Amid rumors that NASCAR will be moving the 2026 season-ending championship finale race back to Homestead-Miami Speedway, there’s growing talk among drivers of starting fresh with a changed playoff system – or no playoff system at all.
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On this week’s Dale Jr. Download, Dale Earnhardt Jr. addressed the good, bad and ugly of the current playoff system, where the top-16 drivers after the 26th race of the season advance to the 10-race playoffs.
According to Earnhardt, he, along with drivers and fans, is tired of the current system, saying it lacks excitement and anticipation — and that change is necessary.
“What you’ve got right now, the drivers don’t give a f*** about,” Earnhardt said. “Joey (Logano), of course, he’s thrilled (to have won the championship last season). But they’re always going to compare what we’re doing today to the way we used to crown champions – and not in a positive way.
“I’ve heard drivers tell me they want it to matter more to win a championship. They want to feel like when they’ve won that championship, that they’ve truly been the best and the best person has won it. They want it to matter more than it matters today. That’s an issue for me.”
After over 20 years, drivers want to finally bury the playoff format
The idea that Dale Earnhardt Jr. gave in his take was that, under the current playoff system, it is very likely that drivers and fans often end up feeling that the eventual champion doesn’t reflect the season’s best performer.
He went on to say, “I’ve got drivers telling me, they want to win the championship the way they used to: by the accumulation of their entire season and looking at that and going it is the best, I was better than you, I was better and that’s how they get up to try to win that s***.
“Right now, the way we’re doing it, they’re more proud of getting to the final race and how difficult that is than actually taking home the big trophy. The big trophy and the big championship win is just a label they’re proud to have… But the actual experience and process to get there isn’t as enjoyable to them as the original format and what they grew up doing at every other level of racing.
Junior explained that the championship format should be something that truly validates the accomplishment for the drivers. In his view, they should come away thinking, “Yeah man, this is a bad-ass championship.” Right now, he feels the effort required in the final stages doesn’t quite justify the emotional weight of winning it. And that, he says, is what’s missing.
MORE: “The Fans Will Feel That”: Dale Earnhardt Jr. Shares the Perfect Fix for the NASCAR Playoff Format
