The classic NASCAR scoring system would have it a three-way Toyota battle for the points lead after the Auto Club 400, with one driver in particular continuing to benefit from the old points calculations.
If consistency is what you value in your NASCAR drivers, Denny Hamlin is your man. Despite not leading a ton of laps or really challenging for any race wins, the pilot of the No. 11 Toyota has four top-10 finishes in five races, three top-5s, and has led some laps each of the last two weeks.
As a result, if the NASCAR classic scoring system was in place in 2018, Hamlin would be in second place in the standings after the Auto Club 400 in California, just 17 points behind series leader Martin Truex Jr. The defending 2017 Cup Series champ would be king in any era, as he also leads the way under the modern points system.
Our continuing just-for-fun look at how the standings would differ under the old rules was hit with its first real curveball during NASCAR Goes West, as both Kevin Harvick and Chase Elliott were hit with points penalties. Because we’re making this up as we go along, we applied those penalties to the drivers’ point totals, and will continue to do so as the season progresses.
More damaging than the penalty was Harvick’s disastrous day in his home state, where contact with Kyle Larson sent him hard into the outside wall. He stayed in the race but was multiple laps down the rest of the day, and would only have earned 58 points under the classic scoring table.
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As a result, despite three victories, Harvick finds himself trailing Truex by more than 125 points, highlighting, perhaps, why NASCAR moved away from this system in the first place. Should a driver with three victories against two bad days and a penalty really be that far behind a guy with one win? It’s at the very least a valid question.
In any case, here’s our bi-weekly retro update, with the usual disclaimer: We’re NASCAR fans and bloggers, not mathematicians. These totals could be off in some places, though we did our best to double check our calculations.
Without further ado …
2018 NASCAR Cup Series standings after California – Classic scoring system
- Martin Truex Jr., 784 points, even vs. 2018 system
- Denny Hamlin, -17 points, +4 places
- Kyle Busch, -20 points, -1 place
- Joey Logano, -47 points, -1 place
- Ryan Blaney, -84 points, even
- Kyle Larson, -91 points, +1 place
- Clint Bowyer, -112 points, +2 places
- Austin Dillon, -113 points, +4 places
- Aric Almirola, -118 points, +1 place
- Brad Keselowski, -119 points, -6 places
- Kevin Harvick, -126 points, -3 places
- Erik Jones, -170 points, +1 place
- Ryan Newman, -175 points, +1 place
- Alex Bowman, -201 points, +2 places
- Paul Menard, -218 points, even
- Kurt Busch, -229 points, -5 places
- William Byron, -244 points, +3 places
- Jimmie Johnson, -264 points, even
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr., -264 points, -2 places
- Chase Elliott, -265 points, +1 place
- Bubba Wallace, -265 points, -2 places
- Chris Buescher, -274 points, even
- Daniel Suarez, -290 points, even
- AJ Allmendinger, -299 points, +1 place
- Jamie McMurray, -306 points, +1 place
- Kasey Kahne, -330 points, +3 places
- David Ragan, -338 points, +1 place
- Trevor Bayne, -344 points, -1 place
- Michael McDowell, -346 points, -5 places
- Matt DiBenedetto, -377 points, even
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Who wishes it was 1975: Denny Hamlin and Austin Dillon
We’ve already talked about Hamlin, who would benefit immensely from the classic scoring system and be within striking distance of the points lead in a single race, something he can’t say under 2018 rules. Dillon is a little further back but still ahead of the likes of Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick, not something he can currently say.
Who’s glad to be in the 21st century: Brad Keselowski
Let’s hear it for stage points, eh Brad K.? Keselowski hasn’t led a ton of laps, which is part of the reason the classic scoring system doesn’t like him, but his strong stage point performance aids him a lot under the current table. He’s a half-step away from being a championship contender by modern rules, whereas in the old days he’d have been still in the picture but in need of more running out in front.