DAYTONA BEACH, FL - NASCAR has established a new method for determining the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series championship, and has reallocated its annual point fund to provide more awards for more drivers in the series. For the first time in 15 years, a traditional NASCAR championship points system will replace the Competition Performance Index (CPI), which ranked the drivers by a statistical index and was used to determine the series champion each year from 1990-2004.
Beginning in 2005, drivers in each track’s top NASCAR class will be awarded championship points at each race. The driver with the highest total – based on their best 16 finishes of the season – will win a championship in one of NASCAR’s four newly-designated divisions: Division I, Division II, Division III and Division IV. Each division includes a group of randomly-assigned tracks and is not based on geography or types of cars. Point fund awards will be distributed equally to all four divisions. The divisional champion with the highest point total overall will be crowned as the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series national champion.
“This new championship points system marks a new era for the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series,” said NASCAR President Mike Helton. “Since it was founded in 1982, this series has grown to become the premier short track series in North America and this new format will continue to create excitement for teams, tracks, drivers and fans, while ensuring a fair and competitive race for the championship. NASCAR is going to strengthen this series and provide greater support to the true foundation of our sport.”
The divisional and national championships are open to drivers competing in the top class at each NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series track – including Late Model Stock Cars, Modifieds, Dirt Modifieds, Dirt Late Models, Late Model Sportsman, Super Late Models, Super Stocks and other styles of cars.
Highlights of the new format include:
Ø A simple points system … Championship points will be awarded as follows: 50 points to the winner of each race, 48 points for second place, 46 points for third place, 44 points for fourth place, and so on. The driver with the highest points total within each division will win that divisional title.
Ø Bonus points for higher car counts … Bonus points will be awarded based on the number of cars competing at each track. Ten bonus points will be awarded per driver, per finish, at each race with between 15-20 cars in the field. Twenty bonus points will be awarded per driver, per finish, at each race with 21 or more cars in the field. If a track has fewer than 15 cars in the field, no bonus points will be awarded in that race.
Ø Drivers can earn points at any NASCAR track … Drivers can collect points toward a NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series divisional or national title at more than one NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series track, provided they are competing in the top NASCAR-sanctioned class at that track.
Ø Best 16 finishes decide championships … A driver’s best 16 finishes between January 1-September 18, 2005 will be counted towards the divisional and national championships. There is no minimum or maximum number of races a driver must compete in to be eligible.
In the event of a tie in the point standings, ties will be broken per the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series rule book, which breaks the tie by determining which driver has more victories. If the drivers remain tied after comparing the number of race victories, the number of second-place finishes (and so on) will be compared until the tie is broken.
Ø New point fund format rewards more competitors … NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series competitors will continue to receive a championship point fund of nearly $1.7 million – the largest point fund of any short track racing series in North America. The top finishing drivers in each of NASCAR’s four championship divisions will share approximately $150,000 in point fund awards – a total prize offering of nearly $600,000 among the top divisional finishers in the series. The top 10 drivers in the top class at each track will share an additional $8,900 in point fund and contingency sponsor awards.
Drivers in “support” classes will receive greater point fund payouts than ever before. In each track’s second-tier racing division, which includes Street Stocks, Trucks, Sportsman, Limited Late Models, Hobby Stocks and other classes, the top 10 drivers will share $3,000 while drivers in each track’s third-tier, or “Charger” class, will share $2,000 in post-season prize money. NASCAR has discontinued its ShorTrack Division, which provided prizes for second-tier drivers only, in favor of a wider distribution of point fund awards to the top 10 competitors in each of these three classes.
The four championship divisions include the following tracks: *
Division I
Ace Speedway – Altamahaw, N.C.
Beech Ridge Motor Speedway – Scarborough, Maine
Bowman Gray Stadium – Winston-Salem, N.C.
Big Diamond Raceway – Minersville, Pa.
Caraway Speedway – Asheboro, N.C.
Evergreen Speedway – Monroe, Wash.
Greenville-Pickens Speedway – Greenville, S.C.
JAX Raceways – Jacksonville, Fla.
Lakeside Speedway – Kansas City, Kan.
Langley Speedway – Hampton, Va.
Lanier National Speedway – Braselton, Ga.
Lonesome Pine International Raceway – Coeburn, Va.
Motor Mile Speedway – Radford, Va.
Rockford Speedway – Rockford, Ill.
Rocky Mountain Raceways – West Valley City, Utah
South Boston Speedway – South Boston, Va.
Division II
Adams County Speedway – Corning, Iowa
Autodrome St. Eustache – St. Eustache, Quebec, Canada
Concord Motorsport Park – Concord, N.C.
Delaware Speedway – Delaware, Ontario, Canada
Grandview Speedway – Bechtelsville, Pa.
Holland International Speedway – Holland, N.Y.
I-80 Speedway – Greenwood, Neb.
Lee USA Speedway – Lee, N.H.
Lorain Speedway – South Amherst, Ohio
Mesa Marin Raceway – Bakersfield, Calif.
Myrtle Beach Speedway – Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Park Jefferson Speedway – Jefferson, S.D.
San Antonio Speedway – San Antonio, Tex.
Shasta Raceway Park – Anderson, Calif.
Spencer Speedway – Williamson, N.Y.
Stockton 99 Speedway – Stockton, Calif.
Watsonville Speedway – Watsonville, Calif.
Division III
Cajon Speedway – El Cajon, Calif.
Colorado National Speedway – Erie, Colo.
Columbus Motor Speedway – Columbus, Ohio
Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway – Dubuque, Iowa
Hickory Motor Speedway – Hickory, N.C.
Kalamazoo Speedway – Kalamazoo, Mich.
Kil Kare Speedway – Xenia, Ohio
LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway – LaCrosse, Wis.
Lake Erie Speedway – North East, Pa.
Magic Valley Speedway – Twin Falls, Idaho
Old Dominion Speedway – Manassas, Va.
Peoria Speedway – Peoria, Ill.
Riverhead Raceway – Riverhead, N.Y.
Seekonk Speedway – Seekonk, Mass.
The Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway – Las Vegas, Nev.
Division IV
Elko Speedway – Elko, Minn.
Farley Speedway – Farley, Iowa
Irwindale Speedway – Irwindale, Calif.
Jennerstown Speedway – Jennerstown, Pa.
Monadnock Speedway – Winchester, N.H.
Motordrome Speedway – Smithton, Pa.
Music City Motorplex – Nashville, Tenn.
Oglethorpe Speedway Park – Savannah, Ga.
Raceway Park – Shakopee, Minn.
Stafford Motor Speedway – Stafford Springs, Conn.
Star Speedway – Epping, N.H.
Thompson International Speedway – Thompson, Conn.
Tucson Raceway Park – Tucson, Ariz.
Twin State Speedway – Claremont, N.H.
Wall Township Speedway – Wall Township, N.J.
Waterford Speedbowl – Waterford, Conn.
* Divisional alignment as of 2/13/05
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