The winter of change keeps rolling along at South Boston Speedway with fans and drivers again the big beneficiary.
Track officials announced today that a passing points system will be in place for all divisions when the 2016 season cranks up on March 12.
Simply put, drivers will receive points for each position gained during a race and they will have the option to put themselves in position to pass a lot of cars and pick up maximum points.
The passing points system will also result in a Hard-Charger Award in each division at the end of the season with a bonus payout to division winners. The Late Model Hard-Charger Award will be $2,500; the Limited $1,000; the Modified $750; the Pure Stock $500 and the Hornets $250.
“We believe this new system will make racing at South Boston much more exciting in 2016 and at the same time provide drivers a chance to earn an extra bonus at the end of the year,” said Cathy Rice, general manager of South Boston Speedway. “We’ve spent the off season working on new ideas that will improve the racing and help the drivers and teams with expenses. We believe this is another good step in that direction.”
Early this winter the track announced rule changes that included limiting tire purchases per event and weight and engine allowances that would permit Limited cars to race in the Late Model division when the schedule allowed.
The track also released a three-year, $1 million capital improvement plan earlier this year that includes upgraded grandstands and track repaving in 2016.
All divisions, with the exception of the Hornets Division, will group qualify, and once qualifying is complete drivers will select their starting positions. They will make their selections based on the order which they qualified.
If a driver starts first and finishes first, they will be awarded 36 points. But, for example, if a driver chooses to start fifth and finishes first, they will receive 40 points.
“We have to look at ways to make the racing more exciting for the fans and drivers,” said Lynn Carroll, South Boston Speedway’s race director. “I think fans are going to look forward to the excitement this will bring back to weekly racing and I think the drivers are going to love it, too.
“The best time I had when I was a driver was when I had a problem and had to pit and come back out at the rear of the field and try to race my way back to the front. That’s when it was fun.”
There will be three bonus points awarded if the winner started in positions 1 thru 9 or five bonus points if the winner started 10th or deeper in the field.
Teams will receive a chart of the points breakdown by position that simplifies the system. The chart will also be posted on the South Boston Speedway website.
The passing points system will be utilized for track championship points only and will not impact a driver’s NASCAR Whelen All-American Series points.
Racing action will return to South Boston Speedway on Saturday, March 12 with twin 100-lap NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Late Model Stock races headlining the afternoon show. There will also be a 50-lap Limited race, 30-lap Pure Stock race, 50-lap Modified race and a 15-lap Hornet race.
