3 of 9

Write now Article Tools

In a nutshell, the Chase for the Cup ("The Chase") in NASCAR is the equivalent of a playoff, mostly made to compete with America's favorite sports audience of football fans.

However, this format is relatively new. Up until 2003, the person to take home this coveted trophy was simply the driver that had accumulated the most points at the end of the racing season in November.

So, what brought on the change? Officially, it was implemented to bring more excitement and viewers into the sport, since it seemed that the last few races of the NASCAR season had to compete with other sports, seemingly mostly with football audiences.

In addition, with the old point system a driver that was on top before the last races were over usually ended up being the winner. There were complaints that this fact led to unexciting racing (instead of racing to win, the points leader would make "safe" choices throughout the final races as to not lose valuable points by low finishes).

Why was 2003 the change? That year Matt Kenseth won the championship, even though he only had one win. However, Ryan Newman was the driver that year with the most wins (and to many the most exciting driver to watch that year), however he finished in 6th place that year.

What were the fans saying that year? There was talk of the season being predictable, and many assigned Matt Kenseth the less flattering name of "boring" (referring to his consistency). He won the championship because with his many top ten finishes through the year he scored much better than Ryan Newman. While Ryan Newman had a lot of wins, he also had a lot of less flattering finishes by taking risks on the track, which hurt his point standings.

How does the Chase work? It has evolved somewhat since its inception and the rules have changed a little, but in essence at present the Chase consists of the season's last 10 races. The top 12 drivers in points after the first 26 races of the season qualify for competition of the Cup.

The first race of the Chase takes places at RIR in Richmond. At that point, the 12 drivers that make the Chase have their points reset to 5000 points. However, for each win they achieved up until this point, they will receive an additional 10-point bonus. Why 5000 points? This number is actually not a mathematical re-set, it's actually adding points on. This is done so as to not confuse the standings of the drivers ranked from 13th on down, which would otherwise be mathematically ahead of the Chase contenders. A normal point spread at that point in the season is around 2000 - 3000 points.

During the Chase itself, all normal scoring applies and the points for each race participated in will get added to their point standings. The other 31 drivers compete still for their own standings against each other, with the same points applying also, and of course the same prize money at stake every week.

In summary, the whole concept of the Chase was to make sure the driver that wins the most during the season would end up taking home the trophy.

Is this concept working? Ironically, since the Chase was implemented, Ryan Newman has not even managed to get into it every time. Also, this 2007 season Jeff Gordon was far ahead, having had the most wins up until the points were reset for the Chase. However, at present with one race to go Jimmie Johnson has the title pretty much wrapped up being 86 points ahead, because he won four consecutive times during the Chase. If this was boring or exciting, you be the judge.

Learn more about this author, Alexandra Heep.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about NASCAR: What is the chase for the cup??
We want to hear your view. Write now!