Okay, so I was watching this NASCAR race the other day, right? And I got to thinking, how many cars actually start one of these things? I mean, it looks like a ton of them out there, all zooming around. So, I did a little digging.
First, I went straight to the source – you know, the internet. Typed in “how many cars start a NASCAR race” and boom, a bunch of stuff popped up.
Turns out, it’s not as many as I thought. I always figured it was like 50 or something, you know, just judging by how packed the track looks. But nah, it’s actually fewer.
What I Found Out
- 40 is the magic number. Yep, a maximum of 40 cars get to start a NASCAR Cup Series race. That’s the standard.
- It used to be 43. Apparently, before they changed some rules with something called the “charter system,” they used to let 43 cars start. But now, it’s down to 40.
- It’s not just random. They don’t just pick the number out of a hat. There are safety and competitiveness to think about. Makes sense, I guess. You wouldn’t want it too crowded or too sparse out there.
- Other NASCAR races. I also learned that the Xfinity Series, which I guess is like the younger sibling of the Cup Series, had 43 cars in the race at first. But they changed it to 36 cars after the 2019 season.
So yeah, that’s what I found out. It’s 40 cars. Not as many as I thought, but still a whole bunch. I guess they gotta keep things safe and make sure everyone has a fair shot at winning. Pretty interesting, huh? I thought it was cool to learn something new.
