Double Points Up for Grabs at Verizon IndyCar Series Finale in Sonoma
Double points awarded May 24 for the 99th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race and the finale at Sonoma Raceway are among the sporting and technical regulations that comprise the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series rulebook issued to teams earlier this week.
The 17-race season begins March 8 in Brasilia, Brazil, and the North American opener March 29 on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., will mark the competitive debut of distinctly different aerodynamic bodywork kits supplied by Chevrolet and Honda.
Will Power of Team Penske clinched the 2014 driver championship at Auto Club Speedway – one of three 500-mile races on superspeedways that awarded double points. The series title has been decided in the final race the past nine years.
"We look at the new calendar and analyze how many cars would be in contention for the championship after certain events, and the best trend with multiple cars racing for the championship was weighting it for the final race and the Indy 500, which is a special race deserving of double points," said Derrick Walker, president of competition and operations, INDYCAR.
One-hundred points are awarded to the winner of a double-points race, with the runner-up receiving 80 points and the third-place finisher receiving 70 points. The scale decreases to 10 points for the 25th-place finisher and lower. Bonus points will be awarded for leading the most race laps (two points) and leading at least one lap (one point). Outside of the Indianapolis 500, an entrant receives one point for earning the Verizon P1 Award. The Indianapolis 500 will reward all entrants with points in its May 16-17 multi-tiered qualifications, including nine additional points for the Verizon P1 Award winner.