NASCAR’s playoff system format has been quite a divisive subject in the sport. Some feel it’s unfair, while some argue that it makes the chase for the championship even more interesting and exciting. But Denny Hamlin is perhaps neither here nor there with his take on the playoffs.
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Post Bristol, Hamlin opened up on the impact of the playoff system and how it’s received. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver also explained on his podcast, Actions Detrimental, how the same system has now given Martin Truex Jr. another chance to hunt for his second Cup championship.
Denny Hamlin assesses the NASCAR Playoff system
After the race at Bristol, which saw defending champion Joey Logano and another champion Kevin Harvick getting eliminated, some criticism came NASCAR’s way regarding the playoff system. However, Denny Hamlin thinks the system “has to be OK” considering they created it.
“We’ve talked about this for years. You can have nine wins, 10 wins, it just doesn’t matter in the regular season if you don’t win in the playoffs or don’t have a strong three races,” he said as per FOX Sports.
“They’ve shrunk the sample size so much that it’s hard to get a real feel for who can win it all because you’ve got so many variables and such a small sample size.”
While on the one hand, Logano and Harvick got the worse end of the playoff format stick, on the other hand, Martin Truex Jr. got the good end. And now that Truex is in the next round, Hamlin has warned everyone else against how good he can be.
Hamlin warns everyone against Martin Truex Jr.
During a recent episode of his podcast show, Hamlin was asked by his co-host about his thoughts on the situation Martin Truex Jr. is in now. Because heading into Bristol, the regular season champion was on the verge of getting eliminated.
But after the race which his teammate won, Truex is heading into the next round in 2nd place, which, as per Hamlin, is like “giving Goliath another life.” He explained, “They’re a team, when they win, they win big. Usually, nobody is even close when they hit it. They can really be a juggernaut some weeks.”
Having said that, Hamlin reminded his listeners that his final 4 prediction of William Byron, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Larson, and he himself, is unchanged. But if there was an upset or if one of those four didn’t make it to Phoenix, the JGR veteran believes it’ll be Chris Buescher who does.
