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NASCAR POINTS HISTORY FROM 1975 TO 2013
2003 – Last year for Winston Cup. Attendance and ratings had been going down for 5 years in a row.
Matt Kenseth dominated the 2003 season with amazing consistency. The Cambridge, Wisconsin native
only won one race but held the points lead for most of the year. With a fourth place finish in the March
9 Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 at Atlanta, Kenseth moved atop the point standings and never trailed again.
He had only two DNFs the entire year.
Kenseth coasted home 90 points in front of runner-up Jimmy Johnson and became the fourth driver to
capture the title with only one win. Kenseth led the points after 33 of the 36 races, the most dominating
performance since Dale Earnhardt led all but two races in 1987. He also led the point standings more
than any driver since Richard Petty lead after 41 of 48 races in 1971.
Kenseth, who gave owner Jack Roush his first title, was also the final champion crowned by series
sponsor Winston. Effective in 2004, Nextel Communications became the title sponsor NASCAR's top
stock car racing series.
2004 – First year for the Chase
The Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup
In NASCAR storied history, a number of points systems have determined the annual championship.
Starting in 1975 all races offered an equal number of points.
From 1975 to 2003, this is how it worked: 175 points were awarded to the winner of each race, with 170
for second, and a drop of five points for positions three through six. Positions 7th through 12th each had
a four point reduction, and from 13th through 43rd points drop three for each position. In addition, five
bonus points were awarded to any driver who officially led a lap, and another five points were
earned by the driver leaving the most laps. The most points a driver could win in a race was 185 and
43rd position netted 34 points.
With the goal of garnering better TV ratings against the NFL, NASCAR introduced a new way to
determine its top dog for the 2004 season. The new system would use the same point structure, but
award another five points to the winner of each race. More importantly it would sidestep the seasonlong accumulation of points to determine a champion. Instead the season’s first 26 races would
determine the qualifiers for the final 10 race chase. The top 10 drivers, and any other driver
within 400 points of the leader, would compete for the title. NASCAR called the new system the “Chase
for the NEXTEL Cup.”
Resistance from some traditional fans and competitors
Traditionalist balked at the idea, saying the first 26 events would merely serve as qualifying races.
However, NASCAR chairman and CEO Brian Z. France was confident the new system would add
excitement to the final championship stretch and create a host of contenders over the final 10 races.
The 10 qualifiers for the final “Chase” had their points adjusted after the 26th event. The finalists were
separated by no more than 45 point entering the final 10-race stretch. “If more drivers have an
opportunity to win a championship,” France said, “that's a great thing.”
In retrospect the first Chase for the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup lived up to its billing. The 2004 title came down
to frantic battle among Kurt Busch, Jimmy Johnson, and Jeff Gordon. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin
also had a mathematical chance entering the final race at Homestead, Florida. That last race provided a
lap-by-lap struggle like the sport hadn't seen since 1992 when Alan Kulwicki edged Bill Elliott by 10
points for the title. The outcome and 2004 wasn't determined until the last lap when Bush finished fifth
to beat Johnson by a scant eight points. It was the closest title Chase in NASCAR history.
Busch would have finished a distant fourth in the customary point system and Jeff Gordon would have
won his fifth championship. Under the new system Busch snatched the title with a spirited run in the allimportant 10 race Chase.
2007 – More changes to rules and points system
But NASCAR wasn't satisfied to rest on his laurels. After fan favorites Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon
failed to make the Chase in 2005, and defending champion Tony Stewart failed to qualify in 2006,
NASCAR amended the rules to include 12 drivers in the annual 10 race Chase. The point standings
entering the Chase were also changed. Each driver was given 5000 points +10 extra points for each win.
The rule stating that any driver within 400 points of the leader would also qualify was eliminated. The
new Gen-5 car was introduced to have more even competition and multiple winners. This points system
was retained when the name was changed to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint cup in 2008.
2010 – More changes made to points system
Heading into the second decade of the new millennium NASCAR instituted several changes intended to
increased competition, and give fans a closer connection to the sport. These changes affected the cars,
the rules, and the point system.
There were several changes to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points system and the way the drivers
would become eligible for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint cup. The entire point system was revamped
to make it simpler and easier to understand. The new system awarded points in one-point increments
with last-place getting one point and the winner receiving 43 points. A win brought a three-point
bonus, while single-point bonuses were awarded for leading a lap and leading the most laps. The race
winner could thus receive a maximum of 48 points. The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup was changed
by having the final two chase spots in the 12 driver field be wildcard positions based on wins in the first
26 races if the drivers were in the top 20 in points. If there were no drivers with wins outside the top 10,
the spots would go to the 11th and 12th place in points. The top 10 positions in the Chase itself were set
by wins in the regular season, with the driver with the most wins seeded first, and the two wild card
positions seeded 11th and 12th.
2011 – Changes making difference in close competition, track attendance and ratings
Starting in 2011 drivers also had to choose a series in which to score points. Drivers choosing the
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series could still run NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck
Series events, but they would not score any driver points for those series. The qualifying procedures
were also changed for 2011 with the qualifying order now set based on speeds in the first practice
session of the weekend in order of slowest to fastest. Previously the order was set by blind draw.
Off the track, the TV ratings for the 2011 season improved over 2010. Fox saw a 9% increase for its 13
races in the first part of the season. TNT saw a 3% increase for the six races it broadcast in the summer.
ABC/ESPN had a 6% increase for its 17-race schedule and a whopping 14.8% increase for its 10-race
Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup coverage.
Statistically, 2011 was one of the most competitive years ever. A record average 27.1 lead changes per
race broke the record set in 2010. The average number of leaders was 12.8, which also broke the record
that was set in 2010. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship had to be determined by a tiebreaker
when Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards finished the season tied. Stewart won the title by having five wins
in the season while Edwards had only one.
Also newsworthy was that there were five first time winners in 2011. There were also 18 different
winners in 2011, one short of the all-time record.
2012 – Even more rules for even competition and multiple winners
In 2012, a new NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car took to the track at Martinsville. It was the first run for the
NASCAR Gen-6 car. The Gen-6 car replaced the Gen-5 car that came on the circuit in 2007.
2013 – The chase leads to better TV deals
In 2013 NASCAR and NBC Sports Group announce that NBC has bought the rights to the final 20 races in
the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, which includes the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, starting in the 2015
season. NBC will replace ESPN and TNT as a broadcasting partner with NASCAR.
In the early part of the decade it was clear that the times were changing, but it was equally clear that
NASCAR was ready and willing to change with them.
NHRA Drag Racing
18 – Regular Season races
6 – Race Playoffs
Called the “Countdown to the Championship”
The top 10 in points advance to Championship separate by 10 points each, except for points leader who
has 30 point lead over 2nd place.