NASCAR announced Wednesday that it has updated the open exemption provisional rule, which was used to secure a starting spot for Helio Castroneves in the Daytona 500.
Teams still must request the provisional 90 days before an event.
Now, if there are more than 40 cars, then the field will automatically expand to 41 cars and the team requesting the provisional must use it regardless of where it qualifies.
At Daytona, there were more than 40 cars. Had Castroneves qualified on speed or through his qualifying race, the field would have remained at 40 cars and that would have meant a driver would have not made the field. That could have meant that former champions Jimmie Johnson or Martin Truex Jr. could have missed the race. They both qualified on speed.
Castroneves did not qualify on speed or through his qualifying race, so he was added as the 41st car.
NASCAR also added a line in the rule book that it has “full discretion to deem certain Events ineligible for the” open exemption provisional.
A team using the open exemption provisional is not eligible for points and prize money for that event.
The series races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend. Thirty-six cars are on the entry list in the Cup Series.
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