It's (Again) Time to Fix The Points System
By M.L. Morgan
Well, race fans, Nascar's lead fall guy, Mike Helton, in an obvious effort to diffuse and obfuscate the outcry from the teams over adding two additonal race dates to the 2001 Schedule, allowed it to be leaked this week that Nascar is seriously considering revising the current points system. Nice try, son.
We have written many pieces decrying the shortcomings of the current points system. We think it borders on insane that the second-place finisher in a race can earn the same amount of points as the winner. As Mark Martin has been quoted as saying, "Second place is just the first loser". Race Views can't argue with that opinion. So, along those lines, why should the 'first loser' be able to earn the same amount of points as the winner ?
We don't pose this as a rhetorical question. There is an obvious answer - the current system is a crock. But Race Views never hollers "Fire" in the theater and runs away. We have suggestions how to improve the system. We are not trainees.
Helton has suggested no changes will be made as to awarding bonus points for winning the pole. That's fine with us. The intent of qualifying is supposed to be to put the 43 fastest cars into the starting grid. Of course, when 7 cars of each 43-car field make the race through provisional starting positions, we know qualifying is another crock. We've also addressed this deal many times. I'm sure we'll talk about it again.
There are a couple of blatant inequities in the current points system. We've mentioned one of them - the very idea the runner-up should be able to earn as many points as the winner. We have seen recent seasons, as Rusty Wallace will attest, where winning more races than anyone else doesn't earn you a Championship. We think the winner of the race should get a 25 point bonus. If a driver wins a third of the races in a particular season, as Rusty Wallace did 2 consecutive years, and doesn't win the Championship, the system is wrong. It was wrong then and it is wrong now.
The other most glaring deficiency in the current points system is the awarding of 5 bonus points for leading a lap. This is a bunch of crap. Does it really matter Joe Smith chose not to pit under caution in order to lead a lap when the race leaders pitted?
Joe Smith gets his 5 bonus points just as if he'd done something. Joe Smith might finish the race ahead of only Darrell Waltrip, but he gets his 5 bonus points. Another major crock. We think this should be changed. No bonus points for merely leading a lap. The little girl on the tricycle could do that.
We also think the 5 point bonus for leading the most laps should be abolished. There are many lucrative contingency programs which reward dominance. And before anyone says anything about that being a 10-point bonus - the current system awards 5 points for leading any lap, and an additional 5 points for leading the most laps. I told you we are not trainees.
The biggest change we would suggest is awarding championship points to only the top 20 finishers. Frequently, towards the end of the race, the tracks are cluttered with the rolling wounded who are just out there to collect a few points by finishing 35th instead of 36th. This is not only preposterous, it is dangerous. We'd like to see these cars off the track to let the contenders run for the victory, and their 25 point bonus for winning the race.
We have a forum which allows us to think out loud, so to speak. But so do you. We welcome your comments. We read them all and most of our pieces are based on fan input.
Mike Morgan
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