When Joey Logano won last year’s championship, the backlash from fans was swift and pointed. Many questioned the integrity of NASCAR’s playoff format, frustrated that several of the season’s most consistent performers did not even reach the Championship 4.
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Logano, despite a modest tally of playoff points and laps led, won the title by capitalizing on a single win during the regular season and a mix of timely victories and good fortune through the playoffs.
Now, with Shane van Gisbergen’s triumph in Mexico City, that chorus of criticism has grown louder. The New Zealander’s win reignited debate over a system where a single checkered flag can punch a playoff ticket, even if a driver has struggled throughout the season.
While SVG has proven to be one of the best drivers on road courses, his performance on ovals has left much to be desired. And Dale Earnhardt Jr. didn’t mince words when weighing in on the topic.
“Our drivers need to be great at all things. If you’re going to be a champion, you now have to be as good at a road course as you are at an oval,” he said on the latest episode of Dale Jr. Download.
“I’m okay with it sort of being more balanced… If I were in control, I would be taking away some road courses,” added Junior. He then pointed to the current schedule, which packs five road courses into the final 10 regular-season races — an imbalance he believes needs reassessment.
For Junior, the heart of the matter lies in how NASCAR crowns its champions. Echoing sentiments shared by Mark Martin, he believes the sport should revisit the traditional full-season format, rewarding year-long consistency rather than short bursts of success in the postseason.
On another recent episode of his podcast, Junior had laid out his own blueprint for the format: Run a nearly full season, close to 30 races, to determine the top four drivers by points. Let those four battle it out over three or four closing races for the title. It shouldn’t be a winner-take-all showdown, but a points-based finale reflective of season-long performance.
Meanwhile, Martin, who had previously expressed support for returning to a 36-race full-time schedule like in the early 2000s, shifted the focus to fan opinion. A poll he conducted on X showed overwhelming support for a return to tradition, with 80.2% of voters favoring a full-season format over the current playoff structure.
Which championship format should NASCAR use in the future?
I’m truly curious.
— The Scene Vault Podcast (@TheSceneVault) June 16, 2025
Martin had also stated that a champion is much more legitimate if he consistently runs well all year long. He was trying to drive home the point that momentary brilliance shouldn’t outweigh months of excellence.
While Martin acknowledged that race wins deserve celebration, he also stated that a single victory shouldn’t serve as a golden ticket to title contention. And with fan sentiment now aligned with the likes of Dale Jr. and Martin, the time may be ripe for NASCAR to reconsider the road it’s on.
