NHRA Countdown and other musings.. (1 Viewer)

[Dave]

I'm surprised at the press releases they issue about this Countdown. First of all, Mike Edwards had it locked up at Norwalk and not a word. Then at Denver, with 603 points (indy has one extra qualifying session to earn little points) still left to be earned, they had Shawn Langdon and Tony Schumacher locked up, even though all the way down to 13th place David Grubnic were within the 603 point window. Now they issue another release stating that Spencer Massey and Matt Smith are locked in, but they fail to mention that so are Shane Gray, Vincent Nobile, Michael Ray, and Hector Arana, Sr. How can they be so all over the board with this stuff? Is my math wrong? What am I missing?

In Pro Stock there are 3 races left.. 150 points in Seattle, 150 points in Brainerd, and 153 points in Indy. 453 points. 11th place Rickie Jones has 454 points. Even if he were to sweep the races the most he can earn is 907. Shane Gray has 948 points. Can't be beat. Vincent Nobile has 918 points. Can't be beat. Jason Line has 902 points. As soon as he makes a qualifying pass at Seattle, he is in.

In Pro Stock Motorcycle there is only one race left. 153 points to be earned in Indy. 11th place LE Tonglet has 395 points. If he sweeps the race the most he can earn is 548. Hector Arana, Sr. has 553. He could not show up and he can't be beat. John Hall has 534. If he qualifies or earns any little points he is locked in.

On the flip side, in Top Fuel, everyone from 17th place Sidnei Frigo down is eliminated. In Funny Car everyone from 17th place Todd Lesenko down is eliminated. In Pro Stock everyone from 17th place Kurt Johnson down is eliminated. In Pro Stock Motorcycle everyone from 16th place Katie Sullivan down is eliminated.

To top it off.. they have a story about Robert Hight and Bob Tasca fighting for 10th in Funny Car. Hight was thrilled to be back in the top 10. It's by 3 points. Seriously? That's potentially gone in one qualifying session.

Read all about it here - NHRA Story » Playoff scenario update: Hight cracks top 10

Of note from the article are these gems..

In Top Fuel, David Grubnic leaped from 13th to 11th but still trails 10th-place Steve Torrence by 125 points while Bradnson Bernstein, who missed three series races recently, dropped one spot to 12th.

11 Ricky Jones 12 +1

Why aren't stories put out by the sanctioning body checked to make sure at least the participants names are spelled correctly? Or checked for mathematical accuracy for that matter when dealing with these Countdown clinch scenarios. It's just kind of like C grade stuff from a professional organization.

 

[Project Paladin]

How about Rapisarda Jr giving Beard the F--- you face after the first round? Then telling ESPN it was personal.

 

[JB3]

I'm surprised at the press releases they issue about this Countdown. First of all, Mike Edwards had it locked up at Norwalk and not a word. Then at Denver, with 603 points (indy has one extra qualifying session to earn little points) still left to be earned, they had Shawn Langdon and Tony Schumacher locked up, even though all the way down to 13th place David Grubnic were within the 603 point window. Now they issue another release stating that Spencer Massey and Matt Smith are locked in, but they fail to mention that so are Shane Gray, Vincent Nobile, and Hector Arana, Sr. How can they be so all over the board with this stuff? Is my math wrong? What am I missing?

In Pro Stock there are 3 races left.. 150 points in Seattle, 150 points in Brainerd, and 153 points in Indy. 453 points. 11th place Rickie Jones has 454 points. Even if he were to sweep the races the most he can earn is 907. Shane Gray has 948 points. Can't be beat. Vincent Nobile has 918 points. Can't be beat. Jason Line has 902 points. As soon as he makes a qualifying pass at Seattle, he is in.

In Pro Stock Motorcycle there is only one race left. 153 points to be earned in Indy. 11th place LE Tonglet has 395 points. If he sweeps the race the most he can earn is 548. Hector Arana, Sr. has 553. He could not show up and he can't be beat. John Hall has 534. If he qualifies or earns any little points he is locked in.

On the flip side, in Top Fuel, everyone from 17th place Sidnei Frigo down is eliminated. In Funny Car everyone from 17th place Todd Lesenko down is eliminated. In Pro Stock everyone from 17th place Kurt Johnson down is eliminated. In Pro Stock Motorcycle everyone from 16th place Katie Sullivan down is eliminated.

To top it off.. they have a story about Robert Hight and Bob Tasca fighting for 10th in Funny Car. Hight was thrilled to be back in the top 10. It's by 3 points. Seriously? That's potentially gone in one qualifying session.

Read all about it here - NHRA Story » Playoff scenario update: Hight cracks top 10

Of note from the article are these gems..




Why aren't stories put out by the sanctioning body checked to make sure at least the participants names are spelled correctly? Or checked for mathematical accuracy for that matter when dealing with these Countdown clinch scenarios. It's just kind of like C grade stuff from a professional organization.

Dave, while it is unlikely ... do not forget about the National ET record (20 pts/race). So that another possible 60 points in total, plus the extra Q session in Indy. By my math that would be a total of 514 available points maximum. Pretty sure every single possible pointi s included in the calculation. I could be wrong.

170 points in Seattle, 170 points in Brainerd, and 174 points in Indy.

I agree with you that in reality many more guys have clinched (in theory). There is no way Larry Morgan is making up all those points just to crack the top 10 based on his performance to this point. In my opinion, the Pro Stock countdown field is already set. Just fighting for final position and points for reset after Indy.

 

[Dave]

Dave, while it is unlikely ... do not forget about the National ET record (20 pts/race). So that another possible 60 points in total, plus the extra Q session in Indy. By my math that would be a total of 514 available points maximum. Pretty sure every single possible pointi s included in the calculation. I could be wrong.

170 points in Seattle, 170 points in Brainerd, and 174 points in Indy.

I agree with you that in reality many more guys have clinched (in theory). There is no way Larry Morgan is making up all those points just to crack the top 10 based on his performance to this point. In my opinion, the Pro Stock countdown field is already set. Just fighting for final position and points for reset after Indy.

I didn't forget the national record. It's 100 to win, 10 to show up, a possible 12 if you get all the little points (3 points for low et in 4 sesions), and 8 for being number 1 qualifier. That's 130 points. Then the extra 20 for the record is 150. There is no longer points for a speed record. The most you can make at any race is 150, except indy with 3 extra little points available.

NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series points Link near the bottom to "How points are earned"

I guess the point i'm trying to make is, since the NHRA HAS to have the Countdown and makes such a big deal out of it, you think they would at least be accurate in their reports. I doubt enough people actually care about the sport enough to fact check them so it goes largely unnoticed.

 

[indidad- The Guy- Uncle Steve]

How about Rapisarda Jr giving Beard the F--- you face after the first round? Then telling ESPN it was personal.

Lol, a lot of people give Beard the "F--- You Face". Nothing new here.

 

[JB3]

I didn't forget the national record. It's 100 to win, 10 to show up, a possible 12 if you get all the little points (3 points for low et in 4 sesions), and 8 for being number 1 qualifier. That's 130 points. Then the extra 20 for the record is 150. There is no longer points for a speed record. The most you can make at any race is 150, except indy with 3 extra little points available.

NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series points Link near the bottom to "How points are earned"

I guess the point i'm trying to make is, since the NHRA HAS to have the Countdown and makes such a big deal out of it, you think they would at least be accurate in their reports. I doubt enough people actually care about the sport enough to fact check them so it goes largely unnoticed.

You are correct Dave ... said I might be wrong. Math only works if you let it, which I failed to do.

 

[Dave]

You are correct Dave ... said I might be wrong. Math only works if you let it, which I failed to do.

Haha it's all good. That's why I made this post to see if MY math was wrong, or the way they calculate the points... The only wild card I could see coming into play is the good ol oildown factor, if they still pull points for that.

 

[Bullard Anderson]

Speaking only for me. I am beginning to ask myself if all this year-end playoff stuff has made me care less and less over time about the "regular season" ?

 

[Silly Savage]

Speaking only for me. I am beginning to ask myself if all this year-end playoff stuff has made me care less and less over time about the "regular season" ?

I agree...I could give a crap about regular season or watching the races...but come the last 3 races of the season, I'll be paying more attention...

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

Speaking of points, how did the Q points system get so goofed up??
Why not 1 pt for 16th and 2 for 15th, all the way to 16 for first??

They have both 5 and 6 get the same points-
7 and 8 get the same-
9 thru 12 get the same-
13 thru 16 get the same. Doesn't seem fair to me.....

 

[Dave]

Speaking of points, how did the Q points system get so goofed up??
Why not 1 pt for 16th and 2 for 15th, all the way to 16 for first??

They have both 5 and 6 get the same points-
7 and 8 get the same-
9 thru 12 get the same-
13 thru 16 get the same. Doesn't seem fair to me.....

I agree. NASCAR simplified their points by awarding them in one point increments between positions. If I could change NHRA points i'd give an extra 20 bonus points for winning the race. (That's the point isn't it? Reward winning?) Qualifying points would be from 16 down to 1 point based on position. The 3-2-1 little points per session. 1 point for low e.t. 1 point for top speed. 10 for showing up. 20 for an e.t. record. 20 for a speed record. Add it all up! A perfect weekend would net you 200 points even. Plus with the availability of more points up for grabs, and a 40 point swing between winner and loser, you can create more opportunities for going for broke to win, or swinging for the fence to grab a record or low e.t. and top speed. (Even though I think those days are long gone. Tony Schumacher's "The Run" at Pomona in 06 was the last hurrah.)