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FRONT PAGE<
2004 Paint Schemes
2004 Team Rosters
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2004 Special Paint Schemes Budweiser Shootout - Daytona Bobby Labonte Ricky Craven Tim Fedewa Busch Series Brendan Gaughan Kyle Busch Kurt Busch Bobby Hamilton Junior Busch Series Joe Nemechek Busch Series Scott Riggs Elliott Sadler Johnny Sauter Ken Schrader Brian Vickers Scott Wimmer
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This Season not only will there be a new look in NASCAR,
with Nextel and Sunoco, but also some of the cars will take on a new
look in 2004.
John Andretti: Andretti will have sponsorship from Maxwell House/Post on the No. 1 DEI Chevrolet for a one race deal at Daytona. The car will be blue and white ("E" stripe will be white also) with the Post logo on the hood and Maxwell House on the rear quarter panels. This will be the second time Maxwell House has sponsored a DEI machine. Last season they sponsored Teresa Earnhardt and Dale Jr's Chance 2 Busch Series team at Las Vegas with driver Steve Park. This will be the first time since 1994 that Maxwell House has sponsored a car in NASCAR's top division, last being Bobby Labonte when he drove the No. 22 car for Bill Davis. DEI's previous sponsor Pennzoil will be an associate sponsor on all Roush Racing Nextel Cup cars and the primary sponsor for the No. 9 Busch Series team driven by Mark Martin, Jeff Burton and Matt Kenseth. There is no word yet on what Andretti will do after Daytona. Martin Truex, Jr., the 2004 Chance 2 driver, could possibly run some Nextel Cup events for DEI. Rusty Wallace: Wallace's No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge will remain the same in 2004. Associate sponsor MeadWestvaco will be on the rear deck lid. No word yet on any special paint schemes. Terry Labonte: The No. 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet will have some minor changes in 2004. The milk jug on the driver's side will be replaced with the No. 5's new associate sponsor Delphi, which comes over from the No. 25 car from 2003. Delphi will also replace Dupont on the rear deck lid. Labonte will also run a black and red Delphi scheme in five races starting at Las Vegas. No other special schemes have been announced yet, but I would expect to see another Got Milk? car. Mark Martin: The No. 6 Ford will have the same colors as it did in 2003, but this season it will take on a new look. In 2004, the car will stay black and blue and white stripes will curve upward along the front wheels to the roof. Both the roof and the rear deck lid will be blue and the Viagra blue pill will be on the hood and the doors. Martin will also run a red, white and blue Kraft Ford in the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona and it will feature the Kraft "sandwich" brands - Miracle Whip, Kraft Cheese Singles and Oscar Meyer deli meats. Martin will also run a reverse white scheme (Pictured) in some night races this season with my guesses being Daytona and the Labor Day California race. Pfizer, the parent company of Viagra will also be on the No. 6 in a number of races in 2004. Dale Earnhardt Jr: This season Junior's No. 8 Budweiser Chevrolet will remain the same except for the rear deck lid where the Budweiser Crown "B" logo will now be displayed. The car will still carry the popular "E" stripe design that was implemented last season to honor the late Dale Earnhardt. Junior will also run a white Budweiser Born on Date car (Pictured) in the Bud Shootout. He is scheduled to run another Born on Date car in the Daytona 500, but I heard it will be different. No other special schemes have been announced for the Bud Chevy, but I would expect to see more like in the past. Earnhardt will also run a new blue Oreo Chevy in the Hershey Kisses 300 Busch Series event at Daytona. Side note: Dale Jr. and Tony Stewart will drive two full-size Monster Trucks in an exhibition event, on Daytona beach Thursday prior to the July Pepsi 400 race. Kasey Kahne: Kahne will replace Bill Elliott in the No. 9 UAW/Dodge Dealers Dodge, but it looks like the car will be slightly different in 2004. The car will still be red with white numbers and letters and red wheels, but this season it will feature black around the bottom edge on the sides. It will also sport the new headlight lense decal along with the rest of the Dodge's. Kahne will also run a Popeye the Sailorman, 75th Anniversary scheme at Daytona in July. Scott Riggs: Riggs' Valvoline scheme (Pictured) will be slightly different from last season's car, in which Johnny Benson piloted. Changes include the switch from Pontiac to Chevrolet, and the car will now be red in the back with the car still taking on its familiar look with the lightning numbers. Riggs is also scheduled to drive a Harlem Globetrotter's scheme at the Bristol Spring race. No other special scheme's have been announced, but I would expect to see another EagleOne scheme this year. Ryan Newman: The No. 12 Alltel Dodge will have one change to its paint scheme in 2004. The white band that runs from the front along the side will now have a curved look. Colors on the Alltel Dodge will remain the same and no special paint schemes have been announced, but expect Sony and Mobil to run designs this season. Micahel Waltrip: The Napa Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004 featuring the "E" stripe like Dale Jr's Chevy. Best Western will be on the rear deck lid this season and Domino's Pizza will now be on the lower rear quarter panel. Greg Biffle: The National Guard, Todd Bodine's 2003 sponsor, will join Roush Racing in 2004 as primary sponsor of the No. 16 (Pictured) with Subway Restaurants as co-primary sponsor. Travelodge hotels and Jackson Hewitt Tax Service will be associate sponsors on the patriotic looking Ford. The National Guard will advertise in the primary sponsorship position on the No. 16 Ford Taurus throughout the 2004 season, except during select races where Subway, Travelodge and Jackson Hewitt will be featured in the primary locations. The National Guard is scheduled to debut two special paint schemes this season with my guesses being the Coca-Cola 600 and the September California race. Biffle's No. 60 Busch Series Ford, sponsored by Charter Communications, will have a purple and yellow scheme. Matt Kenseth: The DeWalt Ford will have a new design this season with a silver streak that runs across the side panels dividing the yellow and black colors of the No. 17. Kenseth will probably run a number of special schemes with Smirnoff Ice and maybe Carhartt again this year. Bobby Labonte: The Interstate Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004. Labonte will run a special Shrek 2 paint scheme at the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in May. Jeremy Mayfield: Mayfield will run a NHL All-Star game paint scheme (Pictured) at the Budweiser Shootout. The next day the NHL will hold the game in St. Paul, Minnesota. Dodge is also a major sponsor of the NHL's All-Star/Superskills competition. His 2004 standard scheme will change slightly with more black, just like Kahne's No. 9. Mayfield will also run a Popeye the Sailorman, 75th Anniversary scheme at Daytona in July. Tony Stewart: Stewart's standard paint scheme will look the same in 2004. A new Racing Against Asthma decal might be on the rear deck lid, but the current 2004 die-cast does not have it. Stewart will also run a Shrek 2 scheme at the NASCAR Nextel All-Star Challenge and a reverse scheme at California in September. Stewart will also team with Kid Rock for a special scheme on Kevin Harvick's No. 29 Chevrolet for the Busch race at Lowe's Motor Speedway in May. Ricky Rudd: The No. 21 Motorcraft Ford will look the same in 2004 except it will now have a yellow roof number and yellow spoiler. Rudd will also drive an Air Force and Rent-A-Center scheme this year. Scott Wimmer: The Caterpillar Dodge will have a new look this season. The No. 22 will now feature streams of black and red that sweep up the sides and the CAT Rental Store will be on the rear deck lid. Jeff Gordon: The popular Dupont "Flame" Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004. Gordon is also scheduled to run a new Pepsi paint scheme at Talladega in April. Expect to see more paint schemes on the No. 24 this season. Brian Vickers: Vickers' No. 25 machine (Pictured) will have a new look in 2004. This season GMAC and Ditech.com will replace the 2003 sponsor's UAW and Delphi, which will move to the No. 5. The car will look the same but the colors will be different. The GMAC machine will now carry a blue and black paint scheme, with yellow and light blue accents. Kevin Harvick: The No. 29 Goodwrench Chevrolet will remain the same in 2004. Harvick will also run a Hershey Kisses at Daytona and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup scheme in the Busch Series. Harvick will also run a special red reverse scheme in the Budweiser Shootout and a Snap-On scheme in the Nextel All-Star Challenge.
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A guide to provisionals
Of course, turning a quick lap in qualifying is important in NASCAR. However, if a driver struggles during his qualifying effort, all is not necessarily lost.
Of the 43 spots available for any NASCAR Nextel or Busch Series race, 38 are decided by lap time. The following four positions are known as "provisionals."
Drivers earn provisionals in several different ways. Car owners in the top 45 positions of the previous season's owner championship standings will receive four provisionals at the outset of the season and will receive an additional one after attempting to qualify for six events, for a season maximum of 10.
Those owners outside the top 45 in the previous season's owner points are ineligible for provisionals until after their entry makes an attempt to qualify at four events. After attempting to qualify for four events, the car owner will receive two provisionals and additional ones can be earned by attempting to qualify for six events, with a season maximum of eight.
Each provisional used by a car owner during the season –- regardless of standing -– counts against the owner's season allotment earned.
Provisional starting positions are assigned beginning with the highest ranking car owner who did not qualify on time. They are handed out in descending order until all provisional spots are filled.
Champion's provisional
If after 42 positions are assigned there is a car owner whose driver is a past series champion who participated in the previous season, that past champion will take the 43rd starting position.
If there is no such owner in the field, the 43rd starting spot will be given to the next available car owner in the provisional procedure described above.
Short fields
Also, in the event the number of entrants is equal to or less than the number of starting positions available for an event, provisionals assigned to fill starting positions 39 through 43 will not count toward the maximum season allotment.
Craftsman Truck Series provisionals
Of the 36 spots available in Craftsman Truck Series events, 32 are determined on speed with spots 33-35 determined by a similar provisional system. Through the completion of four events, the previous season's owner points are used to determine how provisionals spots are assigned. Starting with the fifth race, the current season's owner points are used.
A past champion's provisional, identical to the Cup and Busch Series champion's provisional, is available to fill the 36th spot. As with Busch and Cup, if such a situation does not exist, the 36th spot will be filled with the next entitled driver under the provisional rules.
How the new NASCAR point system works
The biggest barometer of how a NASCAR team determines its success or failure during a season is the number of series points it earns.
The winner of each NASCAR race receives 180 points. The runner-up in each event scores 170. From there, the point total declines in five-point increments for places two through six, points awarded drop four points per driver for positions seven through 11 and three-point increments separate drivers' points for finishers in 12th place or lower.
The 43rd, or last-place driver, gets 34 points.
There are also bonus points up for grabs at each event. Drivers receive five points for leading a lap and an additional five points for leading the most laps.
In Nextel Cup racing, following the 26th race of the season, all drivers in the NASCAR Top 10 and any others within 400 points of the leader will earn a berth in the "Chase for the Championship."
All drivers in the "chase" will have their point totals adjusted. The first-place driver in the standings will begin the chase with 5,050 points; the second-place driver will start with 5,045, etc. Incremental five-point drops will continue through the list of title contenders.
Owners are rewarded in the points race in much the same fashion but, unlike drivers, they earn points for merely attempting to make a race. If an owner shows up with a pair of drivers, and one fails to qualify, the owner still receives points for the non-qualifying effort.
The fastest non-qualifier on race day earns 31 points for his owner, three down from the 43rd-place points. The scale continues downward from there for all non-qualifiers, with the lowest possible point(s) awarded being one.
Manufacturers have a points race of their own. The car maker who has a driver take first place in a race earns nine points for that race. Second-best performance by a manufacturer gets six points, third place earns four points and fourth place, three points.