NASCAR Euro Series – The Format
The basic information that you need to know about the race format in the NASCAR Euro Series.
The NASCAR Euro Series weekend format is designed to bring the excitement of pure racing to the fans. Featuring four (4) races in two (2) days, the race format will give fans the opportunity to enjoy the ultimate racing experience.
The Race Weekend Format
A standard NASCAR Euro Series race week starts on Friday with a technical inspection for the competing cars, followed by three EuroNASCAR Rookie Challenge sessions. The last two sessions are used to determine the overall winners of the regularity-based division.
Two 30-minute Free Practice sessions for EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR OPEN would follow before the competitors get a well deserved break prior to Saturday and Saturday.
Qualifying and the Superpole session (for EuroNASCAR PRO drivers only) kicks off the action on Saturday morning. In the afternoon, Race 1 for EuroNASCAR PRO would take place before EuroNASCAR OPEN stepped into the stage just before time reached evening.
The weekend would reach its climax on Sunday, where Race 2 for both EuroNASCAR OPEN and EuroNASCAR PRO were held. OPEN goes first on Sunday morning while PRO concludes the meeting in the afternoon.
In between the races, there are many activities that the fans can participate. Be it grid-walks and pit-walks, an open paddock for the fans to meet the drivers and teams, autograph sessions or an opportunity to take part in the 2-seater co-drive experiences, EuroNASCAR guarantees that there’s something for everyone to enjoy in its race meetings.
The Exceptions...
In the American SpeedFest at Brands Hatch, the Sunday schedule is reversed. Here, EuroNASCAR PRO will go first on Sunday afternoon before EuroNASCAR OPEN concludes the event later that day.
In the NASCAR Oval GP at Raceway Venray, only one race is held for both EuroNASCAR PRO and EuroNASCAR OPEN. The races are also held as a one-day affair, meaning that Practice, Qualifying and the main event itself all took place on the same day.
The Race Itself
EuroNASCAR races are held in a sprint format, up to a maximum distance of 75 kilometers in EuroNASCAR PRO and 60 kilometers in EuroNASCAR OPEN. This meant that the drivers are given an incentive to make quick and decisive moves while still having just enough distance to let the races play out naturally.
NASCAR Euro Series uses the procedures that are seen in the United States, such as rolling start, double file restarts, and the usage of Overtime finish when a late caution is called.
However, there’s also a couple of things that made EuroNASCAR unique. For one, EuroNASCAR races featured a Full-Course Yellow (FCY) system. If a FCY is called, then the driver must heed to the speed limit that’s set on their in-car speed limiter.
Race control also has some powers that are not seen in the United States. For example, race control have the ability to force a single-file restart if it’s deemed to be the safer option.
Starting from 2024, race control also has the opportunity to add laps back if the race goes behind the Safety Car. The amount of laps added is dependent on how many full laps are run behind the Safety Car.
For example, if the SC period happened for two (2) laps and the race is initially scheduled for 18 laps, then race control will make the distance to be 20 laps once the race gets restarted.
This rule, coupled with the Overtime rule, can only be done if there’s still enough time to host the event. To prevent disruption for support events, EuroNASCAR mandates that a race can only be held to a certain time limit.
For EuroNASCAR PRO, the race is given a time limit of 45 minutes + 1 lap. In EuroNASCAR OPEN, the time limit is set at 40 minutes + 1 lap.
The Points System
NASCAR Euro Series also uses the current points system used by NASCAR’s three national series. It means that 40 points are awarded for the winner, with second place receiving 35, third receiving 34, and so on.
There are three major differences that EuroNASCAR had with its points system:
- Instead of Stage points, EuroNASCAR awards 4 extra championship points for the driver that gained the most positions in a race. If several drivers are tied for most positions gained, then the bonus points will be awarded to the driver that has the higher finishing position.
- If a driver failed to complete the first lap, then they’ll receive three (3) less points from the last driver who was classified after completing at least one (1) lap.
- If a driver failed to start, then they’ll receive ten (10) less points from the last driver who was classified after completing at least one (1) lap. This can only be applied IF the driver had qualified for the race and did not have their entry withdrawn.
The Championship Format
Much like the US NASCAR, the season is split into two portions: The “Regular Season” and the “Playoffs”.
In the Regular Season, the races are held on the traditional EuroNASCAR rules. Things will get exciting in the Playoffs because the points are doubled for everyone on the grid, meaning that more points can be lost and/or gained depending on how the race went.
However, unlike US NASCAR that pretty much invalidated the results from the Regular Season once the Playoffs started, EuroNASCAR placed an emphasis on full season points to ensure that the worthy champions candidates from Regular Season can fight it out to the end.
This is done through the way EuroNASCAR calculates their standings. Under the current format, EuroNASCAR will count the eight best results in the Regular Season and all results from the Playoffs to determine a driver’s final points tally.
With this system, EuroNASCAR rewards drivers that made big plays while still punishing those that are inconsistent enough. Too many poor results will not save your season, even with a perfect Playoffs.
Information are provided from the official 2019 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series Digital Presentation, the 2020 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series Digital Presentation, the 2020 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series Sporting and Safety Procedure Changes, the 2021 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series Sporting Changes, MOOG EU’s NASCAR® EXPLAINED and the 2024 NASCAR Whelen Euro Series Digital Presentation.
Disclaimer: Credits for all photos are listed underneath each image.
Last Updated: 25 November 2024