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HISTORY Strictly Stock & Grand National In 1949, NASCAR introduced the Strictly Stock division, after sanctioning only Modified division races in 1948. Eight races were run, on seven different dirt ovals and the ) for the 1950 season, reflecting NASCAR's intent to make its part of the sport more professional and more prestigious. It would retain this name until 1971. The 1949 Strictly Stock season is treated in NASCAR's record books as the first season of GN/Cup history. Rather than a fixed schedule of one race per weekend with most entrants appearing at every event, the Grand National schedule included over sixty events in some years, often with two or three on the same weekend, and occasionally with two races on the same day in different states. In the early years, most GN races were held on dirt-surfaced short ovals (from under a quarter-mile to over a half-mile lap length) or dirt fairgrounds ovals (usually a half-mile to a mile lap length). 198 of the first 221 Grand National races were on dirt tracks. In 1959, when Daytona International Speedway was opened, the schedule still had more races on dirt racetracks than paved ones. Through the 1960s, as superspeedways were built and old dirt tracks were paved, the number of dirt races was reduced.Fielden, Greg, "NASCAR Cleans Up", ''Speedway Illustrated'', September 2004. Winston Cup From 1972 through 2003, NASCAR's premier series was called the Winston Cup Series. It was sponsored by R.J. Reynolds Tobacco . In its later years, RJR's sponsorship became more controversial in the wake of U.S. legislation that sharply restricted avenues for tobacco advertising. The changes in NASCAR that resulted from RJR's involvement cause many fans to refer to 1972 as the beginning of the "Modern Era". The season was made shorter, and the point system was modified several times in the next four years. Races on Dirt Tracks were removed from the schedule, as were oval races shorter than 250 miles. NASCAR's founder, Bill France, Sr. , turned over control of NASCAR to his son, Bill France Jr. . In August 1974, Bob Latford designed a point system where equal points were awarded for all races regardless of length or prize money.Mitchell, Jason, "How Do They Do That?: Winston Cup Point System", Stock Car Racing (ISSN 0734-7340), Volume 36, Number 10, October 2001. This system was used without changes from the 1975 season until the Chase for the Championship was instituted for the 2004 season. Starting in 1981, an awards banquet has been held in New York City at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, initially in the Starlight Room. In 1985, the ceremony was moved to the Grand Ballroom, where it would be held until 2001. In 2001, the banquet portion was dropped in favor of a simpler awards ceremony. In 2002, the awards ceremony was moved to the Hammerstein Ballroom at the Manhattan Center . In 2003, the banquet format returned, as the ceremony moved back to the Waldorf-Astoria Grand Ballroom. NEXTEL & Sprint Cup In 2003, RJR dropped its sponsorship of the top series, and NASCAR obtained a sponsorship from NEXTEL , a telecommunications company. In 2004, the series became known as the NEXTEL Cup Series. The 2005 merger between Sprint and NEXTEL will result in the cup series being renamed the Sprint Cup, beginning with the 2008 season. http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/headlines/cup/07/06/sprint.nextel.cup.name.change/index.html The NEXTEL Cup Trophy is designed by Tiffany & Co. , and is silver with a pair of checkered flags in flight. Chase for the Championship See Also: Chase for the NEXTEL Cup When NEXTEL took over NASCAR's premier sponsorship for the 2004 season, they used the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series as a model to develop major changes in scoring. First, five additional points were added for a race win. Second, a new formula for declaring a series champion based on the ProCup system was devised. A cut was made after 26 races, with the high twelve drivers and teams plus ties placed in the Chase for the Championship (or simply "The Chase"). (Originally, the top ten teams plus any team within 400 points of the leader qualified; NASCAR changed this beginning with the 2007 Season .) The Chase participants have their points increased to a level mathematically unattainable by anyone outside this field (roughly 1800 points ahead of the first driver outside of the Chase). From 2004 to 2006, the leader's total was set at 5,050 points, with other positions dropping by five points per position, with a limit of 5,000 points after ties and the 400 point cut. Starting in 2007, each driver who makes the Chase will receive 5,000 points, plus 10 additional points for each race he won during the first 26 races. Race layouts remain the same and points are scored the same way in the final 10 races. Whoever leads in points after the 36th race is declared the NEXTEL Cup champion. To encourage continued competition among all drivers, a number of awards are given to drivers finishing outside the Chase. The highest finishing non-Chase driver (in 2007, 13th place at the end of the season) is awarded a bonus (approximately $1 million) and a position on stage at the postseason awards banquet. Awards are also given to the top 20 and 25 drivers and teams. Finally, finishing in the top 35 is important, as those 35 teams are guaranteed entry into the first 5 races of the next season without needing to qualify on speed. This playoff system was implemented primarily to make the points race more competitive late in the season, and indirectly, to increase television ratings during the NFL season, which starts around the same time as the Chase begins. Furthermore, the Chase also forces teams to perform at their best during all three stages of the season -- the first half of the regular season, the second half of the regular season, and the Chase. Previously, the Cup champion may have been decided before the last race (or even several races before the end of the season) because it was mathematically impossible for any other driver to gain enough points to overtake the leader. From 2004-2006 the Chase was shown on NBC Sports and TNT . In 2007, ABC will broadcast all 10 races of the Chase as part of the new NASCAR television contracts that came in effect. NEXTEL CUP OWNER'S CHAMPIONSHIP The NEXTEL Cup Owner's Championship operates in the same manner as the Driver's Championship, but with one addition. In the event of more than 43 cars attempting to qualify for a race, owner's points are awarded to each car in the following manner: the fastest non-qualifier (in essence, 44th position) receives 31 points, three less than the 43rd position car. If there is more than one non-qualifying car, owners' points continue to be assigned in the manner described, decreasing by three for each position. There is a separate "chase for the championship" for the owners' points. A 2005 rule change in NASCAR's three national series affects how the owner's points are used. The top 35 (Nextel Cup), or top 30 (other series) full-time teams in owner points are awarded exemptions for the next race, guaranteeing them a position in the next race. These points can decide who is in and out the next race, and have become crucial since the exemption rule was changed to its current format. At the end of each season, the top 35 in owner's points are also locked into the first five races of the next season. In some circumstances, a team's owners' points will differ from the corresponding driver's points. In 2005, after owner Jack Roush fired Kurt Busch during the next-to-last race weekend of the season, the #97 team finished in eighth place in owner's points, while Busch ended up tenth in driver's points. In 2002, when Sterling Marlin was injured, the #40 team finished eighth in owner's points, while Marlin was 19th in driver's points, because of the substitute drivers who kept earning owner points for the #40. MANUFACTURER'S CHAMPIONSHIP NASCAR does have a Manufacturer's Championship in their national series, although the Driver's Championship is considered more prestigious. In the past, manufacturer's championships were very prestigious because of the number of manufacturers involved, and the manufacturer's championship was a major marketing tool. In the Busch Series, the championship is known as the Bill France Performance Cup. Points are scored in a 1960-1990 Formula One system, with the winner's manufacturer scoring nine points, six for the next manufacturer, four for the manufacturer third among makes, three for the fourth, two for the fifth, and one point for the sixth positioned manufacturer. This means that if Chevrolets place first through tenth in a given race and a Ford is 11th and a Dodge 12th, Chevrolet earns 9 points, Ford 6 and Dodge 4. THE CARS History Before the early 1960s, cars were based on full sized cars such as the Chevrolet Impala or Ford Galaxie . As Mid-size Car s were introduced such as the Fairlane , they were adopted after the mid 1960s. rule that at various times stated as few as 500 cars had to be produced, or as many as one car for every make's dealership in the nation had to be sold to the general public. Sometimes cars were made expressly for NASCAR, such as the Ford Torino Talladega , which had a rounded nose. The most famous aero-warrior was the Dodge Charger Daytona and later Plymouth Superbird which had a rear spoiler raised above roof level and a shark shaped nose-cap which enabled speeds of over 220 mph, quickly outpacing most other cars. NASCAR soon rewrote the rules to effectively outlaw such outlandish aerodynamic trickery. Perhaps the least aerodynamic was the Penske-prepared factory backed 1972 AMC Matador piloted by Mark Donahue , dubbed the "flying brick". 's Melling Racing car that set the record for the fastest lap in a stock car - 212.809 mph at Talladega Superspeedway ]] In the 1980s, cars downsized into Fairmonts and Thunderbirds along with the now smaller Monte Carlos. The Monte Carlo adopted bubble back windows, while the Buick Regal would do well both on the track and as a street muscle car. The aero-Thunderbirds, driven by drivers like Mark Martin , did well. By the 1990s, GM had switched to V6-engined front-wheel-drive Luminas and Grand Prix, but the NASCAR racers only kept the body shape, with V8 rear-wheel-drive running gear. When the Ford Thunderbird was retired, without Ford having any two-door intermediate bodies, the four-door Ford Taurus was used for a body even though NASCAR racers actually have no opening doors. While the manufacturers and models of automobiles for NEXTEL Cup and Busch Series racing are named for production cars (2007 Dodge Charger (current body style), Dodge Avenger ( COT ); Chevrolet Monte Carlo (current body style), Chevrolet Impala ( COT ); Toyota Camry (both); and the Ford Fusion (both)), the similarities between NEXTEL Cup cars and actual production cars are limited to a small amount of shaping and painting of the nose, painted "headlight" and grill areas. Until 2003, the hood, roof, and decklid were identical to their stock counterparts. Because of the notorious manner of the Ford Taurus race car and how the manufacturer turned the car into an "offset" car (the car was notoriously Asymmetrical in race trim because of its oval shape), NASCAR ended this practise to put more emphasis on parity and based new body rules in 2003, similar to short track racing, where offset cars had become a burden for race officials, resulting in the "Approved Body Configuration" design. New rules for the Car Of Tomorrow eliminate the asymmetrical bodies on cars which had run rampant since the 1998 Taurus release. Car of Tomorrow See Also: Car of Tomorrow The "Car of Tomorrow" (COT) began racing during the 2007 season, with its debut at Bristol Motor Speedway in March. This car has focused mainly on safety, with the driver's seat being moved closer to the center of the car. The car's width has been increased by 4 inches, the front bumper has been re-designed to virtually eliminate Bump-drafting , and the height of the car has increased by 2 inches to accommodate taller drivers and increase aerodynamic drag. The most noticeable change to fans will be the addition of a rear wing replacing the familair spoiler. NASCAR will distribute the new wings like they do restrictor plates Speedtv.com Article on COT changes. |
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