Are NASCAR's New Provisional Rules Unfair?
Dateline: 01/28/98
Guide Note: I ran across the following article by Henry Dubret on the
StockCarFans
Mailing List. I couldn't agree with him more and wanted to share this with
you.
Reprinted with permission
The new provisional rules announced this week by NASCAR are:
Can't get more blunt than that. Anybody who's read my drivel over the years knows that I've been a long-time supporter of the provisional system, but I'm afraid that this time, they've gone too far.
In case you haven't heard, the rules this year have been changed. We'll qualify the Top-25 on first day runs, with the second round filling only positions 26-36. In the past, the Top-38 spots were filled on time. Instead of the 4 provisionals + the 1 Past Champions Provisional we had gotten used to, we'll now have 6 provisionals + the 1 Past Champions Provisional. If no Past Champion has missed the field on time, that spot will be allotted as per the usual rules....meaning we're virtually guaranteed 7 provisional starters per race. That's 16% of the starting field....and that's too high.
But, here's the real kicker. If you're in the Top-25 in WC Owner Points, you've got unlimited provisional starts. That's right....you don't have to worry about trimming the car for speed in second-day runs, you're virtually guaranteed a spot.
In David Poole's fine article in the January 27th Charlotte Observer, NASCAR's Keith Triplett is quoted as saying "Now, we feel like we should use provisionals as sort of a reward, a way to maybe take care of people who have been committed to this sport for many years."
How's this list sound....Larry McClure, Junie Donlavey, Butch Mock, William Stavola, Richard Jackson, Harry Melling, Helen (Dave) Marcis. All long-time car owners and all finished 26th or lower in the final rundown in Owner Points last year. Can anyone question their commitment to our sport?
What NASCAR has done is made it that much tougher for small independents to stay in the sport, and made it harder for smaller operations who can only run a limited schedule to even make races. This in turn helps solidify the positions of those already in the sport. In an industry where money buys speed, that's not a healthy combination.
We should remember that one of the most successful car owners in the sport, Richard Childress, was once one of those small independent operations.
Instead of trying to fix something that's not broken, maybe they should put some teeth in the rules on ownership. It was only a year ago when Junior Johnson sold his team and let the world know that he was out of the sport, but Brett Bodine got a provisional start in the Daytona 500 because JJ had owner points from the previous season, and they listed him as part owner. How's about not looking the other way concerning the rule against multi-team ownership? We've got one car owner with 5 teams, another with 3, all the while NASCAR rules say 2 is the limit.
It's a shame the slogan "Membership has its privileges" has been taken.
Remember....it's about RACING. So.... Let Em Race.
Henry Dubret
henry@stockcarfans.com
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