Top 35 Rule Now Hurting Those It Was Supposed To Protect

Several years ago NASCAR came up with the Top 35 rule. The idea was that it was to protect those teams that raced each week from being bumped from a race by a part-time team. Teams such as the Petty’s and Wood Brothers, among others, were to benefit from running each week, thereby maintaining a higher place in the Owner’s Points than those who ran just a few races. By being in the Top 35, they were guaranteed a starting spot, no matter how poorly they qualified.