Rules & Brackets

Please read and familiarize yourself with the rules and bracket system as below.  This is a change from the double elimination format of 2022.   Car Specifications for design criteria are listed here or in the menu above.

• All entrant’s racers will be submitted for inspection to the judges at least 30 minutes hour before the competition begins.  No racer will be accepted for competition that hasn’t been inspected. Any racer that fails to meet the required car specifications set forth will be allowed to fix their racer and resubmit for inspection before the time limit expires for the race cars to be quarantined (15 minutes before the start of the race). The submitted race cars will remain in the race quarantine area, at the judge’s table, throughout the competition or until they are eliminated. Racer quarantine is to ensure no changes are made to the racers during the competition.
• A random lottery system is drawn before competition begins – each racer will be randomly assigned a number 1 to 20 or however many participants.  The competition will be set up in group brackets (like World Cup pairings) in group pairings of 4 or 5 racers in sequential numbers.  In this format, each racer will race three times in their group of (4 or 5 competitors) considered the preliminary heats.  After these preliminary heats, the top two racers in each group with the better records will advance to the final round – single elimination bracket 
• Lane choice is pre-chosen based on race number and alternated for fairness
• Each group race will consist of a head-to-head race between two racers. The winner of the race is determined by being the first to cross the designated finish line  
• In the rare chance that a single race heat ends in a tie or the winner is undetermined, that race heat will be repeated and become the best-of-three, with racers alternating lanes. This process will be repeated until such time as a winner is determined
• If during a race heat both entrants fail to cross the finish, the racer that comes to rest the closest to the finish line will be deemed the winner of that race
• If a racer leaves the track without interfering with their opponent, the race shall be considered to have ended at that point with the racer remaining on the track as the winner of that heat
• If a racer leaves their lane and in so doing, interferes with another racer, then the racer at fault shall be declared to have lost the heat
• Repairs to a VCR may be conducted between heats only under the supervision of a race official. Only repairs are allowed (e.g. putting a wheel back on the VCR). No modifications. If a racer is not ready to complete when their heat is scheduled, they will be declared to have lost the heat