NASCAR Needs to Abolish 'Mess'

There was much ado about nothing leaving Bristol Motor Speedway last Sunday. The top 35 owner points in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series were reset for the first time this year following the Bristol race, guaranteeing a starting spot to the top 35 teams this weekend at Martinsville Speedway and forcing the outsiders to race their way in on time.

So, for those locked into the top 35, relief reigns at least for the next week. But my contention is the top 35 shouldn't even exist. Get rid of the whole system. I've thought that since the rule's inception but became even more incensed when things became completely convoluted entering the 2009 season.In case you missed it, a couple of car owners bought their way into the top 35 in Cup Series points with last-second "partnerships" and points exchanges right before we rolled into Daytona in early February.

Bill Davis shut down his No. 22 Cup team at the conclusion of the 2008 season but has resurfaced as a minority owner of Sam Hornish Jr.'s No. 77 Penske Racing Dodge, which, at Daytona, assumed Davis' points from last season. Bobby Ginn hasn't been seen in the garage area in quite a while but now has minority ownership stake in Clint Bowyer's No. 33 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, which, to start the season, claimed the No. 01's 32nd place points from 2008. Remember that Ginn merged with DEI in 2007, and although he left shortly thereafter, was still listed as owner of the No. 01.

Think these guys are getting back into the sport? Think again.



Since starting positions in the top 35 are guaranteed the first five races of the season, based upon the previous year's points, Bowyer and Hornish moved into the top 35 a few weeks ago through these questionable deals in which their owners aligned with owners who finished 2008 in the top 35 but are not racing this season.

NASCAR needs to regain control of this mess and put some cohesion back into the system. A.J. Allmendinger thought his No. 44 was guaranteed a starting spot at Daytona until a day or two before we got down there, but was knocked out when Bowyer's No. 33 was allowed entrance. That's plain wrong, and this year is the worst I've ever seen for this problem.

The wealthier teams capitalize on these gray areas because they can afford to buy points, or align themselves with owners who have points they don't need, which isn't fair to teams like the No. 44.

NASCAR just needs to chuck the top 35 rule and revamp the system because it does not accomplish its intent and purpose. We don't need to guarantee starting spots to 35 teams. The past champion's provisional is being abused and so is the dignity of a past champion himself. The intent of the rule was to allow a past champion into a race when he enters every race but happens to miss one. It's not to permit someone to come out of retirement every time a team wants a starting position.

I urge NASCAR to lock in only the top 20 cars each weekend based on points and set the remaining 23 spots via speed in qualifying sessions. Allow a provisional starting position for the past champion, but only if he runs all the races. If I owned a Cup team right now, and wasn't one of the fastest 23 cars on time, I would want to go home because I didn't deserve to be there.

Not only would the ability to make a race be more equitable between teams, we'd also have more new owners stepping into the series to take a stab at making a race, because they wouldn't have to go up against the "Goliaths" guaranteed a starting spot. The way the system currently stands, the top 35 have endless advantages, especially with the testing ban, simply because they're guaranteed to start the race. They spend Friday's practice working on race set-ups while the other guys bust their tails just to get qualified, losing all that practice time to qualifying trim.

Not only will a restructuring open the door to new and small owners, it will bring some significance back to the qualifying sessions, because they don't mean anything right now. Neither does the top-35 rule.

Jimmy Spencer calls it like he sees it as an analyst on NASCAR RaceDay and NASCAR Victory Lane on SPEED. He retired from driving with two NASCAR Sprint Cup, 12 NASCAR Nationwide and one NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory, putting him in an elite group of drivers who have logged wins in all three of NASCAR's premier divisions. In 478 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts, Spencer amassed 28 top-five and 80 top-10 finishes. He won back-to-back NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championships in 1986 and 1987 on the heels of 15 victories, becoming the first driver ever to earn consecutive titles in the series. He earned the nickname "Mr. Excitement" for his flamboyant and aggressive driving style early in his racing career. For more information on Spencer or SPEED's NASCAR programming, please visit www.speedtv.com.