NASCAR: How does the point scoring system work?

With the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season heating up, let’s take a look at the scoring system and how points are awarded to drivers throughout races.

After the first four races of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season, none of the top three drivers in the point standings had a top three finish.

After the following race, the top two in the standings had combined for just one top five finish. The points leader’s top finish was a sixth place result.

So how, exactly, are points awarded in the Cup Series?

Unlike other racing series such as IndyCar and Formula 1, points are not just awarded at the end of races; they are awarded throughout.

However, there are still a lot of points on offer at the checkered flag. Here’s a brief rundown.

• 1st place – 40
• 2nd place – 35
• 3rd place – 34
• 4th place – 33
• 5th place – 32
• 6th place – 31
• 7th place – 30
• 8th place – 29
• 9th place – 28
• 10th place – 27
• 11th place – 26
• 12th place – 25
• 13th place – 24
• 14th place – 23
• 15th place – 22
• 16th place – 21
• 17th place – 20
• 18th place – 19
• 19th place – 18
• 20th place – 17
• 21st place – 16
• 22nd place – 15
• 23rd place – 14
• 24th place – 13
• 25th place – 12
• 26th place – 11
• 27th place – 10
• 28th place – 9
• 29th place – 8
• 30th place – 7
• 31st place – 6
• 32nd place – 5
• 33rd place – 4
• 34th place – 3
• 35th place – 2
• 36th and lower – 1

Before this points payout, however, there are stage points. Each race is split up into three stages (except the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, which is spilt up into four). After the first two stages (three for Charlotte), points are awarded in the following manner.

• 1st place – 10
• 2nd place – 9
• 3rd place – 8
• 4th place – 7
• 5th place – 6
• 6th place – 5
• 7th place – 4
• 8th place – 3
• 9th place – 2
• 10th place – 1

So the maximum point total for a driver in any given race is 60 (or 70 at Charlotte).

This stage points structure is also the points structure used for the top 10 finishers in the two Daytona 500 qualifying races, the Bluegreen Vacations Duels, at Daytona International Speedway to open up the season.

One thing to note here is that the NASCAR Cup Series champion isn’t necessarily the driver who scores the most points throughout the year.

A total of 16 drivers make it into the first three-race round of the playoffs, with 12 advancing to the three-race quarterfinal round, eight advancing to the three-race semifinal round, and four advancing to the winner-take-all Championship 4.

Drivers who make the playoffs have their point totals reset to 2,000, and playoff points are added based on wins, stage wins, and regular season points finish. Wins are worth five playoff points each while stage wins are worth one apiece.

Drivers who finish in the top 10 in the regular season standings score additional playoff points as follows.

• 1st place – 15
• 2nd place – 10
• 3rd place – 8
• 4th place – 7
• 5th place – 6
• 6th place – 5
• 7th place – 4
• 8th place – 3
• 9th place – 2
• 10th place – 1

Example: a driver with three wins (15 playoff points), six stage wins (6), and a fifth place finish in the regular season standings (6) would enter the playoffs with 2,027 points (27 playoff points).

Playoff points totals are automatically added to the point totals of the drivers who advance throughout the playoffs. For example, the 12 drivers who advance to the second round start with 3,000 points, plus their playoff points up until that point, and the eight drivers who advance to the third round start with 4,000 points, plus their playoff points up until that point.

The only thing that matters for the four Championship 4 drivers, however, is their finish in the championship race. Stage points and past playoff points go out the window for this event.