What’s Happening?

During Monday’s NASCAR press conference announcing the sport’s return to the “Chase” points system, Chase Elliott challenged race fans to have a positive outlook on the changes, no matter how they feel NASCAR should have approached the new system.

When NASCAR fans tuned into Monday’s championship announcement, there were a few quick hints at which way NASCAR was leaning with its new system for 2026.

First was a montage of memorable moments from NASCAR’s Chase era that lasted from 2004 to 2013 (minus the few years the now-defunct playoff used the name Chase), and, among NASCAR legends Dale Earnhardt Jr and Mark Martin, NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell, and Ryan Blaney, were two Chases, Chase Elliott and Chase Briscoe.

So it was not that shocking when O’Donnell announced the return to a Chase format, removing eliminations, playoff points, rounds, win-and-in provisions, and even the name playoff, for a more traditional, throwback to NASCAR’s first postseason system.

In the aftermath of this decision, the fan base is somewhat mixed, as the Playoff system and specifically the full-season points system had their flocks of supporters.

Even though no one knew which system would win out, entering this week, some fans figured that any decision but a return to full-season points would be the beginning of another blow-up between the fan base and the sport.

However, one of the two Chases, Chase Elliott, an eight-time winner of NASCAR’s Most Popular Driver award, and the 2020 Cup Series Champion, is challenging the fan base to give this return to the Chase system a chance this coming season.

“We’re Making History Whether You Like It or Not”

Elliott may not be the most outspoken driver in the garage, but he did throw his hat into the ring during the past year of debating NASCAR’s points system.

In July, Elliott, like many drivers, lent his support to a return to the full-season points system, telling Jeff Gluck of The Athletic that “Motorsports does not have to be like everybody else to be successful.”

Here's one for ya: I asked @chaseelliott about the topic of the week with the NASCAR championship format debate, and he endorsed full-season points.

Chase: "We've had a really good and competitive battle to the regular season (championship) over — correct me if I'm wrong — the…

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) July 25, 2025

This vote of confidence did a lot for the movement supporting full-season points, a system in which Chase’s father, Bill, won a championship.

Taking these comments into account, it was somewhat of a surprise Monday afternoon when Elliott threw his hat in the ring for the new Chase system.

The 30-year-old said that as a fan of the sport, one who grew up on the Chase system, he thinks the NASCAR community often overlooks “how good we had it through all those years of Chase format.”

Addressing the debate of postseason vs full-season points, from his perspective, like the others in the press conference, the Chase system was the best compromise, as getting back to full-season points was “going to be a pretty big challenge.”

But Elliott didn’t stop at just complimenting the change back to the Chase system, as he went on to challenge NASCAR fans to “enjoy what we got.”

“From my perspective, challenge to the race fans this year, let’s enjoy what we got. We’re so quick to complain about everything, everything that we have and everything that we do. Let’s enjoy what we have because we’re making history whether you like it or not.” — Chase Elliott

This encouragement is a nudge from the former champion to switch the narrative around NASCAR’s postseason from fans asking questions of legitimacy, and just enjoying the sport for what it is.

He even called on fans to “Celebrate the champion. Celebrate the guys who went out there and did a good job.”

While this positive thinking from one of the most influential names in the garage area is good PR for the sport and the Chase system, Elliott’s comments and call to action hint that this ten-race Chase format has the support of the drivers, something that, at times, seemed like an uncertainty under the former playoff format.

What do you think about this? Let us know your opinion on Discord or X. Don’t forget that you can also follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.