Why does NASCAR run 43 cars in a race?
From InsiderRacingNews.com, posted 12/30/02: NASCAR started playing with the size of the fields five or six years ago. Different tracks used to start different amounts of cars in each race depending mainly on how many pit stalls the track had available to use. NASCAR wanted to standardize the size of the fields and after some trial and error, settled on a field consisting of 36 qualifiers with six provisionals that could be used by the regular drivers. That’s a total of 42 cars. The story about the odd car, the 43rd starter, began about twelve years ago when Richard Petty was having trouble making the starting lineup. NASCAR created a Champions Provisional to help get Petty into the field. In fact it could be used to help any present or ex-champion but just recently was used for other drivers, if a Champions Provisional wasn’t used. It goes to the car owner with the highest points that didn’t qualify on speed. NASCAR was happy with the standardization and stuck with that number even th
