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Topic: Time for Knoxville to change the point format
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Page 2 of 2 of 24 replies
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August 18, 2026 at
10:44:34 PM
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Reply to:
Posted By: egras on August 17 2026 at 06:36:31 AM
I'm not sure what people want. They force drivers to lay down the best lap possible, which puts them out of a transfer and forces them to race for the prelim feature. If drivers are not able to, they have to work their asses off to get into the prelim feature, and once in the feature, they have to race their asses off to get to advance in the feature to advance to the Saturday feature. This is pretty much as much handicapping as anyone can do to create fantastic racing.
Then, in the same breath, after complaining how difficult it is for the fast guys to qualify for the A-main because of the points and invert system, we complain that we rewarded the guys who actually executed this system to perfection and landed towards the front.
So, which is it? Is the points system too tough and puts fast cars at a disadvantage? Or are we giving the guys who actually performed too much? It can only be one or the other. Complain all you want about Larson and Sheldon starting and finishing 1-2. Remember, this system had both of these cars come from deep in their heat, and 8th in the feature on Wednesday and Thursday nights. They system worked for supplying great racing. I don't think there was anything at all that was going to create great racing at the front of that field, on that track, on Saturday night. I've seen enough tracks like that after a rain delay.
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Just out of curiosity, where are you hearing people complain about how difficult it is for fast guys to qualify for the A-main? I've never heard that complaint. Is there a format that doesn't put the fastest guys in the first three rows in today's professional sprint car racing (and I'm not talking about the nationals, that just makes for a good story)? And in fact it really doesn't even make sense, if they don't make the A-main, are they really the fast cars?
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August 19, 2026 at
02:30:26 AM
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This message was edited on
August 19, 2026 at
02:30:44 AM by SprintFan16
Reply to:
Posted By: Hooper31 on August 18 2026 at 05:10:40 PM
The qualifying segment is the only part I think is off. Marks is the perfect example. I think he went out next to last in qualifying and was something like 24th fastest.
He went from 4th to 1st in his heat.
He went from 11th to 3rd in the feature.
Using the regular point system he didn't qualify for the A-main on Saturday. He would have been in the front row of the B on Saturday. Was he one of the fastest cars n his qualifying night? For sure. Did he move forward? Absolutely. Was he only the 18th best car overall on the two qualifying nights? I think that would be a hard position to defend.
There is no perfect system, but I think the qualifying order could at least be broken down into an A and B so we don't have to compare the 1st and 50th car unfairly. With that many cars I can't think of another program that doesn't at least break the qualifying into two sections.
I'm never going to argue that the Nationals are f'ed or stupid. They're great. Love them, but we should all be open to a little introspection and analysis. My idea? Qualifying A gets the inside lane of the heat races. Qualifying B gets the outside of the heat races.
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Marks is one of the better recent examples of the format hurting a fast car, but I still look at guys who qualified near him that did better - Garet Williamson went out 44th and was six spots better, Austin McCarl went out 39th and was 8 spots better.
The other thing I'd think deserves said out loud is that his bad qualifying time inherently gives him a better opportunity to win his heat race.
I've long stuck to never wanting a change in the Knoxville format and still feel that way. Every year, I try to find examples of guys that really didn't deserve to make the Saturday A and almost never can. It always seems to have to be earned.
Even a guy like Jace Park, who qualified 23rd and didn't move up or down and finished fourth in his heat I can still make an argument for because of how fast he was in his prelim feature.
I've always simply viewed the Nationals format as forcing drivers to push as hard and fast as possible every time they're on track - there's always a benefit to wanting another position, and that's what makes it the best race of the year.
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August 19, 2026 at
09:03:52 AM
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"I've always simply viewed the Nationals format as forcing drivers to push as hard and fast as possible every time they're on track - there's always a benefit to wanting another position, and that's what makes it the best race of the year."
Yup. Every time you are on the track, you must compete. Contrast that with WoO or HL heat races and they are boat races and they are there simply to fill time and provide content. The heats at the Nationals are boat races sometimes but guys don't let up because every spot counts.
The A main Saturday was filled with the best cars and drivers of the week.
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August 19, 2026 at
12:12:30 PM
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Reply to:
Posted By: hardon on August 18 2026 at 10:44:34 PM
Just out of curiosity, where are you hearing people complain about how difficult it is for fast guys to qualify for the A-main? I've never heard that complaint. Is there a format that doesn't put the fastest guys in the first three rows in today's professional sprint car racing (and I'm not talking about the nationals, that just makes for a good story)? And in fact it really doesn't even make sense, if they don't make the A-main, are they really the fast cars?
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I have read literally hundreds of posts on social media about this very subject. I'm sorry if Hoseheads isn't my only "forum." If you haven't heard that complaint, you don't follow as many sprint car groups as I do. Complaints about cars not transferring their heats are all over the stands, Facebook, etc. All over.
And yes, the guys that time faster than anyone else, but are unable to overcome a .1-.2 difference in speed over 10 laps to gain 4 spots, can still be faster cars that just don't have enough time. Have you watched a sprint car heat in the past 20 years? Faster cars don't necessarily have the time to pass slightly slower cars.
I love the format FYI. I love the struggle to get to the show. There is no other time of the year that guys are more elbows up than the qualifying, heats, B-feature, and A-features of qualifying nights at the Nationals. I love every minute of it. I love the reward for driving the hell out of it in qualifying for the 200 points, even if that does mean being inverted. I love that being inverted to the front row of your heat is still punished by terrible qualifying points. I love watching faster cars that can't get out of their heats battle like hell for the last 4 spots in the night's A-main and that they must advance through the field to gain more points. I love all of it. I don't know what there's not to love.
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August 19, 2026 at
12:13:44 PM
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Reply to:
Posted By: rolldog on August 19 2026 at 09:03:52 AM
"I've always simply viewed the Nationals format as forcing drivers to push as hard and fast as possible every time they're on track - there's always a benefit to wanting another position, and that's what makes it the best race of the year."
Yup. Every time you are on the track, you must compete. Contrast that with WoO or HL heat races and they are boat races and they are there simply to fill time and provide content. The heats at the Nationals are boat races sometimes but guys don't let up because every spot counts.
The A main Saturday was filled with the best cars and drivers of the week.
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You and Sprintfan16 are spot on!!
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