A chartered team in the World Stock Car Championship refers to a team that has been granted one set of the guaranteed grid spots for the given season. They are also often referred to as "Full-Time" teams.
History[edit | edit source]
Background[edit | edit source]
The charter system evolved from the old provisional system used between 1988 and 1996. Under said system, teams could earn provisional starting spots to guarantee their entry to a given race, even in the event of a poor qualifying lap. Provisionals would be granted in the following circumstances:
- All teams finishing in the top 25 in the previous season's points would earn four provisionals to start the season.
- Former champion drivers would earn four provisionals independent of the team they drove for.
- After the fourth race of the season, remaining in the top 25 in points for six consecutive weeks earned one provisional. This could be earned multiple times throughout the season. Failing to qualify for a race reset the clock even if a team was in the Top 25.
- Any drivers mathematically eligible for the championship during the final race of the season would be given a provisional to ensure they make the race. If the championship has already been decided, only the series champion will be granted a provisional.
- Teams could "bank" two provisionals to use the following season. Any unused provisionals would be forfeit.
While the system on its surface prevented fully-funded teams from missing races, in reality well-funded cars and popular drivers would regularly be sent home, much to the chagrin of drivers, teams, and fans. This was a frequent occurrence at the later races of the season, due to a practice known as provisional banking, where teams would hold onto their provisional entries until the very end of the season, and use them to guarantee their entry for the last set of races.
WSCTA Negotiations[edit | edit source]
Main article: 1995-1996 WSCTA-WSCA Dispute
In 1995, twelve teams formed the World Stock Car Team Association, an alliance of teams seeking to negotiate with the series as one entity, with the stated goal of overhauling the provisional system and "easing the financial burden of motorsport." While publicly WSCC officials welcomed the teams' cooperation, privately the two entities clashed heavily over the proposal, with series CEO Jack Crawford allegedly stating that the teams were "welcome to ask for changes, but not to demand them." During the 1995 - 1996 offseason, the teams made their first major move, announcing that they would leave the series at the end of the season if the provisional system was not overhauled. With the threat of losing not only the largest teams but the most popular drivers looming, the series recalled the WSCTA to the negotiation table, and by the season opener announced a deal had been struck for the following year.
Rules[edit | edit source]
While the general rules for the charters remain the same as they were in 1997, some details have changed over the years to form the current system.
1997 - 2002[edit | edit source]
The first iteration of the charter system saw charters granted to the twelve teams of the WSCTA; at the time, these teams represented 23 cars and multiple manufacturers. The specifics of the charter system were laid out as:
- The cars fielded by the twelve WSCTA teams were granted charters for the 1997 season.
- Charters were only valid for one calendar year, and would need to be renewed; the deadline for renewal was set for the race weekend at Daytona.
- Non-chartered teams, as well as non-chartered entries for chartered teams, could attempt as many or as few races as they chose, but would not be granted provisionals.
- The number of provisionals for former champions would be unchanged, but provisionals could no longer be used at crown jewels.
- Charters were explicitly not granted to manufacturers, only to teams, meaning manufacturers could supply cars to any team.
Several other rules were put in place related to this system, chief among them the creation of the Independent's Trophy. The Independent's Trophy was exclusive to teams without charters (non-chartered entries from chartered teams were also excluded) as a method to showcase the best performing teams which had to earn their spot every week. Chartered teams were required to make every race in order to keep their charters (or pay a significant fine), and were not allowed to sell their entries. Chartered teams with non-chartered entries were permitted to swap cars at crown jewels, a controversial practice that continues in some form today.
Chartered entries were not guaranteed a grid spot at the four crown jewel races; series officials maintained that those races were to remain open-entries for all interested drivers and teams.
2003 - 2006[edit | edit source]
Main article: 2002 WSCTA-WSCA Agreement
Negotiations for the next round of rules agreements began in mid-2001; unlike the previous negotiations, this round began much more amicably between both parties. With the main concerns being driver safety and the latest generation car (set to debut in 2003), the charter system was not initially set to receive many adjustments. This changed, however, when multiple chartered teams faced sudden financial challenges and were forced to withdraw from the series. These included:
- Allen Becker Motorsports - withdrew after 2001 due to the bankruptcy of primary sponsor Heilig-Meyers
- Rhys Morrison Racing - disbanded after the 2002 season after being affected by the fallout of the Enron Scandal.
With several teams facing smaller - but not insignificant - financial headwinds, the negotiations refocused during the 2001 - 2002 offseason on the charter agreement; an overall competition agreement was announced two weeks after the start of the season.
Revenue Sharing[edit | edit source]
The biggest change was in the revenue sharing model; previously, teams had primarily relied on three sources for income:
- Race winnings
- Corporate sponsorship
- Private endorsement deals
While the series also utilized corporate sponsorship (mainly sponsoring awards and trophies), the backbone of the governing body's finances were sanctioning agreements, TV deals, and ticket sales. This led to a large imbalance in income; as the TV deals became more lucrative (and with this, increases in attendance and sanctioning fees paid by tracks), the governing body took home a significant portion of the revenue (the series' 2000 financial report put the split at 60-30-10 between the sanctioning body, tracks, and teams, respectively). The teams stated that, despite the greater financial position the series was in, they were not feeling the rewards while having to stretch their finances further due to the increased logistics of an increasingly global schedule.
After months of negotiation, the teams and series leadership agreed to a new revenue model that included:
- A 45 - 22.5 - 22.5 - 10 split of all revenue streams for the sanctioning body, tracks, chartered teams, and Independent, respectively
- Negotiated corporate travel rates
- Reduction of development costs with spec equipment and components provided by the series (primarily pit crew equipment and some suspension components)
- One-off entrants to crown jewels and part-time teams were eligible for the same split as the Independent's Trophy teams only if they made the race
Team Limits[edit | edit source]
Alongside the negotiations for increased revenue sharing, the teams and sanctioning body were also negotiating a new limit on the number of entries a team can field; no limit has previously existed, and while teams had entered multiple cars in the past, Stafford Race Engineering courted significant controversy when they entered six cars for the crown jewel and championship events in 1999 and 2000. Several of the other chartered teams protested these actions, claiming that doing so was an attempt to lock their competitors out of the grid.
Under the new agreement, teams would be allowed to enter up to four cars, and would need to apply for a charter for each car. Non-chartered entries would be treated as they were under the previous agreement.
Independent's Trophy[edit | edit source]
The Independent's Trophy underwent its first major evolution; rather than be forced to attempt the entire schedule, Independent's teams would sign up for four-race "groups". The Independent's Trophy scoring would only take into account the points scored in those group races, rather than over the course of the season.
Additionally, due to the significant decrease in schedule requirements, the Independent's Trophy teams took a smaller share of the revenue split compared to chartered teams.
2007 - 2011[edit | edit source]
Main article: 2006 WSCTA-WSCA Agreement
The 2006 agreement, which took effect for the 2007 season, saw the most significant changes to the charter system to date.
Charter Application and Team Limits[edit | edit source]
The first announced change to the charter system came in its application; instead of applying per car, as had been done in the previous ten seasons, teams would now apply as one entity, and the charter would apply to the team as a whole, rather than one individual car. This had the effect of simplifying logistics for teams and more effectively informing fans, who had often complained that it was difficult to keep track of which cars were chartered when many teams had both chartered and non-chartered entries.
The biggest change to the system, and to the series as a whole, was announced just prior to the 2006 Donington Grand Prix. Teams would be granted charters for only two full-time cars, with a third entry permitted for one-off races, testing, and for entry as a Promoter's Option. This allowed more teams to be granted charters, giving proven part-time and Independent teams a chance to run the full schedule and compete for the series championship. While many praised this development, some teams derided the decision; it was later revealed that this provision had barely passed, meeting the two-thirds required vote by the slimmest margin possible. In particular, Henderson Engineering and Stafford Race Engineering made several remarks to the press regarding their displeasure with the new system; Henderson Engineering announced that they would withdraw from the series after the 2006 season concluded, and jumped to the North American Stock Car Tour.
Ban on Customer Cars[edit | edit source]
The third major change as a result of the 2006 agreement was a ban on customer cars; previously, manufacturers could not sign exclusive contracts with teams, even if they signed a contract to financially support one team. Some, like Ferrari and Chevrolet, got around this by selling different models to customer teams than the ones sold to the teams they officially backed; others, like BMW and Audi, charged customer teams significantly high prices. Under the new agreement, manufacturers who sign a contract with a chartered team are exclusively tied to that team. This opened the door for new manufacturers to support both chartered and Independent teams with less risk.
New Chassis Available for Independent Teams[edit | edit source]
The Independent teams, meanwhile, were given exclusive right to use the Lola B08/70W, a stock car version of the prototype B08-80, or sign agreements with manufacturers not tied to chartered teams. Notably, teams choosing to use the Lola were permitted to sign engine purchase agreements with any manufacturer regardless of their connection to chartered teams rather than use the provided Lola engine.
Elimination of Qualifying Races[edit | edit source]
With the new charter system, qualifying races were no longer necessary outside of the crown jewel events, and were abandoned as a cost-cutting measure.
2012 - 2016[edit | edit source]
Main article: 2011 WSCTA-WSCA Agreement
The 2011 agreement saw no changes to the existing system despite heavy lobbying by some teams. The agreement focused primarily on the development of the next generation of car.
2017 - present[edit | edit source]
Main article: 2016 WSCTA-WSCA Agreement
Lift on Customer Car Ban[edit | edit source]
The first change saw the ban on customer cars lifted for the first time in a decade; this allowed Independent Teams to purchase cars from any manufacturer, as the blanket exclusivity clause was removed, at the apparent request of several manufacturers. The new agreement did, however, allow manufacturers to sign exclusivity contracts with chartered teams, a practice which had, prior to the customer car ban, been explicitly not allowed.
Revenue Sharing[edit | edit source]
The revenue model remained largely unchanged, minus a few tweaks:
- Series leadership would earn 37.5% (down from 45%)
- Chartered Teams would earn 30% (up from 22.5%)
- Tracks would earn 25% (up from 22.5%)
- Independent teams would earn 7.5% (down from 10%)
The revenue model was also tweaked to allow ticket and concession sales for tracks to only count as revenue once operating expenses were covered; previously, all income had been subject to the split, regardless of whether the track made a profit or not.
Lift on Three-Digit Number Ban[edit | edit source]
Series officials also announced that three-digit numbers, which were banned starting in 1972, would be allowed starting in 2017. Officials stressed that the three-digit numbers were intended primarily for one-off entrants, and stated that they would discourage the use of three digit numbers among chartered or Independent teams without outright banning them.
Current Chartered Teams[edit | edit source]
Team | Licensed In | Year | Manufacturer | Main Drivers | Reserve Driver(s) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Black Hawk Racing | Hong Kong | 2018 | Lexus | 78 | TBA | 77 | TBA |
79 | TBA | ||||||
David Stone Racing | United States | 2009 | Nissan | 7 | TBA | 711 | TBA |
11 | TBA | ||||||
Hansen Motorsports | United States | 2020 | Kia | 31 | TBA | TBA | TBA |
61 | Charlie Hansen | ||||||
KM Racing | United States | 2019 | Volkswagen | 91 | TBA | 95 | TBA |
93 | TBA | ||||||
McLellan Race Team | Ireland | 1997 | Ford | 37 | Tom McLellan, Jr. | 39 | TBA |
38 | TBA | ||||||
Parsonsport | United Kingdom | 1997 | Volvo | 24 | TBA | 26 | TBA |
25 | TBA | ||||||
Scuderia Benedetti | Italy | 1997 | Ferrari | 3 | TBA | TBA | TBA |
5 | TBA | ||||||
Stafford Race Engineering | United States | 1997 | Mercedes | 4 | Frank Stafford | TBA | TBA |
8 | TBA | ||||||
Team LSR | United States | 2002 | Chevrolet | 22 | Billy Savage | TBA | TBA |
23 | TBA | ||||||
Thompson Brothers Racing | United States | 1997 | Dodge | 62 | Jay Orlov | TBA | TBA |
63 | TBA |
Former Chartered Teams[edit | edit source]
Team | Licensed In | First Year | Last Year | Manufacturer(s) | Fate |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Allen Becker Motorsports | United States | 1997 | 2001 | Oldsmobile | Became an Independent effort before folding in 2005. |
John Damon Motorsports | United States | 2013 | 2019 | Mazda | Became an independent effort in 2020, citing lack of sponsorship to run a chartered team. |
Genesis Racing | Canada | 2009 | 2019 | Hyundai | Team sold following the bankruptcy of owner Anthony Gardner, charter sold to Hansen Motorsports |
Henderson Engineering | United States | 1997 | 2006 | Chevrolet | Departed for North American Stock Car Tour; typically enters special events |
Paulson Motorsports | United Kingdom | 2010 | 2018 | Volvo | Folded after loss of sponsorship and factory support from Volvo in 2018. |
Rhys Morrison Racing | Scotland | 1997 | 2002 | Ford | Declared bankruptcy after the 2002 season concluded. |