Officials announced numerous updates to the NASCAR Rule Book on Friday, highlighted by a new provisional berth that would allow a maximum of 41 cars for select NASCAR Cup series races.
The “Open Exemption Provisional” mirrors the “promoter’s choice provisional” that is used at various short tracks across the country. The rule guarantees a starting position for special or invited entries.
The rule is only implemented if the Cup Series field exceeds the current starting-field maximum of 40 cars. Eligible drivers would need to be pre-approved by NASCAR and have various racing experience with accolades carrying significant weight.
An OEP entry would be eligible for a race win, the trophy and All-Star Race eligibility. However, championship points, prize money and playoff eligibility would be off the table.
The new rule will be an added focal point for this year’s Daytona 500 at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway as numerous open entries are expected to compete for a starting spot.
DVP Policy
Among other changes to the NASCAR Rule Book is the sport’s Damaged Vehicle Policy (DVP) in the Cup Series.
The old policy, which previously forced team’s with damaged race cars that are driven or towed to the garage to DNF, is no longer in effect.
Beginning this year, teams will be permitted to re-enter following repairs in the garage.
A seven-minute time limit will remain for teams making repairs on pit road (eight minutes for races at Atlanta Motor Speedway). If time expires, teams will be sent to the garage where no timer will be set.
Teams will be penalized if a car leaves its pit box to rejoin the race and the DVP clock expires before it reaches pit exit.
Other Changes
If a playoff waiver is granted by competition officials, that driver may forfeit any playoff points accumulated in the regular season, depending on circumstances.
That would force the driver to begin the playoffs at a base of 2,000 points following the reset for the 16-driver playoffs.
Playoff points would be forfeited if a waiver is granted after a suspension or if a driver chooses to skip a race.
Playoff points would not be forfeited in the event of a medical absence, missing a race for the birth of a child or a family emergency, or if age restrictions prevent a driver from racing a full season.
– NASCAR officials clarified the penalty structure for rules violations made by OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers).
Those infractions may result in loss of manufacturers’ points, and/or a reduction in wind-tunnel testing time or computational fluid dynamics (CFD) test runs. Penalties will be assessed for violating policies in place for vehicle testing, wind-tunnel limits, event-roster protocols and code of conduct.
– Competition officials adjusted the wording for the “100% rule” of performance obligations, changing the focus on competitor(s) who “artificially alter the finishing positions” to competitor(s) who “manipulate the outcome” of the event.
