NASCAR has long been the most popular motorsport in the United States, and one of the premier categories of motorsport in the world. Let me make it clear, NASCAR and its series do many things right. This includes, effectively promoting the Craftsman Truck and the newly renamed O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, standalone events without the Cup Series selling well, with examples of Lime Rock Park in Connecticut, and Rockingham in North Carolina which sold quite suitably despite having no Cup Series race. Yet, many fans chief concern regards the NASCAR points format. Most racing series have a traditional season long points system, in which the driver with the most points at the end of the season wins the championship. This is present in many series throughout the world with examples including INDYCAR and Formula One. In these systems it is not uncommon to see a championship clinched before the last race of the season, due to a driver having consistent finishes and wins, which put themselves into a situation where the competition cannot mathematically catch them before the end of the season. This is one of the most common and undisputedly uncriticized ways to hold a championship, as it promotes year long consistency and finishing well, with it being well possible to win the championship without winning. In NASCAR however, they decided to do things a bit differently.

Before I attempt to explain the confusing mumbo jumbo that is the points system that NASCAR attempts to call a valid way to hold a championship, I have to explain a little background. NASCAR at one point was one of the largest sports in the US, peaking in 2005. After this peak in viewership, revenue, and all of the other things that are important for running a business, NASCAR made sure that the championship is even more confusing than it already is, making it super inconvenient whenever the format is mentioned. This makes the champion of the playoffs be viewed as less earning of their championship. For example, in the 2025 O’Reilly series Jesse Love, a young rising star, beat American racing prodigy Connor Zilisch, to the title despite having nowhere near the season that he had. Connor had 10 wins compared to Jesse’s 3 wins, and despite this generational run Connor only finished 2nd in the championship. This is because NASCAR utilizes the “winner take all” format with its last race being between 4 drivers in Phoenix, and between them, whoever finished the highest is the champion. The playoffs work in elimination brackets, with there being an initial round of 16, which is decided by all the race winners from the regular season, plus the rest of the top 16 drivers in points. After, the contenders become 12, as people are eliminated in order to further the playoffs. This happens again with the round of 8, and then again with the final four. This kind of a system has no place in motor racing. Motor racing should have a year long points system that rewards consistent finishing, and the championship should be determined by who drives the best year long. The NASCAR playoffs just promote winning at the right time rather than any real skill. This will hopefully change in 2026, as we have heard that new developments are on its way, with changes to the winner taking all format, but real change, like going back to a Winston Cup style points system, looks unlikely in the near future.