Mark Martin On What NASCAR Doesn’t Want Fans to Know About New Playoff Format: “It’s Not Up to the Fans”
What’s Happening? NASCAR legend Mark Martin recently joined Kenny Wallace for a discussion about the state of NASCAR. During this discussion,…
In a continuation of his campaign to return NASCAR to a full-season or ‘traditional’ points system, NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin has called out NASCAR’s TV Partners, telling a fan on X, “They don’t know or understand Car Racing.”
No. I think they prefer it because they don’t know or understand Car Racing. Only stick and ball sports. They want it to be like what they know. Only problem is they don’t understand why there 36 teams play in our championship game instead of two like they are used to. https://t.co/KB75E0m7Je
— Mark Martin (@markmartin) July 25, 2025
In his post, Martin explains that NASCAR’s TV Partners, whom NASCAR often calls “stakeholders” due to their investment in the sport, want NASCAR to be “what they know.”
Martin is referring to stick and ball sports and how NASCAR has slowly drifted into using a playoff bracket-elimination format with a winner-takes-all championship similar to the MLB, NBA, or NFL.
This sentiment matches statements Martin has made in the past, including his now-infamous appearance on Kenny Wallace’s YouTube channel on Jun. 19. During that interview, Martin said that the choice in championship format is not up to the fans, saying, “They [NASCAR] don’t want the fans to know that it’s not up to the fans. It’s up to the TV.”
What’s Happening? NASCAR legend Mark Martin recently joined Kenny Wallace for a discussion about the state of NASCAR. During this discussion,…
The debate between a Playoff format and a full-season points system is long-winded.
Recently, fans expressed their desire to see changes to the current championship format. From there, NASCAR started a committee to investigate whether to change the current format or even find a new one. Martin, a veteran of the sport, is on that committee.
His position on the committee has caused drama recently with the hosts of a program on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, though they claim they were not referring to him. While Martin has campaigned and polled to restore the full-season points system, he has little hope for change, often citing the TV Networks for this issue.
As Martin told Wallace on Jun. 19, “The people on the committee are all beholden to the almighty dollar. And so there’s no way they’re gonna go back to 36 races because they think that won’t please the TV networks.”
What’s Happening? NASCAR is publicly seeking a new Playoff or even Championship Points system for the future. This story will unfold…
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