2007 Nascar Points System

Changes to NASCAR Points System in 2007 Move Emphasis to Race Victories

A shake-up of the points system used in NASCAR races will award an extra five points to race winners, beginning with the 2007 season events at Daytona 500.

The changes, announced by NASCAR in January '07, were devised to shift emphasis onto drivers winning races rather than merely getting by through consistently finishing within the top ten, a habit that was threatening to dull enthusiasm for the sport.

Referring to the point system changes in a statement, NASCAR CEO, Brian France, said "Winning is what this sport is all about. Nobody likes to see drivers content to finish in the top 10. We want our sport, especially during the Chase, to be more about winning."

Each race victory will now result in 185 points, an additional five points over victories achieved under the previous point system.

To gain an understanding of how an extra five points can increase the competitiveness of NASCAR racers, just calculate the points in an example race scenario.

A race victory will net the driver 185 points. Five point bonuses can be achieved by leading a lap and for leading the most laps. In a good race, the winning driver could potentially be ahead of his closest rival by 25 points in just one event.

The effects of the changes will be most prevalent during the Chase for the Nextel Cup.

In previous years, the drivers eligible for the Chase were the 10 drivers with the highest number of points after the final race in the season and any other drivers whose point tally was within 400 points of the highest scoring driver.

Following the 2007 changes, only the twelve highest scoring drivers will be eligible for the Chase and will be positioned to start the race based on points scored for each victory in the season. Starting from a level 5000 points each, ten points will be awarded to drivers for each previous victory and the driver with the highest overall score will hold the best start position.

The decision to base Nextel Cup Chase competitors' start positions entirely on their previous race victories of the season is a sure-fire way to bring competitiveness for the number one finish back to NASCAR races.