On the final day of the Sprint Media Tour, Brian France announced the new format for the Chase. This is a radical change from the way the Chase was originated. It emphasizes winning and almost throws consistency out the window.
Drivers who win only a race or two a season will have a chance at making the final run for the championship. The full text of the announcement gives the whole story, the particulars are listed below.
Under the new format, the 16 available qualifying positions for the Chase will be awarded to those drivers that have at least one victory through the first 26 races, as long as he or she is in the top-30 in points and has attempted to qualify for each of the season’s previous points races. On Thursday, NASCAR officials did raise the possibility that a medical exception could be given if a driver missed a race during the season for a valid medical reason, but still had won a race at some point during the season to qualify for the Chase.
If more than 16 drivers earn at least one win, only those highest in the standings (with at least one win) following the 26th race would advance. However, should the points leader after 26 races be winless, he or she would be awarded the 16th and final Chase position.
Only twice in the history of NASCAR have there been more than 15 winners in the first 26 Cup races (1961 and 2003).
If fewer than 16 drivers have at least one win, all remaining positions to fill the grid would be determined based on points standings.
The 16 drivers qualifying for the Chase will have their points reset to 2,000 points, and will be seeded based on bonus points (three per win) earned prior to the start of the Chase.
The nine races leading up to the season-ending event are divided into three individual rounds consisting of three races each.
Chase eligible drivers posting at least one win in each of the rounds will continue to advance. The remaining available positions will be determined and seeded based on points earned during each round.
Points for those in the Chase will be reset prior to the start of each round with all drivers starting the round with the same amount of points.
Drivers not in the Chase will continue to earn points under the current non-Chase points format.
The Challenger Round — Opens the Chase and consists of races at Chicagoland, New Hampshire and Dover. Twelve of the 16 drivers will advance from this round.
A win in any of the three races automatically advances the driver to the next round, with remaining positions to be determined based on points earned during the round.
The 12 Chase drivers advancing will be seeded based on points earned through the three previous races and will have his or her points total reset to 3,000 points prior to the start of the next round.
The Contender Round — Consists of races at Kansas, Charlotte and Talladega. Eight of the 12 drivers will advance from this round.
As in the previous round, a win in any of the three Contender Round races automatically advances the driver to the next round, with remaining positions to be determined based on points earned during the round.
Points totals will be reset at 4,000 points for those advancing.
The Eliminator Round — Consists of races at Martinsville, Texas and Phoenix. Four of the eight drivers will advance from this round to earn a berth in the season-ending Sprint Cup Championship (final) round.
Eliminator Round winners automatically advance, with the remaining position or positions determined by points earned in the three races.
The four drivers that advance into the final round will have their points total reset to 5,000 following the Phoenix race.
Sprint Cup Championship — The highest finishing driver at Homestead among the four eligible drivers will win the Sprint Cup championship.
While bonus points for laps led will be awarded through previous rounds, no bonus points for laps led will be awarded in the final race for the Chase contenders. Finishing position in the final race will determine the champion.
For those Chase drivers that fail to advance out of an individual round, their points total will be reset at 2,000 points at the conclusion of that particular segment. They will continue to earn points based on finishes in the remaining races, with no further adjustments. Thus, a driver that fails to advance out of the initial Challenger Round could earn enough points to finish as high as fifth in the final points standings. He or she would finish no worse than 16th based on the initial points reset.
In a nutshell, it means no more points racing. Winning will be the only thing and it should create some exciting racing in 2014.
