‘Nascar Nextel Cup Series’
There are many different types of races for Nascar. Too many to go over in just one post. So this time we will only explain to you newbies what the “Nascar Nextel Cup Series” is. The “Nascar Nextel Cup Series” is the sport’s highest level of professional competition. It is consequently the most popular and most profitable Nascar series. The 2006 Nextel Cup season consisted of 36 races over 10 months, with over $4 million in total prize money at stake at each race. Writers and fans often use “Cup” to refer to the NextelCup series and the ambiguous use of “Nascar” as a synonym for the Nextel Cup series is common. As of 2007, the defending champion is Jimmie Johnson.
In 2004, Nextel took over sponsorship of the premier series from R.J. Reynolds, formally renaming it from the Winston Cup to the Nextel Cup Series. A new championship points system, “The Chase for the Nextel Cup” was also developed, which reset the point standings with ten races to go, making only drivers in the top ten or within 400 points of the leader eligible to win the championship. In 2007, Nascar announced it was expanding “The Chase” from ten to twelve drivers, eliminating the 400-point cutoff, and giving a ten-point bonus to the top twelve drivers for each of the races they have won out of the first 26. Wins throughout the season will also be worth five more points than in previous seasons. In 2008, the premier series title name will become the Sprint Cup Series, as part of the merger between Nextel and Sprint.
The “Nascar Busch Series” is the second-highest level of professional competition in Nascar. The cars look very similar to Nextel Cup cars with only a few differences, such as the weight and length of the car, the size of the rear spoiler, and the power output of the engine. As of 2007, the defending champion is Kevin Harvick.
The Busch Series is currently the only series of the top three to race outside the United States and the only series to have ever held points-paying international events. The season is a few races shorter and the prize money is significantly lower. Over the last several years, a number of Nextel Cup drivers have tried to run races in both series, using the Busch race as a warm-up to the Cup event at the same facility. Detractors of this practice have labeled such drivers as “Busch-whackers.” The Busch sponsorship is set to expire at the end of 2007 and the series is currently looking for a new title sponsor for 2008 and beyond.