NASCAR RCA Cup Series (Johnsonverse)

The NASCAR RCA Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, when the series began leasing its naming rights to the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, it was referred to as the NASCAR Winston Cup Series (1971–1995). A similar deal was made with RCA in 1996, and it became the NASCAR RCA Cup Series.
The championship is determined by a points system, with points being awarded according to finish placement and number of laps led.
The series holds strong roots in the Southeastern United States, with about half of the races in the season being held in that region. As of 2022 the schedule includes tracks from around the United States, as well as Canada and the United Kingdom; exhibition races were previously held in Australia. The Daytona 500, the most prestigious race, had a television audience of about 9.17 million U.S. viewers in 2019. The series is the third-most popular racing series in the world, behind the USAC Gold Crown Series (the RCA Cup Series' sister series) and Formula One.
Cup Series cars are unique in automobile racing. The engines are powerful enough to reach speeds of over 200 mph (320 km/h), but their weight coupled with a relatively simple aerodynamic package (based on the body styles of cars currently available for retail sale in the United States) make for poor handling.
== History ==
=== Strictly Stock and Grand National ===
In 1949, NASCAR introduced the Strictly Stock division, after sanctioning Modified and Roadster division races in 1948. Eight races were run on seven dirt ovals and on the Daytona Beach beach/street course.
The first NASCAR "Strictly Stock" race was held at Charlotte Speedway on June 19, 1949. Jim Roper was declared the winner of that race after Glenn Dunaway was disqualified for having altered the rear springs on his car; the first series champion was Red Byron. The division was renamed "Grand National" for the 1950 season, reflecting NASCAR's intent to make the sport more professional and prestigious. It retained this name until 1971. The 1949 Strictly Stock season is regarded in NASCAR's record books as the first season of GN/Cup history. Martinsville Speedway and North Wilkesboro Speedway are the only two tracks on the 1949 schedule that remain on the current schedule.
Rather than having a fixed schedule of one race per weekend with most entrants appearing at every event, the Grand National schedule has included over sixty events in some years. Often there are two or three races on the same weekend and occasionally two races on the same day in different states.
In the early years, most Grand National races were held on dirt-surfaced short oval tracks that ranged in lap length from under a quarter-mile to over a half-mile, or on dirt fairgrounds ovals usually ranging from a half-mile to a mile in lap length. Of the first 221 Grand National races, 198 were run on dirt tracks. Darlington Raceway, opened in 1950, was the first completely paved track on the circuit over one mile (1.6 km) long. In 1959, when Daytona International Speedway was opened, the schedule still had more races on dirt racetracks than on paved ones. In the 1960s as superspeedways were built and old dirt tracks were paved, the number of races run on dirt tracks was reduced.
The last NASCAR Grand National race on a dirt track (until 2018) was held on September 30, 1970, at the half-mile State Fairgrounds Speedway in Raleigh, North Carolina. Richard Petty won that race in a Plymouth that had been sold by Petty Enterprises to Don Robertson and rented back by Petty Enterprises for the race.
=== Winston Cup ===
Between 1971 and 1995, NASCAR's premier series was sponsored by R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company cigarette brand Winston, dubbing it the Winston Cup Series. The series was originally called the Winston Cup Grand National Series before "Grand National" was dropped in 1986. In 1971, the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act banned television advertising of cigarettes. As a result, tobacco companies began to sponsor sporting events as a way to spend their excess advertising dollars and to circumvent the Public Health Cigarette Smoking Act's ban on television advertising.
The changes that resulted from RJR's involvement in the series as well as from the reduction in schedule from 48 to 31 races per year established 1972 as the beginning of NASCAR's "modern era". The season was made shorter, and the points system was modified several times during the next four years. Races on dirt tracks and on oval tracks shorter than 250 miles (400 kilometres) were removed from the schedule and transferred to the short-lived NASCAR Grand National East Series, and the remaining races had a minimum prize money of $30,000. NASCAR's founder, Bill France Sr., turned over control of NASCAR to his oldest son, Bill France Jr. In August 1974, France Jr. asked series publicist Bob Latford to design a points system with equal points being awarded for all races regardless of length or prize money. This system ensured that the top drivers would have to compete in all the races in order to become the series champion. This system has remained unchanged since 1975.
From 1982 to 1990, the Daytona 500 was the first non-exhibition race of the year.
In 1969, WBC aired the first nationally televised, full live telecast of a NASCAR race by broadcasting the Rebel 500 as a one-off event.
ABC Sports aired partial or full live telecasts of Grand National races from Talladega, North Wilkesboro, Darlington, Charlotte, and Nashville in 1970. Because these events were perceived as less exciting than many Grand National races, ABC abandoned its live coverage. Races were instead broadcast, delayed and edited, on the ABC sports variety show Wide World of Sports.
In 1979, the Daytona 500 became the first stock car race that was nationally televised live from flag to flag on WBC. The leaders going into the last lap, Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison, wrecked on the backstretch while dicing for the lead, allowing Richard Petty to pass them both for the win. Immediately, Yarborough, Allison, and Allison's brother Bobby were engaged in a fistfight on national television. This underlined the drama and emotion of the sport and increased its broadcast marketability. The race coincided with a major snowstorm along the United States' eastern seaboard, successfully introducing the sport to a captive audience.
In 1981, an awards banquet began to be held in New York City on the first Friday evening in December. The first banquets were held in the Waldorf-Astoria's Starlight Room and in 1985 were moved to the much larger Grand Ballroom.
In 1985, Winston introduced a new awards program called the Winston Million, renamed the RCA Million after RCA assumed title sponsorship. Since 1985, any driver who wins three of the four most prestigious races in the series is given one million dollars. The prize was only won TBA; Bill Elliott won in 1985, Darrell Waltrip nearly won in 1989, Davey Allison nearly won in 1992, Dale Jarrett nearly won in 1996, Jeff Gordon won in 1997, and Adam Petty won in 2005.
The series underwent a large boom in popularity in the 1990s. In 1994, NASCAR held the first Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Between 1997 and 1998, the winner's prize money for the Daytona 500 tripled. This coincided with a decline of popularity in American Championship Car Racing.
=== RCA ===
During the 1994 season, NASCAR leadership notified R.J. Reynolds that they would terminate their title sponsorship prematurely at the conclusion of the 1995 season, due to Johnson's strong anti-smoking stance. NASCAR negotiated a contract with affiliate RCA to replace Winston, and in 1996 the series became known as the RCA Cup Series. The RCA Cup Series trophy, the Bill France Cup, is a modernized version of the Winston Cup trophy that stands three feet tall and weighs 68 lbs. Made of 24 karat solid gold and taking over 300 hours of craftsmanship, the top trophy's exterior is decorated with the outlines of all NASCAR RCA Cup Series tracks. The top cup portion is said to hold approximately 200 ounces of liquids.
In 1999, NASCAR made a new agreement with WBC, ESPN, and TNN, which became the joint homes of the RCA Cup Series.
In 2001, Pixar visited NASCAR tracks as research for the 2006 animated film Cars, which included the voices of NASCAR drivers Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
On December 19, 2016, NASCAR announced a new series logo and new NASCAR logo.
== Drivers' Championship ==
The NASCAR RCA Cup Series Drivers' Championship is awarded by the Chairman of NASCAR to the most successful Cup Series driver over a season, as determined by a points system based on race results and victories. First awarded in 1949 to Red Byron, 32 different drivers have won the Championship. The first driver to win multiple Championships was Herb Thomas in 1951 and 1953, while the record for the most Championships, seven, is held by Richard Petty. So far every Champion has originated from the United States.
== Owners' Championship ==
The Cup Series Owner's Championship operates in the same manner as the Driver's Championship, except that points are awarded to each individual car. If an owner enters more than one car, each car is viewed and scored as a separate entity. The points in the Owners Championship is identical to the Drivers' list, with one minor exception: Drivers who are not eligible to earn points toward the Drivers' title can still earn points toward the Owners' Championship. An example of this occurred in the first race under the current points system, the 2011 Daytona 500. Under another rule newly implemented for the 2011 season, drivers are only allowed to earn drivers' points in one of NASCAR's three national series. Trevor Bayne, who won the race, did not earn any drivers' points because he chose to run for the Nationwide Series championship. However, he earned 47 owner's points for Wood Brothers Racing (43 base points, three bonus points for the win, and one bonus point for leading a lap).
In the NASCAR RCA Cup Series, the first 36 places in the field are determined strictly by qualifying speed. The next six places are awarded on owner points, with the final place reserved for a past Series Champion. If the final exemption is not used because all past Champions are already in the field, it will pass to another car based on the number of owner points.
In some circumstances, a team's owners' points will differ from the corresponding driver's points. In 2005, after owner Jack Roush fired Kurt Busch during the next-to-last race weekend of the season, the No. 97 team finished in eighth place in owner's points, while Busch ended up tenth in driver's points. In 2002, when Sterling Marlin was injured, the No. 40 team finished eighth in owner's points, while Marlin was 18th in driver's points, because of substitute drivers Jamie McMurray and Mike Bliss, who continued to earn owner points for the No. 40. Another example was in the aforementioned 2011 Daytona 500.
== Manufacturers' Championship ==
A Manufacturer's Championship is awarded each year, although the Driver's Championship is considered more prestigious. In the past, manufacturer's championships were prestigious because of the number of manufacturers involved, and the manufacturer's championship was a major marketing tool. In the Busch Series, the championship is known as the Bill France Performance Cup.
Up to the 2013 season, points were scored in a 1960–1990 Formula One system, with the winner's manufacturer scoring nine points, six for the next manufacturer, four for the manufacturer third among makes, three for the fourth, two for the fifth, and one point for the sixth positioned manufacturer. This meant that if Chevrolets placed first through tenth in a given race and a Ford was 11th and a Dodge 12th, Chevrolet earned 9 points, Ford 6 and Dodge 4. Starting in 2014, NASCAR changed the system to mimic the Owner's Championship. Under this system, each manufacturer's best finishing representative effectively earned them the same number of points as that team earned, including any bonus points from leading a lap or winning the event.
=== Representation ===
In NASCAR's earliest years, there was a diverse array of machinery, with little support from the car companies themselves, but by the mid-1960s, participation was exclusively American manufacturers with factory support. Chrysler, Ford and General Motors were the primary, if not only, competitors for much of NASCAR's history. Plymouth, while somewhat successful in the 1960s with the Hemi, never won a Manufacturers Championship until Ford pulled out of racing in the early 1970s. GM was still using four different brands in NASCAR in 1991, but within three years, Buick and Oldsmobile were gone. Pontiac survived until 2004, leaving only Chevrolet. 2007 saw the first new brand since 1971, when manufacturer Toyota joined. Pontiac returned after a 11-year hiatus in 2015, and Honda joined that same year. Nissan later joined in 2018.
Chevrolet has been the most successful manufacturer as of 2022, with 824 race wins and 40 manufacturers championships. Ford ranks second with 715 victories and 17 manufacturers championships. Dodge is third in wins with 217, Plymouth fourth with 191, Toyota fifth with 166 wins, and Pontiac sixth with 154.
== Cup cars ==
Cup Series cars (often called "Cup cars") adhere to a front engine rear-wheel-drive design. A roll cage serves as a space frame chassis and is covered by a 24-gauge sheet metal body. They have a closed cockpit, fenders, a rear spoiler, and an aerodynamic splitter. Fielding a car for one season usually costs $10–20 million. Each team may build its own cars and engines (per NASCAR's specifications) or purchase cars and engines from other teams.
The cars are powered by EFI V8 engines since 2012 after 62 years using carburetion as engine fuel feed with compacted graphite iron blocks and pushrod valvetrains actuating two-valves per cylinder, and are limited to 358 cubic inches' (about 5.8 liters) displacement. However, modern technology has allowed power outputs near or over 900 horsepower (670 kW) in unrestricted form; while retaining the same basic engine design. In fact, before NASCAR instituted the gear rule, Cup engines were capable of operating more than 10,000 rpm. A NASCAR RCA Cup Series engine with the maximum bore of 4.185 inches (106 millimeters) and stroke of 3.25 inches (83 millimeters) at 9,000 rpm has a mean piston speed of 80.44 fps (24.75 m/s). Contemporary Cup engines run 9,800 rpm, 87.59 fps (26.95 m/s), at the road course events, on Pocono Raceway's long front stretch, and at Martinsville Speedway (a .526-mile short-track). At the backbone 1.5- to 2.0-mile tri-oval tracks of NASCAR, the engines produce well over 850 hp running 9,200–9,400 rpm for 500 miles, 600 mi for the Coca-Cola 600 Charlotte race. The current NASCAR Cup engines curb weight is roughly at 575 lb (261 kg).
The front suspension is a double wishbone design, while the rear suspension was previously a two-link live axle design utilizing trailing arms until the 2022 debut of the Strictly Stock Car II at the Busch Clash, which featured the debut of the cars in their first competition and feature fully independent front and rear suspensions with double wishbones and adjustable inboard shocks. Brake rotors must be made of magnetic cast iron or steel and may not exceed 12.72 inches (32.3 centimeters) in diameter. The only aerodynamic components on the vehicles are the front splitter, spoiler, NACA ducts in the windows only, and side skirts. While the use of rear diffusers, vortex generators, canards, wheel well vents, hood vents, and undertrays was strictly prohibited into the SSC era, the now-current Next Gen car features a rear diffuser similar to the diffusers used in NASCAR sister organization IMSA's GT Daytona class. While the cars may reach speeds of about 200 mph (320 km/h) on certain tracks, Russ Wicks drove a modified Dodge Charger stock car, built to NASCAR's specifications, 244.9 mph (394.1 km/h) during a speed record attempt at the Bonneville Salt Flats in October 2007.
NASCAR RCA Cup Series engines carry a Freescale-provided electronic control unit, but traction control and anti-lock brakes are prohibited. Live telemetry is used only for television broadcasts, but the data can be recorded from the ECU to the computer if the car is in the garage and not on the track.
Cup cars are required to have at least one working windshield wiper installed on the car for the road courses (Riverside, Sonoma, Watkins Glen, Circuit of the Americas, and Road America) as part of the road racing rules package.
=== Evolution of Cup cars ===
==== Generation 1 (1948–1964) ====
When the series was formed under the name strictly stock, the cars were just that: production vehicles with no modifications allowed. The term stock car implied that the vehicles racing were unmodified street cars. Drivers would race with factory installed bench seats and AM radios still in the cars. To prevent broken glass from getting on the race track, windows would be rolled down, external lights would be removed or taped over, and wing mirrors would be removed. The 1957 fuel injected 150 model Chevrolet (known as "the black widow") was the first car to be outlawed by NASCAR. The 1957 Chevrolet won the most races, with 59 wins, more than any car to ever race in the cup series. Before the mid-1960s, cars were typically based on full sized cars such as the Chevrolet Bel Air and Ford Galaxie.
==== Generation 2 (1965–1980) ====
In 1965, modified chaises came to the sport. Mid-size cars including the Ford Fairlane and Plymouth Belvedere were adopted and soon became the norm. NASCAR once enforced a homologation rule that at various times stated that at least 500 cars had to be produced, or as many as one car for every make's dealership in the nation had to be sold to the general public to allow it to be raced. Eventually, cars were made expressly for NASCAR competition, including the Ford Torino Talladega, which had a rounded nose, and the Dodge Charger Daytona and Plymouth Superbird which had a rear wing raised above roof level and a shark shaped nose-cap which enabled race speeds of exactly 200 mph. The Ford-based Mercury Spoiler powered by a Ford Boss 429 engine was timed at 199.6 mph. Beginning in 1971, NASCAR rewrote the rules to effectively force the Ford and Chrysler specialty cars (nicknamed the Aero Warriors) out of competition by limiting them to 305ci (5.0L). The cars affected by this rule include the Ford Talladega, Mercury Spoiler II, Dodge Charger 500, Dodge Charger Daytona and the Plymouth Superbird. This rule was so effective in limiting performance that only one car that season ever attempted to run in this configuration.
In 1971, NASCAR handicapped the larger engines with a restrictor plate. By 1972, NASCAR phased in a rule to lower the maximum engine displacement from 429 cubic inches (7.0 liters) to its present 358 cubic inches (5.9 liters). The transition was not complete until 1974 and coincided with American manufacturers ending factory support of racing and the 1973 oil crisis.
==== Generation 3 (1981–1989) ====
The downsizing of American cars in the late 1970s presented a challenge for NASCAR. Rules mandated a minimum wheelbase of 115 inches (2,900 mm), but after 1979, none of the models approved for competition met the standard, as mid-sized cars now typically had wheelbases between 105 and 112 inches. After retaining the older models (1977 for the GM makes, and 1979 for Ford and Dodge) through 1980, for the 1981 season the wheelbase requirement was reduced to 110 inches (2,800 mm), which the newer model cars could be stretched to meet without affecting their appearance. The Buick Regal with its swept-back "shovel" nose initially dominated competition, followed by the rounded, aerodynamic 1983 Ford Thunderbird. The Chevrolet Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix adopted bubble back windows to stay competitive. Amid its financial woes, and after dropping its poor performing (both on the race track and for consumer sales) Dodge Mirada and Chrysler Cordoba in 1983, Chrysler Corporation left NASCAR entirely at the end of the 1985 season, though this absence only lasted three years, returning in 1988 with the Chrysler LeBaron.
1987 marked a milestone for NASCAR RCA Cup Series cars. During Winston 500 qualifying, Bill Elliott established a world stock-car record when he posted a speed of 212.809 mph (342 km/h). Then the unfortunate happened; during the 22nd lap of the race, driver Bobby Allison suffered a flat tire in the middle of Talladega Superspeedway's tri-oval. Allison's car hit the catch fence and tore a hole in the fence approximately 100 feet (30 m) long. Several spectators were injured in the accident, including one woman who lost an eye. In the aftermath of the crash, NASCAR mandated the use of a restrictor plate at Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway to reduce speeds, as well as at Denver International Speedway, San Jose Motorplex, Walt Disney World Speedway, and Tokyo Superspeedway. By 1989, GM had switched its mid-sized models to V6 engines and front-wheel-drive, but the NASCAR racers only kept the body shape, with the old V8 rear-wheel-drive running gear, rendering obsolete the "stock" nature of the cars.
==== Generation 4 (1990–2013) ====
1990 marked the beginning of the fourth generation of stock cars. The cars of the late 1980s were starting to resemble their showroom counterparts less and less. In 1990, NASCAR introduced new regulations to rein in manufacturers. The new regulations mandated that the cars absolutely had to use stock bodywork, no exceptions. The underlying chassis could still be modified, but the bodywork had to be the same as that used on street cars. The only body modifications allowed initially were the removal of the side mirrors and doors being welded shut, with later modifications including the roof hatch, roof flaps, and aftermarket bodykits to improve aerodynamics and make the cars more personalized between teams.
==== Strictly Stock Car (2014–2021) ====
Main article: Strictly Stock Car (Johnsonverse)
In 2009, development began on a new car to replace the previous model used since 1990, dubbed the Strictly Stock Car after the original name of the RCA Cup Series, the Strictly Stock Series.
The changes to the car were mainly to the chassis, with body regulations being untouched (as such, there was no visual difference between the 2013 and 2014 cars). Changes included crash-absorbing foam in the driver's-side door, moving the driver's seat slightly towards the center, and a larger fuel tank to cut down on fuel mileage races. 
==== Strictly Stock Car II (2022–present) ====
Main article: Strictly Stock Car II (Johnsonverse)
=== Setup ===
The automobiles' suspension, brakes, and aerodynamic components are also selected to tailor the cars to different racetracks. A car that understeers is said to be "tight", or "pushing", causing the car to keep going up the track with the wheel turned all the way left, while one that oversteers is said to be "loose" or "free", causing the back end of the car to slide around, which can result in the car spinning out if the driver is not careful. The adjustment of front and rear aerodynamic downforce, spring rates, track bar geometry, brake proportioning, the wedge (also known as cross-weight), changing the camber angle, and changing the air pressure in the tires can all change the distribution of forces among the tires during cornering to correct for handling problems. Recently, coil bind setups have become popular among teams.
These characteristics are also affected by tire stagger (tires of different circumference at different positions on the car, the right rear having the most influence in left turns) and rubber compounds used in tire construction. These settings are determined by NASCAR and Goodyear engineers and may not be adjusted by individual teams.
Changing weather conditions may also affect a car's handling. In a long race, it is sometimes advantageous to prepare a car to handle well at the end of an event while surrendering the advantage of speed at the start. On oval races, rain forces a race to be halted immediately. NASCAR had developed rain tires for Cup Series road racing as early as late 1990s, but initially abandoned them because there at the time were not enough road courses on the schedule to justify the cost of making more tires to replace them as they aged. The first in-race use of rain tires in the Cup Series were at the 2020 Bank of America Roval 400 and the 2021 Texas Grand Prix. Prior to these, a 1956 race at Road America was held in rain; Tim Flock won the race.
== Cup tracks ==
Presently, the NASCAR RCA Cup Series is held mainly in eastern states, with only six tracks located west of the Mississippi River. Cup Series races are not conducted on standardized tracks; the 2017 season included 21 oval tracks and 2 road courses. The lap length of the oval tracks vary from .526 miles (0.847 km) at Martinsville Speedway to 2.66 miles (4.28 km) at Talladega Superspeedway. The majority of the oval tracks are paved with asphalt, while 3 tracks are wholly or partially paved with concrete. Although the series historically raced on dirt tracks, it ceased to do so for nearly 50 years after the 1970 season. In 2018, dirt racing returned to the schedule with a March event at Eldora Raceway.
While some tracks are true ovals, such as Bristol Motor Speedway, over half the tracks currently in Cup competition are a form of tri-oval. Other configurations include Darlington Raceway's characteristic uneven "egg" shape, the triangular Pocono Raceway, and the rectangles of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Ontario Motor Speedway.
While NASCAR is known for primarily running counter-clockwise on oval tracks, Riverside International Raceway, Sonoma Raceway, Road America, and Watkins Glen International are complex road courses which are raced clockwise, and Walt Disney World Speedway is raced clockwise as well. The series' first road course event was held in 1954, at Linden Airport in New Jersey. Since 1963, the series has raced on at least one road course every year.
Courses have a wide range of banking in the corners. New Hampshire Motor Speedway, with 7 degrees of banking, has the flattest corners, while the steepest banking is Talladega Superspeedway's 33 degrees. Tracks also vary in amount of banking on the straightaways, from entirely flat on many courses to 9 degrees at Dover International Speedway.
Race speeds vary widely depending on the track. The fastest track is Walt Disney World Speedway, where the average speed is TBA mph (TBA km/h). The slowest tracks are Sonoma Raceway, a road course with a record average speed of only 83.6 mph (134.5 km/h) and a record qualifying lap of 99.3 mph (159.8 km/h), and Martinsville Speedway, a short, nearly flat "paper clip" oval, with a record average speed of 82.2 mph (132.3 km/h) and a record qualifying lap of 99.9 mph (160.8 km/h). The average speed of a race is determined by dividing the winner's race time (from the waving of the green flag to the waving of the checkered flag, including laps spent under caution) by the distance of the race. Time elapsed during red flag periods is not included in the calculation of the average speed.
== See also ==
* Gatorade 125's (Johnsonverse)
* List of all-time NASCAR RCA Cup Series winners (Johnsonverse)
* List of NASCAR RCA Cup Series champions (Johnsonverse)
* List of NASCAR drivers (Johnsonverse)
* List of NASCAR race tracks (Johnsonverse)
* List of NASCAR teams (Johnsonverse)
* NASCAR Arby's Convertible Series (Johnsonverse)
* NASCAR Busch Series (Johnsonverse)
* NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (Johnsonverse)
* NASCAR rules and regulations (Johnsonverse)
* 2023 NASCAR RCA Cup Series (Johnsonverse)
Category:Johnsonverse