[Michael Beard]

I personally know at least three Bracket Finals champs who were going to go Class racing in one form or another, until they found out their "Gold Card" wasn't eligible at Nat'l/Div'l events. Two were looking at buying cars, and another had parts on order, which he then canceled. The sanctioning bodies failed to set the hook and unwittingly cost themselves and many others a lot of money in the long run. I know a couple of Bracket Finals champs who won back when the Gold Card was good for everything, and those guys have spent incredible amounts of money with manufacturers, tracks, and sanctioning bodies ever since. You do the math.