I think I fully understand what it all means. It sounds like fields are being cut to 36 cars in 2018, with 36th-40th all getting one point this season.
Short explanation: fans were driven away by gimmicks, so NASCAR is trying to lure them back in with gimmicks.
That about sums it up, Alex.
I'll admit I'm not yet fully versed in the details of Monday's announcement. But a few initial thoughts.
As with other radical changes made in recent years, it is again a shame it's come to this. Yes, as a long-time fan, I'd rather just see the races play out naturally. Some are instant classics with photo finishes. Others are boring runaways like Kyle Petty at Rockingham in the 90s or Cale Yarborough at Nashville and Bristol in the 70s.
But ... I'm becoming part of the past vs the future. Many have said NASCAR is trying to push away long time fans. I don't think they're doing that. Why would they? They need cash from ALL age groups. Many fans may CHOOSE to quit following, but I don't think the beach suits are deliberately trying to oust their increasingly aging fan base.
I believe a lot of the noise surrounding this change is exactly that - noise. Yes, the new points formula is more complicated. But face it, who in stands or at home was tracking points during a race either with a pre-Latford system, the Latford era, or the multiple post-Latford systems. You read the box score afterwards, you listen to the pundits, you do your own ciphering, whatever re: possible scenarios that may help your fave driver. But I've never really fretted one way or other about the 43's points "as they run now".
Bottom line, the premise of the last 3 years hasn't changed. Right? Win and advance? Apparently "The Chase" is no longer a thing & has been replaced by "playoffs". One, I'm glad I get my tainted name back! And two, I AM humored that the suits now embrace the word that they glared at the media for using just a few short years ago. But that IS the system they have now, and nothing changed significantly about it Monday.
To Bobby's point, I think Monster had little to do with this. The sense I get is this has been underway for some time & was driven more by TV networks. NBC and FOX are in a world of hurt. They're locked into 8 more years of so of an inflated contract and have to be pushing NASCAR for an urgent fix moreso than a brand new title sponsor who isn't paying much more than a sponsor for a top-end single car.
The one element that DOES bug me is the plan to award points in the Daytona twins. The races are not official events as they were in the pre-Winston era - yet points will be awarded for them. To me, this is a band-aid on a flesh wound. The twins were once relevant & impacted some teams making the 500. In an era of plate racing and guaranteed charters, the starting field for the 500 is all but set. This has resulted in boring 150s. I suppose NASCAR is trying to make them relevant again. But the elephant in the room for me is that the twins ARE OBSOLETE. Rather than award points, they should simply eliminate them. No way will that happen. But IMO, the twins, Clash and All Star Race are no longer needed - and haven't been for a number of years.
Chase, here's hoping that the blemish on your good name will soon be forgotten. I don't forsee the Twins going away so long as there is a buck to be made. If the format changes promote competition and racing for position and racing for the win, perhaps there'll be some benefit. However, knowing how those Charter holders think, how long before they campaign for guaranteed finishing positions for the bg money teams?
A fair (and *slightly* cynical) question bud. Ha. Yes, I agree. The twins - and other exhibition races - will continue to be on the schedule. Not sure if they remain because of profitability, contractual obligations, opportunistic marketing (well, the video of THAT wreck was from one of our races that didn't really count), last shred of tradition, or what.
But I've been on record for several years that the Clash and ASR are no longer needed, and I'm adding the twins to that list. Teams have screamed "help us with cost containment". And drivers have tweeted from aboard their luxury coaches and private planes that their lives and schedules are simply too packed. The flip-flop execs claim they hear them. IMO those three events could be whacked to accomplish both goals. Cut costs, give teams a few extra days off, focus on races THAT COUNT, etc.
I realize I'm in the minority with that opinion, but I'm OK with that too.
And as NASCAR heads into year 2 with the charter system, I'm no more certain what the long term future holds for that model any more than I was one year ago when it was announced.
Jmo, but to add to Chase's point about the term "playoff" being taboo in recent years, how hypocritical is the change to the point system? They did away with Bob's system because it was too complicated for the fans in the stands to keep up with. Let's change it to one point per position so it'll be simple and easy to keep up with without a calculator. I'm not sure I have a powerful enough spreadsheet to calculate the new system.
In their defense, NASCAR does realize all is not well. Also, one can't be faulted for trying to 'right the ship'....I guess the elephant in the room,after this (latest) round of changes, is the direction the needle moves.
They need to keep it simple. I don't know how they expect today's ADD generation to even bother to understand these new complicated formats. They just need to shorten the races and return everything to the way it was before the chase, format-wise anyway. People like to just tune in and watch a flag to flag race but today everyone has less time so just reduce the distances drastically.
Sandeep - I really don't think the beach suits expect the young'uns to understand the new points format. I THINK their goal is to motivate the teams to race harder for the new available points to create more "excitement" - code for wrecks and angry fits IMO. If that happens, young'uns MIGHT tune in more often for the expected harder racing and spectacles during the first 2 segments of several races. Time will tell obviously with the metrics being ratings, attendance, and social media chatter.
I'm all for trying to "right the ship" as Bopper called it. Still waiting to see if ANYONE in NASCAR is capable of understanding what went wrong. I do hope they figure out a way to turn things around before they completely hit the bottom. I don't think anyone wants to see something that has been this good go down. I know they have really deep pockets, just don't know how deep they're willing to go....and how much time they have to turn things around.
I think I'm going to return to the blog-o-sphere to help explain my perspective on this issue. Because it is not just NASCAR.
The new points does add another complicating layer. Don't think the millenials will relate to anything extra, and the (remaining) "core" fans will be even more frustrated. It's more fuel on a fire NASCAR started a while ago.........seek out new fans, at the expense of the old ones....so far, nothing has worked. I don't think they are plowing any new ground here, either.
