If I'm not mistaken NASCAR limits how much weight can be put on the left side of the car, so in a car where braking efficiency is not at a premium but cornering ability is does Tony Stewart's weight help him?

That is a thought provoking question. I knew an old stock car driver, who used to joke about driver's and their actual importance in the car, saying something like, "All a driver is, is ballast!"
But that always made me think whether a heavier set driver would actually be good for lap times...
A heavy driver would be bad for braking, possibly good for cornering, more than likely bad for acceleration.
Of course I don't believe it's that easy, because of the old adage, 'low, left, and light' Not to mention the frame rails are hollow for a reason, to insert lead bricks or tungsten. Crew chiefs as weight conscience as they are, will position the ballast to specific points of the car for their base line set up, then possibly move the weight around once at the track for chassis tuning.
With the CoT and it's near 50/50 L/R weight distribution, it is theoretical that a Tony Stewart would be better for oval track set ups than say, Mark Martin.
But, with all cars having to weigh 3450 w/o the drivers, and keeping in mind the, 'low, left and light' I would want my lead bricks doing the work of my ballast(low) with a small driver(light).
It would be interesting to test the same car, first with Mark and then Tony behind the wheel to log lap times and see how the car reacted during the course of a fuel/tire run.

Clubkid, let me try to clear up car weights for you and maybe answer your question at the same time. The cars in Cup are required to weigh 3450 pounds ready to compete; that weight includes fuel, oil, and water. The 3450 pound total is based on a driver weighing 200 pounds. If you have a driver who weighs less than 200 pounds you are required to add weight to the car in 10 pound increments up to fifty pounds. The car must also maintain throughout the event a minimum right side weight of 1700 pounds.

So, let’s say you are a driver and you weigh 200 pounds or more. When your crew rolls your car across the scales it has to weigh 3450 pounds minimum and the right side has to weigh 1700 pounds minimum.

Now let’s say I’m also a driver, but I only weigh 180 pounds. When my crew rolls my car across the scale it has to weigh 3470 pounds. The reason, is because I only weigh 180 pounds and the 3450 pound minimum weight is based on a 200 pound driver. My car has to carry an extra 20 pounds, so that in theory when you get in your car and I get in my car both cars will weigh 3650 pounds. My car weight of 3470 pounds is known as the driver adjusted weight. If I only weighted 140 pounds then my car would have to come across the scale at 3500 pounds, which reflects the maximum of 50 pounds of ballast the crew has to add to make up for my light weight.

So does Tony have an advantage by being over 200 pounds? The short answer is no, not really both cars will be fairly close. Both of our cars still have to maintain a minimum of 1700 pounds on the right side, but now I have more over all weight to do that with. My car at the extreme of 3500 pounds could be set up with 1700 pounds on the right side and 1800 pounds on the left because the rules allow for driver ballast to be placed on the left side. Compared to a car at the minimum weight which would have 1700 on the right side and 1750 on the left. I gain a 50 pound advantage on him in left side weight. But, do I still have the advantage on him if he weighs, say 250 pounds? Yes and No. If Tony weighed in at 250 pounds his minimum weight car with him in it would weigh 3700 pounds ready to race; while my car carrying the maximum ballast, and me in it weighing 140 pounds would weigh 3640. Tony would gain 60 pounds over my car, and that weight would be on the left side. The big difference is Tony’s weight gain is in the drivers seat and it is not as concentrated as my added ballast. My crew was able to put 50 pounds of ballast in the car and position it in the best possible place. Tony’s crew has a 60 pound advantage in weight, but they can’t place it where it is most advantageous. They also suffer because their total weight is more than my car so it takes more horsepower to move it. All in all it works out that no one really has much of an advantage either way.

NASCAR weighs the drivers at the start of the year and periodically during the season to make sure ballast adjustment are up to date.

I hope this helps out and is not too confusing. The important thing to know is that all the cars do not weigh 3450 pounds coming across the scales. They will only weigh 3450 pounds if the driver weighs 200 pounds or more. If your driver is light the car will be heavier than 3450. Weight is added in 10 pound increments up to a maximum of 50 pounds, so a car could have a minimum driver adjusted weight of 3500 i.e. Mark Martin.

The rules for Daytona and Talladega are different and I will only briefly touch on them because this post is far too long as is. At Daytona and Talladega not only do we have the minimum 3450 pounds based on a 200 pound driver and the 1700 pound minimum right side weight, but we also have to worry about cross sectional weight which can not exceed 55% and can not be less than 44%. We also have to worry about total rear weight which can not be more than 50% of the cars total minimum required weight. Well, like I said I hope this helped out and hopefully I didn’t make it too confusing.

Actually, NASCAR only weighs the drivers twice per year. Once at the Daytona 500, and again at the Coke Zero 400.

Actually, NASCAR only weighs the drivers twice per year. Once at the Daytona 500, and again at the Pepsi 400.

You are correct. Currently on average drivers are weighed twice a year, and if you are a part time driver and were not at a date where they had a weighing NASCAR normally won’t hunt you down unless they think they have a reason to. NASCAR only states that drivers will be weight at one or more dates, and like everything else it is at NASCAR’s discretion as to the number of times and dates.

The media does such a horrible job covering the technical side of the sport many folks don’t even know that drivers are weighed or that minimum car weights are determined by driver weight. That formula has been around for awhile; since right around 1997 if I remember my books correctly. So for 12 years we have used the same formula, but it is new to many. This despite the fact that media members are given a rules class at the start of each season and they basically have unlimited access to Darby if they have a question.

In defense of the media the percentage of fans that care about the technical side of the sport is tiny compared to the number of fans who want to know when Jr. last passed gas. The media covers what sells and things like silly season sell while minimum car weight is for geeks and outcasts.

Clubkid - 14 July 2009 02:28 AM

If I'm not mistaken NASCAR limits how much weight can be put on the left side of the car, so in a car where braking efficiency is not at a premium but cornering ability is does Tony Stewart's weight help him?

tony so heavy that's why nascar let's him climb the fencing to make sure it's safe ?

Clubkid - 14 July 2009 02:28 AM

If I'm not mistaken NASCAR limits how much weight can be put on the left side of the car, so in a car where braking efficiency is not at a premium but cornering ability is does Tony Stewart's weight help him?

Considering his performance lately, I would say the short answer is "no".

absolutely not!!! they don't have to buy extra tungsten for ballast LOL, but his weight is high center of gravity... I'd say it's a hindurance...