NASCAR: The ‘other’ championship lead that’s down to just one point

NASCAR: The 'other' championship lead that's down to just one point

As a seasoned NASCAR enthusiast with over three decades of racing under my belt, I can confidently say that the playoff format has certainly added an exciting twist to the Cup Series. The nail-biting races, the heart-pounding moments, and the unexpected turns in the championship battle – it’s all part of what makes the sport so captivating today.

Since 2004, NASCAR has employed a playoff system for its Cup Series, and it switched to the current elimination-style format in 2014.

In simpler terms, the playoffs involve 16 racers. Before the first round, each driver’s points are reset to 2,000, along with any extra points they earned during the regular season. After the initial round, 4 drivers are knocked out, leaving us with 12. The points for these remaining racers are then reset to 3,000, plus any playoff points they’ve accumulated so far.

In this stage, we say goodbye to four additional racers during the quarterfinals, and the remaining eight contestants see their scores re-set to a fresh 4,000 points, with any playoff points they’ve earned up until then added on. After that, four drivers progress to the Championship Final, which is a one-race event where the driver who finishes highest among these four will be named champion.

The subject of playoffs has been debated heavily since the regular season/postseason schedule format was introduced two decades ago, and that debate only heated up when the modern system was introduced 10 years ago.

In many instances, such as the last two seasons, the Cup Series title doesn’t go to the driver with the highest overall points tally after each race across the entire 36-race season. Instead, it often goes to someone else.

A compelling argument exists today, considering the changes in racing sports since 2017 when stages were introduced, suggesting that total points accumulated may no longer hold the same significance as they once did, even in non-playoff calculations. This is because drivers can now score points during a race, not just at its conclusion (the checkered flag).

Here’s an interesting fact: Even though a racer might not make it to the top 15 positions in a race, they could still end up with the same total points as the overall champion, mathematically speaking. Conversely, the winner of the race may actually accumulate fewer points than the leader in the total score.

Despite this, some enthusiasts long for the old days when the championship was decided over an entire season without playoffs or point resets.

And of course, there are still fans who look at total points scored each season to see who the champion would have been (even though that admittedly takes for granted that all other things remain equal, which almost certainly wouldn’t be the case when you start to factor in stage points, playoff points, and their respective roles in various race strategies).

If the season-long format were still utilized in 2024, NASCAR would have a heck of a championship battle on its hands.

In certain recent seasons, a driver like Kevin Harvick in 2020 and Chase Elliott in 2022 could have clinched the championship well before the final race. However, it didn’t work out that way; instead, Chase Elliott won the 2020 championship, and Joey Logano claimed the title in 2022.

This year, however, things are much closer at the top.

In the course of 30 out of 36 races this season, Kyle Larson from Hendrick Motorsports is narrowly ahead of his teammate Elliott by a single point. Meanwhile, two additional racers are poised to potentially challenge for the top spot.

23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick, who clinched the regular season championship in a nail-biting finish against Larson by a mere point, currently trails the leader by 18 points. Christopher Bell from Joe Gibbs Racing is close behind with only 19 points separating them.

If Denny Hamlin from Joe Gibbs Racing hadn’t received a 75-point penalty for a self-reported Toyota infraction related to his March win at Bristol Motor Speedway, he would be just 19 points behind the current race leader.

Discussing the close competition in the current races raises the debate yet again about whether playoffs are essential for today’s Cup Series. However, it’s extremely improbable that they will be eliminated anytime soon.

The current structure, now in its 11th year, was designed to ensure that NASCAR had a dramatic “final game” moment each season. Some people might not appreciate this idea and see it as an artificial means of determining the champion, but it has consistently delivered such exciting scenarios, without exception.

Six NASCAR Cup Series playoff races are left for the year, beginning this Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway with the YellaWood 500. NBC will broadcast it starting at 2:00 p.m. ET. Sign up now for a free trial of FuboTV to catch all the action live!

2024-10-06 17:32