The Cup Series is the premier racing competition for NASCAR, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing. NASCAR Cup Series events are hosted all over the United States, but the Southeastern region is particularly passionate about stock car racing, with roughly half each season's races held in this area.
📜 NASCAR Racing History
The Cup Series was first introduced in 1949, under the name Strictly Stock Division. This differentiated the races from the Modified and Roadster NASCAR categories, which featured open-wheel and open-top vehicles respectively. In the early days of the Strictly Stock Division, most races were run on dirt tracks rather than paved circuits.
From 1950 to 1970, the series was known as the Grand National Division, but in 1971 the naming rights were leased to the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. For the next 32 years, the competition was named the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, until Nextel took over as the primary sponsor in 2003. After further sponsorship spells with Sprint and Monster Energy, the series followed the lead of other major US sports leagues and removed naming sponsors, becoming simply the NASCAR Cup Series.
Well-known NASCAR drivers include Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, David Pearson, Jeff Gordon, and Jimmie Johnson. Petty, Earnhardt, and Johnson share the record for most Cup Series championships claimed in their careers, each having won 7.
💯 NASCAR Races – Format & Scoring
The NASCAR Cup Series season includes 36 scoring races, with 26 of these making up the regular season and the final 10 functioning as the NASCAR playoffs.
At each event, drivers can earn points based on their finishing placement and on the number of laps they led during the race. These points accumulate over the course of the season. After the first 26 races, the 16 top-performing drivers qualify for the NASCAR playoffs and are given seeded positions based mainly on their regular season number of wins.
The playoffs are also commonly known as the Chase for the Cup. The first 9 playoff races are held over 3 rounds, and 4 drivers are eliminated from championship contention after each of these rounds. In the final race of the season, just 4 drivers are left with the chance to claim the NASCAR Cup Series Championship, and the best-placed finisher of these 4 is crowned champion.
