts over. Why not just have the last ten races then. Then the top ten of the restarted season get money after it is over with the guy scoring the most laps leading races being champion. The guy does not necessarily have to win a single race before or after the final ten begin. Stoo-pid Stoo-pid

Answer 8

Slider728 said it all. The only thing he got wrong was this, NASCAR doesn't race in the rain, anywhere,at any time.Other than that....great answer.

Answer 9

Go to NASCAR.COM. Click on the section titled NASCAR 101. It's got a section for history, points, glossary, etc. It should answer most of your questions. The site deals with facts, while most of us on here deal with opinions--mostly our own. But hey, we're fans.

Answer 10

driving your car in a circle, the basics