8/20/2024
Kubota High Limit Racing
Understanding the Unique Gold Cup Race of Champions Format at Silver Dollar
The 70th Gold Cup Race of Champions is finally here, and for the first time ever, Kubota High Limit Racing is sanctioning the Silver Dollar Speedway crown jewel.
It's the highest-paying event in California Sprint Car Racing history - $100,070-to-win, $3,000-to-start - and with that comes a unique format.
The traditional split-field format will be utilized with half of the current 68 entries competing in Thursday's preliminary and then the remaining half running Friday's preliminary before everybody comes together in Saturday's grand finale.
A full breakdown of the format used this week can be found below...
Prelim Nights (Thursday & Friday)
- All cars qualify in one group. (1 car, 2 laps)
- Qualifying points awarded: 100 for QuickTime down by 1. 2nd-99, 3rd-98, etc.
- 4 Heat Races lined up with an invert of 6 cars (24 total from Qualifying)
- Top 5 transfer to feature
- Points for Heat Races start at 100, down by 2. 2nd-98, 3rd-96, etc.
- B-Main lined up by accumulative qualifying and heat points.
- The 2 fastest cars that didn’t transfer line up on the front row of B-Main
- Top 4 transfer from B-Main to the A-Main and tag the tail
- A-Main lineup has fastest 8 cars that transfer from Heat Races line up inverted by times in the first four rows of the feature
- Balance of A-Main lined up by accumulative qualifying and heat points total from top 5 finishers in heats minus fastest 8
- A-Main finish points add to total for Saturday lineups
- A-Main points: 1st is 200, down by 3
- B-Main points start at 128 for 5th and go down by 3. 6th-125, 7th-122, etc.
Gold Cup Finale (Saturday)
- Top 2 in points from each prelim night locked into dash
- Next 40 in points line up 4 Heat Races straight up by points
- 45th and above in points line up in NQ race(s).
- Top 8 if one NQ, Top 4 if two NQ, transfer to back of heat races.
- 1st to heat 1, 2nd to heat 2, etc. for 2 NQ’s. 5th to heat1, 6th to heat 2 etc. if one NQ
- Top 4 finishers in Heat Races to A-Main
- Winner of Heat Races to Dash
- D-Main is lined up by heat finishing positions 12, and cars that didn’t transfer from NQ races
- Top 2 transfer and tag tail of C-main
- C-main is lined up by finishing positions 8, 9, 10, 11 from heats.
- Top 4 transfer to back of B-Main
- B-Main is lined up by heat finishing positions 5, 6, and 7.
- 2 highest points totals that don’t transfer start on the front row of the B-Main
- Top 4 transfer and tag tail of A-Main
- Dash is lined up via the Redraw Wheel with lock-in cars and heat winners spinning it to determine lineup
- A-Main behind dash cars is lined up by heat finishing positions 2, 3, and 4
- 2nd heat one starts 9th, 2nd heat two starts 10th, etc.
*Preliminary night ties will be broken by Qualifying times. Any ties heading into Saturday’s finale will be broken by preliminary Feature finish
Article Credit: Brian Walker