Image by Barry Cantrell/LAT
NASCAR tweaks Xfinity field size for 2019
The field size of the Xfinity Series, as well as the eligibility for the Owner Championship, will look different in 2019 for both the Xfinity and Gander Outdoors Truck Series.
NASCAR announced the procedural changes Thursday with the most notable being the Xfinity Series field going from 40 to 38 cars. In doing so, NASCAR will take the purse money that had been awarded to the 39th and 40th-place cars and spread it among the rest of the field.
“Our goal is to ensure that each race features the strongest field and best racing for our fans,” said NASCAR vice president of racing operations John Bobo. “The NASCAR Xfinity Series already features some of the tightest competition throughout the field. This adjustment will further strengthen an already outstanding series.”
Additionally, owners in both the Xfinity and Gander Outdoors Truck Series will only earn playoff points and have a race win counting toward eligibility of the Owner Championship if the driver capturing said points/win has declared for points in that series.
In its announcement, NASCAR said the changes were aimed “at strengthening both the competition on the racetrack and the identity of each series.”
NASCAR also announced the four Dash 4 Cash races for the Xfinity Series. The program will start with the qualifying race at Texas Motor Speedway (March 30) and then go to Bristol Motor Speedway (April 6), Richmond Raceway (April 12), Talladega Superspeedway (April 27) and Dover International Speedway (May 4).
Kelly Crandall
Kelly has been on the NASCAR beat full-time since 2013, and joined RACER as chief NASCAR writer in 2017. Her work has also appeared in NASCAR.com, the NASCAR Illustrated magazine, and NBC Sports. A corporate communications graduate from Central Penn College, Crandall is a two-time George Cunningham Writer of the Year recipient from the National Motorsports Press Association.
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