THE BC39 FORMAT EXPLAINED
With nearly 90 drivers entered, the competition to make the field for the USAC Driven2SaveLives BC39 Presented By WeatherTech will be intense on Wednesday and Thursday night, August 3-4 at The Dirt Track at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Only about a quarter of the entries for the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship race on the quarter-mile dirt oval inside turn 3 of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will qualify for the main event on Thursday night.
The United States Auto Club (USAC) is using an action-packed format to trim the huge, star-studded field to the feature starting lineup paying $15,000-to-win.
The main event will award feature points only toward the season-long USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship standings for all licensed drivers and entrants.
The 39-lap feature race honors late USAC champion and three-time Indianapolis 500 starter Bryan Clauson. In addition, it increases awareness of the Indiana Donor Network and its Driven2SaveLives campaign.
Take a look at the format:
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3:
The format for Wednesday's program will feature all cars on the track. However, this will not be for qualifying as is usually done for the majority of USAC national events. Instead, all cars will draw randomly for heat race positions and do a hot lap with their heat. There will only one round of hot laps.
While the race for victory will be paramount, the battle for points will be just as essential and filled with pressure. Each car will gain points based on passes and their finishing position, which will determine starting position in the qualifying races on Thursday night.
Each of the ten (10) heat races will be 10 laps in length with the starting lineups determined by the heat race “draft” on Tuesday night at the Brickyard Crossing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Points for the heats will be accumulated by finishing position and total number of positions gained or lost. Cars will be positioned into qualifying races Thursday based on the “passing points” accumulated in Wednesday's heats.
The Stoops Pursuit race Wednesday night is a 25-lap race split into five-lap segments. The field will include 24 starters – heat race winners plus the highest point earner in each heat are eligible, along with promoter’s options. The starting lineup is inverted by fastest hot lap time, with promoter’s options starting at the rear. Any car involved in a caution is eliminated. Every five laps, USAC will throw a competition flag, and cars with a net loss in position will be called to exit the track.
A checkered flag ends the final segment, with the winner earning $1,500 plus $100 for each position gained. All race participants will receive a free right rear tire courtesy of Hoosier.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 4:
All cars are eligible for Thursday's qualifying races. Qualifying races will be 10 laps each with top-six starting positions inverted and the top point earner from Wednesday's heat races starting sixth in their qualifying race.
Total points from the heat races and qualifying races will be added to set the feature starting lineup, along with transfers from the B-Main, C-Main and front of the D-Main races. The top-16 overall in accumulated points will start straight-up in the first eight rows of the feature.
D-Mains: 12 laps. Includes cars 45 and below in points. Odd numbers in points go to D-Main #1. Even numbers in points go to D-Main #2. The top-three finishers in each D-Main transfer into the C-Main.
C-Main: 15 laps. Includes cars 31-44 in points, plus the top-three finishers from each D-Main. The top-six finishers transfer to the B-Main.
B-Main (Semi-Feature): 20 laps. Includes cars ranked 17-30 in points, plus the top-six finishers from the C-Main. The top six finishers transfer to the night's A-Main feature event.
The 39-lap A-Main feature will have 22 starters, plus two USAC provisional starters (if applicable) and two IMS options.
THE DETAILS
The event on the quarter-mile dirt oval inside turn three at IMS will continue to honor late USAC champion and three-time Indianapolis 500 starter Bryan Clauson and increase awareness of and participation in the Indiana Donor Network and Driven2SaveLives.
On track action begins Wednesday, August 3, beginning with the drivers meeting in the IMS Media Room at 3pm Eastern. Public gates open at 4pm with cars hitting the track for practice at 6pm, followed by opening ceremonies at 7pm. Heat races and the incredibly exciting Stoops Pursuit feature race will conclude the night’s racing action.
The finale, on Thursday, August 4, will have the public gates opening at 4pm and cars on track for practice at 5pm, with qualifying races to follow at 6pm. Opening ceremonies are slated for 7:30pm and immediately followed by the main feature events, the semi-feature and the 39-lap main event.
Advance race tickets can be purchased via www.TheBC39.com.
Every lap of the BC39 will be aired live on FloRacing at https://flosports.link/3AMU46z.