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2017 World Stock Car Championship Season
WSCC.png
Season
Races 31
Start Date March 12
End Date November 19
Awards
Special Event Winners
Previous: 2016 Next: 2018


The 2017 World Stock Car Championship was the 65th season of the World Stock Car Championship, a stock car racing championship recognized by the sport's governing body, the WSCA, as the highest class of stock car racing in the world. Drivers and teams are scheduled to compete in 31 races across 29 race weekends, beginning with The Icebreaker on March 12 and ending in New York City on November 19.

The 2017 was the first under the current technical regulations, which came about as part of the series' ongoing commitment to safety. As a result, the 2017 cars are noticeably longer and closer to the ground than the 2016 models.

Schedule[edit | edit source]

The 2017 World Stock Car Championship Race Map. Current host nations are marked in blue, while former hosts are marked in grey.
Rd. Date Race Name Circuit
1 March 5 Mello Yello Grand Prix of Atlanta USA.png Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia
2 March 12 Shell Houston 300 USA.png Houston Superspeedway, Houston, Texas
3 March 19 Soriana Mexico 300 MEX.png Autodromo Mexico City, Mexico City
4 April 2 Nintendo Grand Prix of Japan JPN.png Ichihara International Raceway, Ichihara
5 April 8 Supercheap Auto 300 AUS.png Calder Park Thunderdome, Calder
6 April 16 BNZ New Zealand Grand Prix NZL.png Pukekohe Park Raceway, Pukekohe
7 April 29 Alliant 300 at Gateway USA.png Gateway Motorsports Park, Madison, Illinois
8 May 7 Brickyard 300 USA.png Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, Indiana
9 May 14 Freshmart Grand Prix of Toronto CAN.png Munro Hamilton Airport Circuit, Hamilton, Ontario
10 May 28 45th Donington Grand Prix UK.png Donington Park, North West Leicestershire
11 June 4 Red Bull Grand Prix of France FRA.png Nogaro Circuit, Nogaro
12 June 11 BMW Lausitz 300 GER.png Lausitzring, Lausitz
13 June 18 Grand Prix of Tuscany ITA.png Streets of Pontremoli, Pontremoli
14 July 4 Daytona 1776 USA.png Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida
15 July 15 Olympia 300 USA.png Pierce County Speedway, Lakewood, Washington
16 July 23 City Market 300 USA.png Pikes Peak International Raceway, Fountain, Colorado
17 August 6 RBC Grand Prix of Quebec CAN.png Circuit Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, Quebec
18 August 13 Rogers Grand Prix of Newfoundland CAN.png St. John's Motorplex, Mount Pearl, Newfoundland
19 August 18 Dream Cruise Twin 300's presented by Chevrolet USA.png Silverdome Raceway, Pontiac, Michigan
20 August 19
21 September 2 Lime Rock Classic USA.png Lime Rock Park, Lakeville, Connecticut
22 September 9 Coca Cola 300 USA.png Darlington Raceway, Darlington, South Carolina
23 September 17 Citibank Grand Prix of Virginia USA.png Virginia International Raceway, Alton, Virginia
24 October 1 Grand Prix of South Africa RSA.png Cape Town Motorpark, Somerset West
25 October 8 Santander Grand Prix of Turkey TUR.png Aydin Park, Didim
26 October 15 Emirates Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi UAE.png Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi
27 October 29 Verizon Grand Prix of California USA.png Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma, California
28 November 4 Dunkin Donuts Boston Double USA.png Boston International Raceway, Revere, Massachusetts
29 November 5
30 November 12 BNY New Jersey 300 USA.png Meadowlands Raceway, East Rutherford, New Jersey
31 November 19 WSCC Championship Weekend USA.png Streets of Manhattan, New York City, New York
Legend
# Oval Race
# Road/Street Course

Changes[edit | edit source]

Teams and Drivers[edit | edit source]

Chartered Teams[edit | edit source]

The following teams have been granted a full-time charter, guaranteeing them a grid spot at all WSCC races, excluding the three special events. All chartered teams will be given two entries per race, with a third car allowed for special events and substitutions.

Entrant Manufacturer Tires No. Driver Status
GER.png Metzger Racing GmbH GER.png BMW G 2 RUS.png Sergey Kuznetsov F
6 GER.png Luca Bauer F
12 WAL.png Sean Hyde R
ITA.png Scuderia Benedetti ITA.png Ferrari B 3 AUS.png Daniel Lang F
5 SWE.png Mathias Moore F
35 ITA.png Carmine Mazzi R
USA.png Ray Stafford Motorsports GER.png Mercedes B 4 USA.png Frank Stafford F
8 TUR.png Yusuf Mardin F
28 HAI.png Jean-Paul Alcine R
USA.png David Stone Racing JPN.png Nissan G 7 USA.png Carrie Norris F
17 USA.png Oren Bush F
27 USA.png David Burton R
USA.png Sun Racing GER.png Audi B 9 GER.png Markus Hertz F
10 FRA.png Martin Dubois F
90 USA.png Ben Jacobs R
USA.png Target TMO Racing USA.png Buick H 11 CAN.png Lynn Sawyer F
14 USA.png Ben Clark, Jr. (R) F
44 USA.png Austin Rogers (R) R
JPN.png Hasegawa Autosport JPN.png Toyota H 15 JPN.png Akira Nakano F
16 FIN.png Ari Kapanan F
31 GER.png Stefan Fischer (R) R
ESP.png Discovery Racing USA.png Dodge H 18 USA.png Greg Bush F
19 ITA.png Caio Delucci F
40 USA.png Harper Thomas R
AUT.png Red Bull Everton Racing JPN.png Honda B 20 UK.png Jacob Pearson F
21 SWI.png Amalia Moretti (R) F
41 ISL.png Pétur Andrésson (R) R
USA.png Team LSR USA.png Chevrolet B 22 USA.png Billy Savage F
23 USA.png Jay Orlov F
46 USA.png Liz Carter (R) R
UK.png Parsonsport UK.png Lotus B 24 BRA.png Antonio Camara F
25 ITA.png Marco Tarelli F
26 UK.png Jon Colbert R
USA.png SG Motorsports USA.png Cadillac B 29 HUN.png Júlia Zsinka (R) R
30 USA.png Derrek Townsend F
33 USA.png Ethan Galvin (R) F
CAN.png Genesis Racing KOR.png Hyundai B 32 TBA.png TBA F
34 MEX.png Felipe Azevedo F
36 KOR.png Park Do-hyun R
IRL.png McLellan Race Team USA.png Ford G 37 IRL.png Tom McLellan, Jr. F
38 RSA.png Alain Roberts F
39 USA.png Victor Flannigan (R) R
UK.png VP Racing SWE.png Volvo G 42 USA.png Taylor Dawson F
43 CAN.png Cal Farrell (R) F
50 MEX.png Nathanel Calvillo (R) R
USA.png Mazda JD Motorsports JPN.png Mazda H 47 SCO.png Amy Wood F
48 USA.png Trevor Richmond F
49 USA.png Donald Watson (R) R

Independent's Trophy Teams[edit | edit source]

The following teams are entered in the 2017 Independent's Trophy competition. These teams are not guaranteed a spot in the main event; they will run a race for Independent's points prior to the main race, where the top eight finishers will be granted a spot on the grid in the main event. The only exception to this will be the three special events, where every driver is eligible for the main race.

Entrant Manufacturer Tires No. Driver
CAN.png Leo McRae Motorsports USA.png Chrysler H 0 USA.png Nichole Baker
USA.png Brad Parker Motorsports USA.png Lincoln B 45 USA.png Brad Parker
55 CAN.png Karol Scivert (R)
FRA.png Autosport Couet FRA.png Peugeot H 51 FRA.png Claude Chassé (R)
AUT.png Red Bull Development JPN.png Acura B 52 ESP.png Fausto Zapata (R)
53 GER.png Michael Baier (R)
54 USA.png Drew Stafford (R)
USA.png John Bedford Racing GER.png Volkswagen H 56 USA.png John Bedford
ESP.png E.C. Mireles ESP.png SEAT G 57 ESP.png Emanuel Medrano
ESP.png Autosport Tomas Rojer ESP.png SEAT G 59 USA.png Rebecca Bennett
USA.png Marcus Stevenson Motorsports JPN.png Subaru H 60 USA.png Marcus Stevenson
70 CAN.png David Brewer
USA.png Hansen Motorsports KOR.png Kia G 61 USA.png Charlie Hansen
63 USA.png Thomas Drennan (R)
65 USA.png Kaitlynn Headley
USA.png Thompson Race Team GER.png Volkswagen H 62 USA.png J.J. Patterson
USA.png DSK Racing GER.png Volkswagen B 64 USA.png Oddell Green, Jr. (R)
AUS.png Qantas Racing Team AUS.png Holden B 66 AUS.png Jake Blackett (R)
USA.png A.P. Moore Racing GER.png Volkswagen G 68 USA.png Elizabeth Carey (R)
CAN.png Nate Hubbard Motorsports FRA.png Renault G 72 CAN.png Nate Hubbard
FRA.png Renault Autosport LaGrande FRA.png Renault G 73 FRA.png Aleron Dupéré (R)
93 NED.png Walther de Coninck
UK.png Stover Race Team FRA.png Renault G 74 UK.png Tony Martin
DEN.png Nordsport JPN.png Subaru H 75 DEN.png Sebastian Thorsen (R)
AUS.png Holden Sport Plus AUS.png Holden B 77 AUS.png Kenny Oliver
HKG.png Black Hawk Motorsports JPN.png Lexus B 78 NOR.png Sander Heiberg (R)
79 USA.png Cyril Jonas
USA.png Arthur Fox Motorsports GER.png Volkswagen G 80 USA.png Arthur Fox
GER.png Opel Race Team GER.png Opel B 81 GER.png Felix Klein
82 ISR.png Ira Gertner (R)
ESP.png Seat Sport WSCC ESP.png SEAT G 83 ESP.png Cameron Segura (R)
84 POR.png Rodrigo Silva (R)
IND.png Tata Racing IND.png Tata B 85 IND.png Jai Kishore (R)
MEX.png Balderas Racing ESP.png SEAT G 87 MEX.png Ezra Molina
RUS.png Kulikovski Autosport RUS.png Lada G 88 RUS.png Emelyan Levkin (R)
89 RUS.png Simon Maslov
USA.png KM Racing JPN.png Subaru G 91 USA.png Emerson Michaels
95 USA.png Alex Kennedy
USA.png Turbosport KOR.png Kia G 94 USA.png Selena Wayne
CZE.png Team Todorov GER.png Volkswagen G 99 CZE.png Andrei Todorov

Team Changes[edit | edit source]

Driver Changes[edit | edit source]

Manufacturer Changes[edit | edit source]

Offseason Changes[edit | edit source]

Technical Regulations[edit | edit source]

  • New technical regulations scheduled for roll out in 2018 were accelerated for the 2017 season following Tommy Zhou's concussion-related health issues, which took him out of the car after the 2016 Grand Prix of Toronto. These are geared at continued increases in driver safety, while keeping the cars difficult to drive. These changes include:
    • A decrease in engine horsepower from 750 to 650 HP.
    • A decrease of the minimum weight of the car from 1450 kg (3196 lb) to 1250 kg (2755 lb), not including the driver.
    • Lowering the ride height from 135 cm (53 in) to 130 cm (51 in) and shrinking of the spoiler from 15 cm (6 in) to 11.5 cm (4.5 in).
    • Shortening the wheelbase from 280 cm (110 in) to 267 cm (105 in).
    • Additional support bars in the roll cage to help the roof maintain structure in the event of a rollover.
    • Increase to a six-speed, paddle-shifted gearbox from the five-speed used since 2008.
  • Anti-intrusion panels are required for all races following several crashes in the ASCT.
  • Cost controlling measures have been implemented on engines and other power components.

New Independent's Trophy Format[edit | edit source]

During 2016 winter testing at Phoenix, WSCC officials announced a major overhaul to the Independent's Trophy starting in 2017; these overhauls had been expected since late 2015, when the series acknowledged that it would be looking at making the Independent's Trophy more appealing and cost-effective to teams, sponsors and new manufacturers.

Teams will no longer be limited to four races per season (excluding the special events). Instead, the Independent's Trophy teams will run the day before the race, similar to the qualifying races used from 1983 through 2009. All entrants in these races will score Independent's points, and the top eight will advance to the main event to run for championship points. The only exception to this will be the special events, where the only way to make the main race will be to qualify on speed or through the qualifying races. The team will continue to use the 2002 - 2008 points system for the Independent's championship, and will not be penalized if they finish less than half of the race distance. Additionally, 25% of the points the teams earn from championship events will be added to their Independent's total; series officials wanted to emphasize that championship-caliber teams needed to run consistently well.

Initial reactions were positive; smaller teams in particular praised the added exposure racing every weekend would give them, and many felt that attracting sponsors would be easier with guaranteed time in front of the fans.

New Qualifying Format for Special Events[edit | edit source]

Qualifying for the three special events was revamped to place more emphasis on qualifying up front. The new procedure will be as follows:

  • On qualifying day, the top ten qualifiers are locked into the field and move on to Pole Day.
    • On Pole Day, a fifteen-minute knock-out qualifying session will take place after the first practice. Three drivers will be eliminated every five minutes until the Pole Winner is determined.
  • Drivers who did not advance to Pole Day will be sorted into two pre-qualifying races based on their row (inside row to PQ1, outside to PQ2). The top twenty from each race will advance to the final qualifying race, where the top thirty cars will advance to the main event.

The qualifying procedures have been compared to the Indianapolis 500, which uses similar rules but does not make use of qualifying races. Qualifying races are often used in the American Stock Car Tour for limited-capacity events and for the series' races at Daytona and Talladega.

Sporting Regulations[edit | edit source]

  • All road and street course races will utilize standing starts, which were first tested at Sonoma in 2016 to wide approval from drivers and fans.
  • Active time penalties will no longer be used on oval races; instead, grid penalties will be applied to any infraction where a time penalty would have been issued.
  • Qualifying rain-out procedures will vary depending on track type:
    • For oval races, qualifying will be set by points standings. The Independent's Trophy drivers will start at the back of the field.
    • For road and street races, qualifying will be set by practice speed. Independent's Trophy drivers will be seeded with the chartered teams.
    • For special events, qualifying will be held the first available day to set the grid and determine the qualifying races.
  • Penalties for unsafe pit release and causing an avoidable collision have been modified for 2017:
    • If a team is deemed to have released a car in an unsafe or reckless manner, the team will lose its grid spot for the next race as well as its pit selection. Multiple unsafe releases will result in points penalties for the driver and team, and suspension of the race engineer.
    • A driver who is deemed to have caused an avoidable collision maybe held in the pits for up to fifteen seconds. Stewards will have the option to review all collisions after the race and apply grid penalties for the next weekend. A driver may be suspended for causing multiple avoidable collisions, and multiple suspensions may result in loss of WSCC license.
  • Series officials announced new travel cost offsets to help aid smaller teams in making races that are farther from their main operating facilities. This was aimed particularly at allowing these teams to stop renting garages for short term racing operations.

General Changes[edit | edit source]

  • A new global path to qualify for a WSCC license has been implemented, with the rules applying from 2017 onward.
  • The Independent's Trophy was officially named in honor of Parsonsport founder Jack Parsons, honoring Parsons' record as a longtime owner-driver for a single-car team.
  • The WSCA officially increased the number of races allowed in a season from 30 to 32 to allow approval of the new schedule.
  • Hoosier and Goodyear entered the series as tire suppliers alongside Bridgestone, marking the first time since 2002 that there are multiple tire suppliers in the series.