Hello, and welcome to the wonderful world of Nascar! If you’re a new fan of stock car racing, this is the place for you! In this ten-part series we’ll take a look at what you should and could know about America’s #1 auto racing organization. Let’s get started!
3. THE CUP SERIES AND BEYOND—Nascar from top to bottom
Similar to baseball, Nascar has a pyramid or “ladder system” of series and divisions. Here’s a quick rundown:
a.) Nascar Cup Series—this is the highest level of Nascar—and, by extension, stock car—racing in the world. Here cars are the fastest, money is the biggest, and the spotlight is the brightest. There’s a good chance that if you’re hearing about Nascar, what you’re hearing about is the Cup Series.
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| Red--Standard "Ladder" Series Gray--Independent of the Ladder |
b.) Nascar Xfinity Series—Nascar Cup’s support series. Cars here are very similar to their Cup counterparts, albeit with slightly less-powerful engines. Comparable to Triple-A baseball or AHL hockey, this series has a combination of future Cup stars, former Cup drivers rebuilding their careers, and journeyman drivers. Most of the most-successful teams in the Xfinity Series are either owned by Cup teams or are directly affiliated with them. However, several smaller teams compete in this series attracted by its lower operating costs. Races are typically held the day before Cup races.
c.) Nascar Camping World Truck Series—frequently referred to simply as “The Truck Series”. This series—slotted below the Xfinity Series—uses race car engines in pickup truck bodies. While similar to the Xfinity Series in terms of driver makeup, most of the Truck Series teams are either loosely affiliated or completely independent of Cup Series teams. Drivers will often start their national touring series careers in the Truck Series, or will finish out their careers there lured by its shorter schedule and lower costs. While some races are held in conjunction with Cup and/or Xfinity races, several are held as stand-alone events.
d.) ARCA Division—three interlocking series make up this division, first introduced in 2020. The formerly independent ARCA Series races on a wide variety of tracks, from short tracks to dirt tracks to super speedways. To use a baseball analogy the ARCA Menards Series would be like “A-Advanced”, while the regional East and West Series would be like “Single A”. The slightly-higher-ranked ARCA Series has historically been a home for so-called “hobby racers”—drivers who race more as a pastime than a profession. Meanwhile, the East and West Series are typically the first true series (as opposed to single tracks) young drivers run at. All three feature drivers graduating to the Truck Series as a goal.
x.i.) Nascar Whelen Modified Tour—more or less off on its own is the Modified Series, a regional touring series with its roots in the Northeast United States. Driving heavily-modified stock cars (hence the name), the series is actually the oldest one sanctioned by Nascar, beating out the Cup Series by a single year. Although some drivers have gone from racing Modifieds to the Cup Series, the tour is relatively self-contained with many drivers spending their whole careers there.
e.) Nascar Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series—better known as “Nascar Home Tracks”, “Nascar Roots”, or simply “The Weekly Series”, this is an umbrella organization for dozens of small, locally-known race tracks across the United States which host racing throughout the year. Less a series than a division, a points formula based on competition level and performance determines a national champion. Drivers typically make their stock car debuts here, moving up from go-kart racing. While peppered with young racers looking to eventually make it to Cup, plenty of drivers compete for decades at their local tracks.
x.ii.) International Series—in the past few decades Nascar has tried to expand its brand globally, not only through international TV deals but also by sanctioning series in other countries. Currently three exist: Canada’s Nascar Pinty’s Series, the PEAK Mexico Series, and Nascar Whelen Euro Series. While all three have produced certain drivers who have advanced through the Nascar ladder (most-notably Cup driver Daniel Suarez), most series have been insular to their own regions so far.
f.) Online Racing—Nascar has started to sanction a number of series based around simulation and video games. The most-visible of these is the eNascar Coca-Cola iRacing Series, based on the popular iRacing simulation platform. Several current Cup drivers have used iRacing as a way to prepare for real racing while others such as Ty Majeski have used iRacing to propel their careers into actual cars and trucks.