NASCAR announces tweaks to Chase format

~ The Chase field will be expanded to 12 drivers, and wins will carry more weight.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- NASCAR placed more emphasis on winning, widened the Chase for the championship field to 12 drivers and created a postseason seeding system under a series of adjustments announced Monday.

Starting this season, victories during the 26-race "regular season" now will be worth 185 points -- an increase of five points. Assuming the winning driver also picks up other bonuses during the race, a victory now can be worth as much as 25 points more than second place.

In addition, those wins will be worth a 10-point bonus that will be used to "seed" the drivers when the 10-race Chase begins.

During the Chase's first three years, the drivers' point totals were reset in five-point increments when the postseason began. Now, all drivers' totals will be reset to 5,000, and each will receive a 10-point bonus for each victory during the first 26 races.

This new format would have drastically helped Kasey Kahne, who won a series-high five races in the first part of the year but barely made the Chase and started it in 10th place -- 50 points out. Under the new system, he would have earned 50 points for his five wins and started the Chase in first place.

And, by widening the field from 10 drivers to 12, Tony Stewart and Greg Biffle would have made the Chase field.

"The adjustments taken today put a greater emphasis on winning races," said NASCAR chairman Brian France. "Winning is what this sport is all about. Nobody likes to see drivers content to finish in the top 10. We want our sport -- especially during the Chase -- to be more about winning."

France launched the Chase in 2004 to create a championship format similar to other professional leagues, and to drum up interest in NASCAR during the stretch of the season that competes with the NFL for TV ratings. The original format called for the top 10 drivers -- and anyone within 400 points of the leader -- to advance to a 10-race countdown to the Nextel Cup title.

Long before last year's Chase even began, France announced plans to tweak the system. He wasn't sure what he planned to do but repeatedly said he wasn't looking at widening the field.

Apparently that changed.

It's possible NASCAR always expected the field to occasionally include more than 10 drivers. The trouble was, no driver outside the top 10 was ever within 400 points of the leader. Now, that 400-point cushion has been scrapped.

Despite criticism from longtime fans who preferred the consistency-based championship format, France said he still believes the Chase is the best thing for NASCAR.

"The Chase has been successful because it has done what it was designed to do -- give more drivers an opportunity to win the championship," France said. "It has re-energized our sport. And now, a good thing is about to get better.

"In 2004 when we unveiled the Chase, we said we would keep a close eye on it, and make adjustments if needed. We have done that, and we feel like the sport -- and the sport's fans -- will benefit."