Five proposals NASCAR should consider in 2007

	Kevin Harvick's runaway Busch win was impressive, but it also stole a chance at glory for some less established drivers. Darrell Ingham/Getty Images for NASCAR

NASCAR is expected to make several rule adjustments for the upcoming season, probably adding points for winning races and expanding the Chase field beyond 10 drivers. What else should the omnipotent sanctioning body change? Here are my suggestions.

1. Abolish the guaranteed top-35-in-points qualifying rule

Making the show should be based upon event performance, not what has happened in the past. Giving the top 35 cars in points a free pass from qualifying is a serious disadvantage to any car on the outside and particularly harmful to new entries. With Toyota's teams bringing as many as seven new cars and the expansion of several other teams to additional entries, we'll see 50 cars at the vast majority of events. They should at least have a level playing field to, well, make the field.

When cars go home, sponsors go home. If a top-35 car goes home a couple of times, it's a problem that can be overcome with a couple of solid runs. If a team trying to establish itself goes home, it could be fatal to the relationship with its sponsor. In addition, the top-35 rule discourages limited programs from gaining a foothold.

"If one piece of the economy struggles, it's going to affect everybody sooner or later," Nextel Cup owner Rick Hendrick said. "When you've got this many teams trying to show up to race, some good teams aren't going to make it, and some good sponsors could end up leaving the sport. I think next year is going to be the biggest shake out that we've seen. I think we'll see a lot of people that won't be there in '08 that are there in '07 because it's going to be a very, very competitive deal and [there]'s going to be a lot of pressure."

NASCAR should encourage open competition, not protect its current teams.

2. Limit the Buschwackers

NASCAR's Busch Series was intended to be a development and support series for Cup, but last year the top five in virtually every race was filled by Cup regulars. They won 32 of 34 races, Kevin Harvick won the championship, and the next four were Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer, Denny Hamlin and J.J. Yeley.

What's wrong with that? It chokes off the Busch-only drivers and teams trying to grow, particularly in terms of sponsorship. It's not a problem now, with sponsors flooding into the sport, and you can understand how much promoters and fans enjoy having a second race with star drivers. But NASCAR needs to maintain a healthy feeder series for the long term.

It may be a problem that is self-correcting. Harvick isn't expected to run a full schedule and Hamlin has said he'll cut back on his Busch racing this year. Still, NASCAR should develop a criteria that limits participation by Cup regulars. Drivers with 108 Cup starts should be allowed to only run one-third of the Busch schedule. In a process that needs to evolve, that would be a start.