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,…
During a recent appearance on Door Bumper Clear, NASCAR legend and NBC Sports Analyst Jeff Burton is firing back at the perception that NASCAR’s TV partners are the final decision makers in what championship format the sport uses.
While NASCAR continues to decide the fate of the current playoff format beyond the 2026 season, drivers and industry members continue to voice their takes on the system.
During a recent episode of Door Bumper Clear, NBC Sports’ Jeff Burton addressed the current playoff format, though his comments did not focus on a potential format to use; rather, they addressed speculation of NASCAR’s TV partners’ involvement in the decision.
This idea is that NASCAR’s TV Partners, those who pay millions for the sport’s broadcasting rights, are the ones who call the shots on what decides the sport’s champion, a concept that has been in the minds of fans for some time.
But Burton cleared the air on DBC, saying, “I want to be clear about something. And I’m in these meetings. TV doesn’t make these decisions. NASCAR makes these decisions. And NASCAR takes all the information from all the people that they can take it from. And they make a decision.”
Of course, it is no secret that those at the top of NASCAR are having discussions about the future of the playoffs with a committee of drivers, stakeholders, hall of famers, and media members to discuss potential changes to the system. Though it is unconfirmed, it would not be a surprise that Jeff Burton, as a representative for the drivers, a former driver, and a member of the media, could be a part of this committee.
Nonetheless, Burton backs up his claims that TV is not the deciding factor by stating he was a part of the discussion that created the current format introduced in 2014, and even then, “TV didn’t make this decision.”
“TV didn’t say, here’s your format. This is what we’re doing. That’s not how that happened. And the fact that people think that’s how it happened, I don’t know where that’s coming from?” — Jeff Burton
Burton continued his fiery rant, saying that he, like everyone else involved, believes that all stakeholders, be that drivers, owners, track owners, and TV, deserve a seat at the ‘table’. But any thought that TV is the be-all end-all of the discussions is “bullshit.”
“If anyone thinks that TV wrote a prescription, ‘here’s how you’re gonna do this’, that’s bullshit. It’s such a misrepresentation of how this happened. I’m not saying they don’t have a voice, ’cause they do have a voice. They should have a voice, but they didn’t make this. This was a collaborative effort, from many different places, all in this industry, that created this.” — Jeff Burton
When asked if he thinks TV even prefers a Playoff format, as opposed to a full-season points system, Burton said he was not sure, and that TV representatives are likely just as spread out on opinions as those in the garage area, though, in his opinion TV just wants to make sure NASCAR is the best it can be for the fans.
“Honestly, from day one, when I started working in the industry, they [TV] want grandstands full. They want a great at-track experience for the fans. They want a TV broadcast and races that are fun to watch.” — Jeff Burton
Though there is no clear-cut evidence that TV has the final say, there is talk from those inside NASCAR about the significant role the networks have in these discussions.
Throughout the 2025 season, NASCAR fans, drivers, broadcasters, and industry members alike have debated the validity and future of the sport’s current playoff format. While the four-round, 16-driver, single-race championship format has its fans, it also has its detractors.
One shining example among these are Hall of Famer Mark Martin, who, despite never winning a title under the 36-race format, which saw points collected from races one through 36, has vouched for the format’s return. One group in the sight line of Martin throughout his campaign has been NASCAR’s TV Partners.
During an interview with Kenny Wallace on Wallace’s YouTube channel, Martin claimed that NASCAR doesn’t want fans to know that the decision on the championship format is not based on fans, but rather in the hands of NASCAR’s TV partners.
“They don’t want the fans to know that it’s not up to the fans. It’s up to the TV,” Martin said.
Martin even called out NASCAR as being “beholden to the almighty dollar,” saying, “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 that won’t please the TV networks.”
Martin’s comments, as he is one of the most prominent drivers of all time, are quick to grab the attention of the base, though he isn’t the only committee member to speak about TV’s roll in the playoff discussion.
What’s Happening? NASCAR legend Mark Martin recently joined Kenny Wallace for a discussion about the state of NASCAR. During this discussion,…
Though it has had its detractors upon since it’s introduction, opposition to the playoff format has grown throughout its ten-plus years in use. A recent spike in fan discontent has led to NASCAR reviewing the format via the aforementioned playoff committee.
While the format looked likely to change as the summer months rolled on, during the week of July 28 through August 1, the narrative shifted to a potential hold on changes until the 2027 season, with NASCAR Managing Director of Racing Communications Mike Forde saying on Hauler Talk that there are barriers to getting changes for 2026 such as NASCAR needing to speak with NBC, who broadcasts all ten NASCAR Cup Series Playoff races.
In a similar conversation earlier that week, Jeff Gluck of The Athletic, a member of NASCAR’s Playoff Committee, said during an episode of The Teardown that, despite the wishes of a portion of the fan base for NASCAR to return to a full-season points system, he thinks the TV partners are insisting on some form of playoff.
“TV wants a playoff. They want eliminations… I don’t know exactly what they want, but they want something close to, I think, what is happening now,” Gluck said.
While there is evidence that this is the case, the thought will undoubtedly continue to linger in the minds of fans when, or if, NASCAR introduces an updated Playoff format. As of press time, NASCAR has yet to announce any changes to the format for 2026, though it seems increasingly likely the sport could do so. We have covered NASCAR’s search for a new championship format in depth via the link below.
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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