What do you think of these rules for the CUP series?

Question

No qualifying No guarantee starts. Use heat races to place field (kinda like the Gatorade Duels) If the race is now 500miles, split the cars attempting to make the race into two groups (heat 1& heat 2). Each heat 125miles, the top 20 from each heat going to the main. Then have a 250mile main. Still a total of 500 miles for the viewers and it would be more interesting. All races run on the same day. TV networks can pack the commercials in between races, so we can see more racing.
Now the points issue, give the top 5 finishers in the heats points (10 for 1st and going down 2 per spot until 2 for 5th). Then give the winner of the main 50 points going down 2 points per position until 2 for 25th. No points for finishing outside the top 25 in main or top 5 in heats.
Do away with the chase.
Every car not on the lead lap within the same scoring loop (scoring loops are placed all around the track to set the field after caution and get speed intervals) as the leader, gets a lap back.

The 500 mile was just an example. It would be the same no matter the length of race. 2 heat races each 25% of total lenght and main the other 50%.
Also there would be $ paid out in each race, so there would still be reasons to race no matter how your season is going (you really think Waltrip had a reason to continue to race in 07 after April).
As for heat races for dirt, guess somebody never watched the All Star race, pretty close to heats, and there are any points given there.
Say you wreck your $22000 car (instead of $375000), but are you getting $40mil from sponsors and winning $500000 for 1st place, it's all relative.
No change to owners points, they would also be used to split the cars for heat races, odd # heat 1, even # heat 2.
And there wouldn't be that many important jobs lost. Personally I think there are too many job positions, that it's harder for teams to be on equal playing levels. Got the money, hire more people, do better. There should be a personnel cap too.

Answer 1

WOW! You really thought about this. But you left out Owner's Points .. how would that work? (Owner's points are used to sequence the haulers into the garage area, select garage stalls and select pit stalls for practice and qualifying - the heat races in this case.) Also, you didn't define the criteria for splitting the cars into heats. And I think the heats ought to be for every race no matter the length, not just the 500 milers.

I think you have a good idea that will never get past the front door at NASCAR. What your rules do is take away "privileges", which many teams rely on, as well as the Chase, which Brian France put in place to make the Championship more interesting (and create a class system on the track!)

What I like about your rules is the fastest cars race and only the top cars/drivers get points. You've also eliminated the need to "ride around" making laps for a few points: if you can't finish in the top 25, you're out of luck and might as well park it if you're points racing.

Additionally, you've cut the number of days the teams have to be at the track to 2 at most which will decrease the cost of putting a car in the field a lot .. but you've put a bunch of folks out of work (the NASCAR officials, concessions, TV & radio reporters, tire people, gas people, track security, and various "hospitality" folks.) Now the teams have more time to spend at home with their families .. and that's good!!!

Your version of the Lucky Dog is closer to the old "race back to the flag" way of doing things before scoring loops. It's novel and I like it!

Bottom Line: Good Job!!! Just a few minor glitches to smooth out, but over all, very workable and fair.

Answer 2

I think with your format, you're tossing out the baby with the bathwater. What would happen with this particular format would definitely separate the top teams from the rest of the field, and there would be about half of the field that would probably give up halfway through the season. A team that was slow out of the gate could concievably pack it in for the season in April.

You also have to take into consideration that there are different style tracks with different lengths involved, and that not all races are 500 miles long.

Then there's the cars that get better as the race goes on. with the scoring loops at different intervals, I'm guessing you are suggesting that instead of retaining the lead lap, if a car is not in the same "interval" as the lead car, they get moved a lap down, even though they are still on the lead lap. The best car/ driver could theoretically end up ten laps down at the end of the race if I understand your suggestion correctly. I like the "lucky dog" ruling, I think it keeps more competitors involved with the end result.

I don't know if a "playoff system" could ever work in NASCAR as long as there are 43 cars in the field with only a few of those cars competing for the prize. In other playoffs, the teams that don't make the playoffs go home, but would anyone want to watch Homestead with only two cars racing? In a true "playoff format", that's what would happen, and then it wouldn't be fair, because you're changing the racing conditions and dynamics.

NASCAR is a unique sport. They don't have "playoffs" in golf, which is the only sport I can think of with the same style format, one player competing against the "field" of other players. Where the two sports differ is that there is no "points" accumulation in golf, and no "championship" at the end of the year.

With more questions than answers, the one thing the chase has done so far is prevent a "runaway winner" with two months of the season left. I like that part of the "chase", it keeps more fans engaged for a longer period of time. I don't think there's a "fair" way to do the chase, and I don't believe it was instituted to be "fair".

It's also not "fair" that a top 35 in owner's points automatically qualifies a car for any given race. With the different styles of tracks, and with each track having it's own "quirks" is it fair that a team that runs the Daytona 500 well be automatically included in the next race, when their setup just totally sucks for the track involved? Shouldn't NASCAR's concerns be that the best 43 cars/drivers/teams for a particular track be on that track on any given Sunday? I think this in itself would keep the competition closer. There ARE tracks that HMS has trouble with, tracks that DEI has trouble with, etc. If they got rid of the "top 35" and the "past champion" provisionals, perhaps the chase wouldn't be necessary.

Perhaps the elimination of the "championship" is what needs to be done. Let each race stand on it's own merits.

Answer 3

I admire your thoughts and efforts. It is like local dirt track racing( NOT GARBAGE) as some have answered. I race under similar formats in the 2 tracks i run at in my home State--Late Model & Sportsman Class Stock. But Nascar is not the Place for such a format---These 375.000 dollar cars cannot be used for Heat races and due to the Cost of Totalling one out and then missing the Main Event. I moan and groan on my level When I have to Qualify--Then Run a Quick 6-Then run a Heat race before the Main and my late Model with Approximately 22,000 dollars cost has been torn to pieces in Heat races!!!!!!!

Answer 4

Dump the the owners pts and past champion provisional, and dump the chase in 08..I'm not a lucky dog fan either...Just let the fastest boys race..

GO Dale Jr & Hms in 2008

Answer 5

Heat races are for dirt tracks.

Answer 6

that's saturday night amateur short track garbage