In 1975, Bob Latford crafted the modern points system that has since largely determined how NASCAR crowns its annual champions. This format aimed to assign championship points based on the finishing order of the race, rather than prize money or distance, as was the practice in the sport’s earlier days. 

But undoubtedly, its biggest transformation happened on January 21st, 2004, when NASCAR introduced “The Chase for the Cup,” the same system used today to distinguish the exclusive Playoff “chasing” championship powerhouses from the “regular-season” contenders. For someone like Richard Petty, this modern-era points dance would matter little. After all, if winning 27 races in a single season (1967) couldn’t separate you from the rest of the field, there’s not much points could’ve done in those dusty days of NASCAR racing. 

Regardless, after serving as Grand Marshal at this past Sunday’s Cup race in Daytona, The King opened up on the ever-evolving debate surrounding NASCAR’s flawed playoff format. And it sounds like he is not too happy with the holes in its fabric, either.

‘Unheard’ Richard Petty shuts down the idea of NASCAR’s playoff reform

Initially starting with only a 10-man field battling it out for the ultimate prize (the Cup Series championship) in the last 10 races of the season, the Chase for the Cup has undergone many changes. In 2007, NASCAR expanded the bracket to include 12 championship contenders. Seven years later, in 2014, the playoff field grew once again, this time to sixteen total drivers to amp up excitement beyond the regular season championship finale. Alongside this major switch, the playoffs began implementing a three-round elimination system, which ultimately left four drivers battling it out in the penultimate championship race, or Race 36, of the NASCAR Cup Series season.

Also, starting in 2014, NASCAR introduced a new rule that has significantly influenced the playoff picture ever since. This rule essentially guarantees a playoff berth to any full-time driver who wins a race during the regular season, regardless of points standings, provided they remain eligible despite potential penalties, injuries, or other factors that might disqualify them. For Harrison Burton, this particular “loophole” was crucial in helping secure the 13th spot in the 2024 Playoffs at Daytona on Sunday. Although it highlights the profound effect the playoff system had on his journey and the drama of his first Cup win, many fans weren’t seeing eye-to-eye with the fact that a driver who was dead last in points prior to the race will now be a headline in the post-season. Just to be fair, stars like Kyle Busch, Bubba Wallace, and Ross Chastain are still languishing outside the cutline.

These concerns came to Richard Petty’s attention, thanks to a fan question on the “Petty Race Recap,” airing on their family’s official YouTube channel. The inquiry states quite bluntly, “Due to the upset winner being a last place (in points) car, do you think NASCAR will change something in the format?” Throwing his weight behind the running suitability of the current playoff format, The King answered this lucky fan: “I don’t see ‘em changing a whole lot. I think they’re pretty satisfied with the way things are right now.” He joked, “There’s a few suggestions I would probably have formed to change the points standings but they don’t listen to me a whole lot.”

Joining Richard Petty was his second cousin and long-time crew chief, Dale Inman, who had his own nuanced take on the issue. “I don’t think they’ll change that and I think it’s perfectly okay for [Harrison Burton] to win it like that,” said the 8x championship-winning crew chief. “I mean, it just stirs up the championship, you know. And he’ll go to the championship run behind, because he’s only got five playoff points as of right now, You know, maybe that should be changed.”

With his win at Daytona, Burton now has five playoff points to take to the Round of 16. Josh Berry and Joey Logano’s wins in Stage 1 & 2 respectively earned them a single playoff point each, as is the rule. Locked in for the playoffs, the #21 team is certainly at a big disadvantage in that regard, compared to guys like Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell, who have 28 and 25 playoff points before Darlington. Apart from letting the points leader start the first two rounds of 16 races from the pole, these playoff points help to ensure only one driver moves onwards to the next round when two or more are equal in the standings. But to understand them better, we must first delve deeper into stage racing.

Is the format even good for the sport?

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In 2017, NASCAR brought a definitive shift to their product by officially rebranding the “Chase” to the “Playoffs” name and introducing stage racing. This new format divided the races into mostly three segments (except the Coca-Cola 600, which has four stages), with a caution break period in the middle of Stages 1 & 2. Whoever crosses the finish line first in Stage 3 usually wins the race, unless NASCAR decides otherwise for whatever reasons. Stage winners and top-10 finishers earn bonus points based on their positions in each stage at the end of the entire event. As mentioned earlier, stage wins also earn drivers a single playoff point every time they win one.

Richard Petty never won a stage in his life. Nor did he have to earn a playoff point. Back in his day, races ran their entire scheduled distances flag-to-flag with the only interruptions at the time of racing coming during incidental cautions or pit stops. Certainly, NASCAR’s move to stage racing combined with the rollout of the NextGen car in 2022 has made it nearly impossible for someone to go on a 10-win season like Kyle Larson last did in 2021. A 27-win year like Richard Petty’s is even more incomprehensible still.

These equalizing changes have brought forward moments like Harrison Burton’s playoff-clinching debut win, Daniel Suarez’s 0.003-second victory at Atlanta, and Austin Cindric’s Gateway escape, just to name a few from this season. All of them sit beneath the first two drivers outside the cutline–Bubba Wallace & Ross Chastain–in the regular season championship standings. Yet, the three of them will all be hoping to make it past the Round of 16 to contend for the 2024 NASCAR Cup championship, although it looks unlikely that could happen. Some would even call them easy pickings for the rest of the confirmed drivers in the eliminators’ field. However, with three spots left for those still hoping to make the playoffs, only one spot mathematically remains open at Darlington, as Martin Truex Jr and Ty Gibbs are well ahead of the rest waiting on the bubble.

But then again, anything can happen in NASCAR at any moment. Just like Richard Petty coming forward to discuss his views on the flaws of the playoffs system. Regardless, with the opportunity to witness some fresh blood in the 2024 post-season in the bigger picture, maybe this format does favor a brand-new generation of stock car racing.