(Editor's note: The INEX Legends events have been re-structured since this writing. That change is now included in the last paragraph of this article.)

With the changes In the NASCAR Whelen All American Series, Concord Motorsport Park has made some aggressive, positive changes in the weekly racing schedule.  In the 2007 season, CMP will offer the Feature Division Late Model Stock Car competitors 27 NASCAR National and State Championship points races and 29 Track Championship races in the 21 event schedule. Twin features for the Late Model Stock Cars scheduled for the evenings of April 14th, May 12th, June 23rd, July 14th, July 28th, August 4th and September 29th all fit inside the NASCAR points season that ends on September 29th  and twin features on October 6th will complete the track championship.  Under the new NASCAR Championship format, only the Feature Division driver’s best 18 finishes are counted, so this new scheduling gives the Feature Division drivers extra opportunities for ranking in NASCAR’s Championships.  See more on the NASCAR State and National Championships on Pages 2 & 3.  The CMP track championship will be decided in the same manner in years past, with the winner of each event earning 50 points, 2nd place 48 points and each successive finisher earning 2 points less, down to a minimum of 2 points for 25th and lower finishers with the exception of Double Points events for all divisions on April 21st, June 16th and August 18th.  All races count toward the Track Championship.  If an event is lost to weather, the speedway will make every attempt to make up the race at a later date.

Also new in 2007, drivers with a NASCAR Feature Division Driver’s License will be allowed to compete in Late Model Stock Car and Limited Late Model division races as long as they do so in separate vehicles prepared for each division.  Also, vehicles may not compete in more than one division on the same evening.  Drivers with a NASCAR Charger Division Driver’s License may compete in Limited Late Model and Pure Stock races.  Limited Late Model and Pure Stock Division Track Championships will be determined with the same format as the Late Model Stock Car Division.  At Driver’s Sign-In on race day, drivers must declare in which division(s) they are racing for that night and can not change later.

Fast and Furious Fours becomes a NASCAR sanctioned division and those drivers and owners are required to hold a NASCAR Charger Division License and they may only compete within the division.  In 2007 points will be kept and a Division Champion Driver and Owner wil lbe crowned at season’s end.

The 2007 NASCAR Whelen All American Series season opens on Saturday March 24th and continues through Saturday October 6th.  The U. A. R. A. holds competitions on March 31st and October 20th with those events including races for Fast & Furious Fours and Redneck Racers.  The U. S. A. R. Hooters ProCup tour comes to Concord on April 28th, The Lucas Oil National Truck and Tractor Pull is scheduled for May 4th and 5th, The Pebble Pushers Car & Truck Show is slated for September 22nd and 23rd and the North-South Shootout for Modified Cars is set for November 1st, 2nd and 3rd.

NASCAR 2007 Championship Structure (edited and reprinted from NASCAR Promoter’s letter)

A key element of the overall series strategy continues to be placing a strong emphasis on your local track championship, while also providing additional competition levels for your drivers to aspire to at some kind of reasonable reward level.

Part of our new strategy is to do away with the current NASCAR Divisional Alignment.  Arguably, the four NASCAR Divisions (formerly Regions) were often difficult to explain, and difficult for you to capitalize on in the way of advertising or promoting. Instead, we are replacing them with something that everyone, whether a race fan or not, immediately grasps, and that is NASCAR State Championships in the U.S.; Provincial Championships in Canada.  If the 2007 NASCAR Pennsylvania State Champion comes from your racetrack, for example, that is something you (and the driver) can easily promote without a detailed explanation. 

Another part of our new strategy is to create and tout a national ranking of the top 500 drivers in the nation. Adjustments are planned at the track, state and national level.

• Track Champions.
• NASCAR Track Champions will be determined by whatever point system the promoter uses.  You determine your NASCAR Track Champion, whether you use the points system in the NASCAR Rule Book or one that you feel works better for your track. 
• Season-end, nation sponsor point fund payouts to the top 3 tiers at your track will be comparable to 2006 track payouts, but an additional $1,500 will be allocated to the 4th tier division at your track where applicable.

• State and Provincial Champions.
• A NASCAR State Champion will be determined by applying the NASCAR point system in the Rule Book based on a driver’s performance at one or more NASCAR-sanctioned track(s) in that state, counting up to the highest 18 finishes. 
• State/Provincial ranking is not predicated on the driver also being a track champion (although the odds are strong that he or she will be). 
• Driver points do not transfer between states and/or provinces for these championships.
• A driver may compete for more than one State/Provincial championship. 
• Each State/Provincial champion will earn a bonus of $2000 multiplied by the number of NASCAR-sanctioned tracks in that state/province.

• National Champion and National Ranking.
• The NASCAR National Champion will be determined by applying the NASCAR point system in the Rule Book based on a driver’s performance at one or more NASCAR-sanctioned track(s) anywhere in North America counting up to the highest 18 finishes.
• In additional, there will be an overall ranking of the top 500 drivers in the nation.  Each driver in the top 500 will receive a certificate from NASCAR stating that he/she is ranked, for example, #73 in the nation.
• The National Champion will earn a bonus of $25,000 in 2007.
• National ranking is not predicated on the driver being a state champion or a track champion. 

2007 Championship Points

The existing NASCAR championship point system will be simplified. In 2006, points were awarded in descending order starting with the winner of the race (50 points), then -2 points for each position below that (i.e.; 48 points for second; 46 for third, etc.) with additional bonus points based on car count. 

In 2007, points will be awarded using the same 2-point premise, but points will be awarded in ascending order from last place finisher in a feature race (2 points), then adding +2 points for each car.  So the next-to-last-place finisher would get 4 points; the car ahead of that 6 points, and so on.  No additional bonus points for car counts will be needed since this approach already factors car count.  Based on feedback from promoters, we will be establishing a cap on point awards per race and will announce that shortly. If a driver has more than 18 finishes, then the highest finishes will be determined by points earned in a race, not individual finishing position.

Only NASCAR-licensed drivers in a race will factor into awarding championship points.  The so-called “grace period” for NASCAR membership is being discontinued.  If a driver in a race is not a current, valid NASCAR member for some reason, then he/she will not be awarded championship points for that race, and the points awarded to all other drivers in that race will be based on one less car in the field.  

The points close date for state and national championships and rankings will be Sunday, September 30, 2007 for all NASCAR-sanctioned tracks.  Tracks may request an earlier or later close date for their individual NASCAR track championships, so long as the date does not adversely effect driver participation in the national banquet.  A number of promoters have indicated a desire to return to the mid-September close date for the state and national championships.  We will evaluate and notify all promoters of the plan for 2008 by the mid-point of the 2007 season.

Changes are also coming to the INEX Legends and Bandolero competitors in 2007. With the success of the Bandolero Beginner Bandits division in 2006 affecting the flow of the events, we are establishing a similar Legends “Charger” Semi Pro division for the 2007 season. 

Bandolero Beginner Bandits and Legends Charger Semi Pros compete separately from the regular features for these divisions, but are awarded “B” Main points in the division rankings for their finish.  In an example where the Bandits feature has 15 finishers, Beginner Bandits would be awarded points equivalent to 16th and lower finishing positions.  In the event of an actual “B” main for a division, the beginner competitors are awarded points following the last finisher in the “B” main.  Finishing positions are shown on the same race report under separate headings.

Beginner divisions are kept separate at sign-in and participate in their own practice sessions and races.

Legends Pro and Master divisions will have separate heats and features from the Semi-Pro division, at least at the beginning of the season. Pro and Master competitors should increase their participation to maintain the separate feature format. Race results and points are compiled by division.