It’s hard to believe that NASCAR has had some sort of a Playoff format for almost two decades now. Over the years, it has gone through some significant changes, but opinion is still very much split on the Playoffs. Not everyone is going to be happy no matter what format is used, but, that doesn’t mean the current format is perfect.
What changes can or should NASCAR realistically make to the Playoffs? Is there a way to make the Playoffs a more fair system than we see now? Let’s take a look at both sides of each of these changes.
This is one of the biggest points of contention amongst fans. In 2004, the Playoff grid originally consisted of 10 drivers. That expanded to 12 drivers in 2007 before the current 16-driver grid started in 2014.
In the Gen-6 era particularly, many drivers who had no realistic Championship shot would make the Playoffs simply because of the 16-team format. However, the next-gen era is not immune, as 15 different winners made the Playoffs last year.
The question becomes, do 16 NASCAR Cup Series teams really have a chance at winning a Championship? Not in the theoretical possibility sense, but in the realistic performance sense. The most sensible thing in this instance is to shrink the field maybe back to 12 or even 10 drivers.
However, the counter is that the 16-driver format allows for underdogs to have their chance at making the Playoffs. Not every team operates under the same budget, and the 16-team Playoff format allows them a chance to really compete. As opposed to years they would normally be 20th-25th in points in the past, they would instead be in the top-16.
Now, the Championship-4 round is the only round of the Playoffs where it is just one race. Every other round of eliminations is three races, and some wonder whether or not that is the best format.
Is it fair to boil down an entire season’s worth of performance to just one race? In other sports, most of these Playoff games are seven-game series, so, if it boils down to a final game, it’s because the competition made it necessary. Even in sports like football, where it’s a one-and-done, the higher-seeded team gets home-field advantage. The solution to this could be to make the Championship-4 round a multi-race round rather than just one race.
However, is there anything truly more exciting than everything coming down to just one race? That aspect of the Playoffs is simple to understand for fans, drivers, and teams. There is no points-related math that has to be considered, but it is instead as simple as just one race with the highest finisher taking the crown.
The win-and-you’re-in style of Playoffs has been in action since the field expanded in 2014. There is a scenario that currently exists where a winner could miss the Playoffs, but, so far, there have not been more than 15 winners in a season since 2014.
Win-and-you’re-in means that drivers and teams that have been terrible or missed races all season long can get in by sheer luck or circumstance. Some wins come out of complete nowhere because of a timely strategy, a timely rainstorm in the case of Justin Haley, or even a big accident. Is that really the best determining factor of Playoff eligibility?
With that being said, remember the days when people complained that wins did not mean enough? Darrell Waltrip even said they did not mean enough after he won the 1985 Championship with three wins over Bill Elliott who had 11 wins. Now, wins mean everything, and they also give smaller teams that glimmer of hope to make the Playoffs if everything breaks right.
The NASCAR Playoffs can be a lightning rod for NASCAR fans. Some love it, but others hate it. Could there be changes made for there to be the best of both worlds?
With Round 1 of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Race to the Chase in the books, the greatest drivers in the world, the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series, head to the Peach State. We’re going back-to-back superspeedway racing as the NASCAR takes on the EchoPark Speedway (formerly the Atlanta Motor Speedway). This is what you need to keep your eyes peeled for in what is guaranteed to be a thriller of a race.
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It was a busy Saturday at EchoPark Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway). First, we had the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race. Then, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series took center stage and they were two vastly different events. Ultimately, it was Sheldon Creed standing tall in victory lane when all was said and done. Here’s what you need to take away from tonight’s NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at EchoPark Speedway.
Corey Day had a very sloppy, bad race in general, and it started early. First, he caused a wreck that took out Harrison Burton and a couple of others. Then, he took out the JRM duo of Carson Kvapil and Justin Allgaier. You can recap that first incident by reading the article below.
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Kvapil and Allgaier weren’t the only JRM cars to have issues tonight. Firstly, Rajah Caruth was out of control throughout the race, fighting a mean-handling car. He was able to brilliantly save it several times, to his credit. But perhaps the biggest incident involving the four JRM Chevys came at Lap 142 when Sammy Smith had a tire go down and spun in front of the pack. This took out several drivers, including Taylor Gray, among others. Read about that here:
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Results Pending.
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As Ross Chastain took the lead and the pack was closing in on 20 laps to go, things a little deeper in the pack started to get a little hairy. We had yet another huge crash late in the running here tonight, this one sparked by Sammy Smith’s flat rear tire. Here’s what happened:
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