NASCAR championship today: How does it work?
HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- Sunday is NASCAR's first championship playoff race, where four drivers will battle for the Sprint Cup Series crown.
Six-time champion Jimmie Johnson can't win the title this year -- he was eliminated last month -- leaving Kevin Harvick, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano and Ryan Newman as this year's contenders.
If you're new to NASCAR or just not that familiar with the new Chase for the Sprint Cup rules, here's a couple important points to know:
WHAT IS IT? For the first time, NASCAR had a playoff-style elimination this season. There were 16 drivers who started the Chase (playoffs) and the field was cut to 12, eight and then the final four drivers over the past nine weeks. Today is the final race.
HOW DOES IT WORK? The four remaining playoff drivers had their points reset and will race to get the best finish possible. Whichever one of those four drivers crosses the finish line first wins the championship.
SO IT'S JUST FOUR CARS ON THE TRACK? Nope. Actually it's the standard 43-car field. But only those four Chase drivers are eligible to win the title.
WHAT ABOUT BONUS POINTS? In every other NASCAR race, drivers get a bonus point for leading a lap or leading the most laps. But not Sunday. In order to avoid a possible tie and make it as simple as possible, there are no bonus points. The champion is the first to finish of the four Chase drivers.
WHAT IF A NON-PLAYOFF DRIVER WINS THE RACE? That's nice for them, and they'll get a trophy, but the only drivers who can become champion at Homestead are Newman, Logano, Hamlin and Harvick.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY CROSS THE FINISH LINE AT THE SAME TIME? NASCAR has electronic timing, and it can break a tie down to the millisecond. It may look like a photo finish to the naked eye, but there will be a clear winner.
WHAT IF IT RAINS? Rain isn't in the forecast, but NASCAR considers it to be an official race once the halfway point of a race is crossed. Sunday, the race is scheduled for 267 laps. Even if it does rain, it's unlikely NASCAR would call the race early given all that's on the line. And Homestead-Miami Speedway does have lights.
HOW MANY CHAMPIONSHIPS HAVE THE CONTENDERS WON? Zero. No matter who wins, this year's champ will have won the Sprint Cup Series title for the first time.
IS THE CHAMPION WHOEVER HAS THE MOST POINTS OR THE BEST FINISH? Same thing. All of the points have been reset for the top four drivers and there are no bonus points, so the points don't matter. It's simply whoever finishes the best of those four drivers.
Follow Gluck on Twitter @jeff_gluck
PHOTOS: 2014 Sprint Cup Chase drivers