NASA format... I actually like parts of it.. The time commitment is much better than a 10-11 days we will spend in Daytona. I think the qualifying races and the pressure on all to advance in NASA contributes to unnecessary carnage.
Maybe in a perfect world..
1)qualifying
2) qualifying race
3) qualifying race 2
Take your best two finishes and that determines your qualifying position for the big race? That way if you break or get taken out, you can discard that session. Just a thought
Are all sessions mandatory? I can see doing well enough in the first two and opting out of the 3rd because it wouldn't be worth the risk. NASA might not want a half empty grid for the second quali race. Also then how do you grid if say someone got a 1st and 2nd in the first two sessions and someone got 2nd and 1st in the 2nd and 3rd sessions. They'd be tied. (Granted that can happen now, but it'd be more likely if you can skip sessions that those who do run them are going to be higher placed than if they were all mandatory with full fields.) Of course if they were mandatory and I'd already placed high enough, I'd just start from the back and stay out of the carnage. Anyway I agree that some combination of raw qualifying speed should be incorporated into the grid points systems they use. Perhaps two quali (time) sessions and one quali race? It just seems like way too many cars get taken out during the quali races.