4/5/2005
NASCAR ANNOUNCES
POINT FUND AWARDS FOR NASCAR DODGE WEEKLY SERIES
* Dodge offers
bonus bucks for Dodge drivers
* NASCAR
Divisional champions each receive $25,000
* Nearly 1,400
more drivers to share in NASCAR awards
The NASCAR Dodge
Weekly Series, NASCAR’s championship program for weekly short track
competitors, was founded in 1982 and is getting a radical makeover
in 2005. Drivers at participating race tracks will once again
compete for NASCAR’s national championship and their share of nearly
$1.7 million in post-season prize money – but with a few new twists.
Gone is the NASCAR
Competition Performance Index (CPI), which determined a ranking of
drivers based on wins, top-five finishes
and other factors. In the past, the driver with the highest rating
in the CPI index won one of eight regional championships and had a
chance to win the national championship, which was also determined
by the index.
Beginning in 2005,
drivers in the top NASCAR-sanctioned class at each track will earn
NASCAR divisional championship points at each event they participate
in. The driver with the highest NASCAR divisional championship point
total, based on their 16 best finishes of the season, will win a
championship in one of NASCAR’s four newly-designated divisions:
Division I, Division II, Division III or Division IV. Each division
includes a collection of 17 or 18 tracks, assigned at random. The
divisional champion with the highest divisional point total overall
wins the national title.
Drivers can also win
track championships, based on the point standings for each
individual race track, as well as special awards from Dodge,
POWERade and other sponsors.
The divisional
standings are based on events held between Jan. 1 and Sept. 18,
2005.
NASCAR, Dodge and
other sponsors combine to post nearly $1.7 million in prize money,
which will be distributed to competitors at the end of the season.
Ø
Dodge Continues Driver Awards
… Drive a
Dodge race car? You could collect additional bonus money from the
series sponsor. Dodge has continued its awards program for Dodge
drivers – those whose cars are outfitted with Dodge motors and
bodies for the entire season. Any Dodge driver (in the track’s top
class) who wins a feature race during the 2005 season can collect a
$100 bonus for each win. In addition, the top-finishing Dodge driver
in each of NASCAR’s four divisions can collect $3,000 while the
national champion can receive an additional $25,000 if they drive a
Dodge car.
In 2003, Mark
McFarland, of Winchester, Va., became the first driver to collect
this national championship bonus from Dodge and collected a
series-record $213,500 in post-season prize money. McFarland
collected this record amount after winning the title in a Dodge
Intrepid Late Model at Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Va.
A driver does not
necessarily need to win a Division championship to collect the
$3,000 Dodge bonus, as the award goes to the highest-finishing Dodge
in the Division standings. However, any Dodge driver who does win a
Division championship will get a chance to participate in a “test
and tune” session with one of the Dodge-sponsored NASCAR Craftsman
Truck Series teams.
Ø
Divisional leaders share top prizes
… The
top 17 (or 18) drivers in each division will share nearly $144,000
in prize money at the end of the season. Each divisional champion
will collect $25,000 while the second place driver wins $15,000.
Third-place wins $12,500, fourth-place wins $12,000 and fifth place
wins $11,000. The driver with the highest NASCAR point total at each
track will be eligible for the top 17 (or 18) divisional awards.
Each track will have one representative among the divisional
leaders, so the number of drivers that share in this prize money
depends on the number of tracks in the division. Combined among the
four divisions, the divisional leaders will share nearly $580,000.
Ø
National championship bonus
… In
addition to the divisional prize money and any awards collected at
their home race track, the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series national
champion (the divisional champion with the highest point total
overall) will receive a $50,000 bonus.
Ø
POWERade rewards top track finishers
…
While the driver with the highest NASCAR point total at each track
is assured a share of the divisional prize money, the top 10 drivers
in the track point standings (in each track’s top class), will share
$2,500 in prize money from POWERade, the
official sports beverage of NASCAR. Each track champion will win a
commemorative track champion’s helmet. The second-place driver at
each track will collect $1,000, the third-place driver wins $500,
fourth-place $250 and the fifth place driver at each track wins
$150. Drivers who finish 6th-10th in the track
point standings will each win $100 from
POWERade.
Ø
More sponsor prize money up for grabs
… In
addition to the divisional prize money and
POWERade awards, the top 10 drivers (in the top class) at
each track can win prize money from the 23 companies participating
in NASCAR’s contingency awards program – those sponsors whose small
decals are displayed on the front fenders of the race cars. If a
driver displays all the decals – including 3M,
Accel, Bell, Centrix Financial,
Clevite, Comp Cams, Craftsman, Earl’s,
Edelbrock, Goodyear or Hoosier Tires,
Holley, Hurst, JE Pistons, Lincoln Electric,
Lunati, Mechanix Wear, Mobil 1,
Moroso, Sonic Racing Products, SunTrust,
USG and Whelen – they are eligible for
the following bonus awards: $2,000 to the track champion, $1,500 for
second-place, $950 for third place, $500 for fourth place, $400 for
fifth-place and additional awards for drivers who finish 6th-10th
in the track point standings.
Ø
Support for support classes
…
Drivers in “support” classes at each track, which include Street
Stocks, Trucks, Limited Late Models and other styles of cars, will
receive a greater share of the $1.7 million NASCAR awards than ever
before. In the track’s second-tier class, the top 10 drivers will
share $3,000 in post-season prize money with $1,000 going to the
track champion in that class. In the third-tier or “Charger” class,
the top 10 drivers will share $2,000 including $500 to the track
champion. Combined, the top 10 drivers in the second and third-tier
classes at each NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series track will share nearly
$350,000.
Under this new
format, nearly 1,400 additional drivers – who did not receive any
NASCAR prize money in the past – will share in the NASCAR awards
program. Prior to 2005, the second-tier drivers were eligible for
NASCAR’s ShorTrack Division awards,
which have been discontinued. ShorTrack
Division awards did not include money to the top 10 in the track
point standings, but were distributed to eight regional champions
based on the old CPI index. In the third-tier or “Charger” division,
the track champion was the only driver to receive any post-season
prize money ($500) from NASCAR.
Ø
Special Awards to Crew Chiefs, Car Owners and Mechanics
…
Drivers aren’t the only ones to share in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly
Series awards. Craftsman, the official tools of NASCAR, sponsors the
Craftsman Mechanic of the Year awards, which are distributed
annually based on a vote among NASCAR members. Craftsman awards over
$10,000 in prize money and products to the winners of this program.
Lunati Cams recognizes the championship
winning crew chiefs and awards over $15,000. Lincoln Electric
provides a $5,000 bonus along with a Lincoln Electric welder to the
national champion car owner.
For More Information,
Contact:
Jeremy
Davidson, NASCAR Public Relations, (386) 681-4173 or
jdavidson@nascar.com
Source: Matt
Fletcher/Lake Erie Director of Marketing
Posted: April 5, 2005