Notebook: 2007 Chase rules unknown

Greg Engle | Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service | RICHMOND, Va. -- Now that the field has been decided for the 2006 Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup, what will the 2007 version look like? That's anyone's guess at this point. Earlier this season, NASCAR chairman Brian France hinted that he wanted to "make adjustments" to some aspects of the Chase in 2007, but that the changes would not be dramatic. Some believe that the changes could include moving the cutoff for entry into the Chase from the current 10-car plateau to 12 cars. However, NASCAR spokesperson Kerry Tharp said Saturday that nothing is certain. "We are still in (the) discussion stage, so there's nothing as of yet," Tharp said. "I wouldn't expect any changes to be announced before the end of the season." New Charger nose should mean more Dodge wins The new nose recently submitted and approved by NASCAR for use on the Dodge Charger in 2007 will correct an imbalance created by a rule change from NASCAR in 2004, a year prior to the reintroduction of the Charger. According to Michael Accavitti, director of Dodge Motorsports, the original Charger nose design was based on a car that had a spoiler over six inches tall. That nose had depressed eye sockets (prominent indentations) crucial to helping maintain a balance in the car based on that spoiler height. Then came a NASCAR rule in 2004 mandating that spoilers be dropped to 5 1/2 inches. Accavitti believes that spoiler change mandated in 2004 upset the balance of the Charger. "We find when we talk with our drivers is that this imbalance creates instability when they're driving the vehicle," Accavitti said. "They explained to me that it's like the car's on a knife edge." Since its reintroduction in 2005, the Charger has struggled to maintain a competitive balance with the other car makes. Leading up to Saturday's Chevy Rock & Roll 400, Dodge has won just nine of the 61 races in that span. Chevrolet has won 31 times, with Ford scoring the remaining 21. A Dodge spokesperson said that NASCAR would not allow them to resubmit the original design in 2004, a fact NASCAR officials confirmed Saturday at Richmond. The new nose, according to Accavitti, has no eye sockets, a major improvement that should correct the imbalance. "It will allow the drivers to spend less time fighting that (imbalance), trying to keep the car out of trouble. And that should translate into more victories."