Was the NASCAR Truck Series Farce a Product of the Much-Debated Playoff Format?

While the NASCAR Truck Series dates back to 1995, the Playoff format has only been in place since 2016. However, since its inception, the Playoff format has faced much criticism. During the 2023 edition of the Truck Series championship, things pretty much came to a head. To sum up, the race was an absolute disaster and was slammed by many. This race was so bad that Cup Series drivers were also aghast at what just unfolded.

For the sake of context, the Playoff system is such that the top drivers in the championship advance to the Playoffs. For the Truck Series in 2023, the Top 10 drivers advance, and the bottom drivers are systematically eliminated. This goes on until only four drivers are left to compete against each other in the last race of the season in a ‘winner takes all’.

Now, if we’re being honest, having one race to decide a champion can be a good thing, as it ensures exciting battles. The flip side of the argument is that one race can undo months of hard work for three drivers and teams. To make matters worse, since there is one race left, desperation sets in, rule books are torn up and there is no more Mr. Nice Guy.

What happened during the NASCAR Truck race at the Phoenix Raceway?

The good news was that the race was not all bad. As a matter of fact, the first 120 laps were relatively exciting, as well as civil and respectful. During the first two stages, everyone seemed to be behaving themselves. Soon, pit strategy eventually brought all four title contenders together with under 40 laps to go. Unfortunately, the situation spiraled downhill and out of control from that point onwards.

It was as if everyone had collectively lost their heads and forgot how to race clean. Carson Hocevar got into the back of Corey Heim and both drivers spun. Heim would later get his revenge on Hocevar and trigger a caution, with three laps to go. Then, there was a bunch of tomfoolery that resulted in four overtime restarts. The last 150 laps stretched to 179, meaning that it took 30 laps just to complete the three.

In the first overtime attempt, Derek Kraus crashed out and brought out another caution. When the restart began, Grant Enfinger sustained damage, dropping from third to outside the top 20. In the second overtime, Zane Smith missed a gear and Ben Rhodes ran into the back of him. Rhodes continued on, but with significant damage to his truck. Overtime number three led to a Big One, that knocked out a number of cars. Then, overtime number 4 saw Tyler Ankrum hit the wall on the final lap. By then, NASCAR officials were already fed up and just wanted this race to end.

READ MORE: NASCAR’s Playoff System Is Probably the Worst Way of Finding a Winner, and Here’s Why

Is the Playoff system really at fault for this race?

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It’s easy to blame a system that demands a ‘winner takes all’ in the final race of the season. Especially when you consider that this system is also in place for the Xfinity Series and the Cup Series. However, there were hardly any complaints about how those season finale races played out at Phoenix. Sure, the Xfinity race did go into overtime, but everyone raced clean until the chequered flag. Meanwhile, the Cup race showed solid racing action, and there were no wild moves that screwed up another driver’s race. So one really has to wonder if the Playoffs were at fault, or was it all on the Truck drivers?

Obviously, there will always be a debate on whether the best driver all year round won the championship. This is because a system like this means that it was not the best driver all year, who won. Instead, it was the driver who was at the right place, at the right time, who emerged triumphant. It’s as good as seeing Max Verstappen dominate most of the races, but George Russell wins the title, simply because he was at the right place at the right time.

What is the solution for NASCAR with this Playoff dilemma?

It doesn’t help matters that the Playoff point system has gone through a number of evolutions. So the trick could be to try and stick to a more consistent system. Most critics have been pining for NASCAR to go back to the days when the sport was much simpler. In the span of 75 years, the sport has witnessed at least 15 different points systems. This was actually borne out of necessity because, in the early 90s and 2000s, NASCAR’s ratings were plummeting.

Add to that the increasing competition from MLB, NFL, and NBA, NASCAR had to act. Owing to that, the stock car racing series tried to scout a more appealing format to retain its audience. The Playoffs were introduced to combat the flagging TV ratings, but there were a fair number of flaws. To be exact, this system was so arbitrary that a driver who had barely one race win could potentially win a championship. It also didn’t help that such a point system could be exploited and it would anger the fans even more.

Jimmie Johnson exploited a massive loophole in the system

The Playoff system’s predecessor was The Chase format, where the top 10 drivers in points could fight for the title. Apparently, the intention was to make the closing races more engaging and entertaining. This proved to be very effective when Kurt Busch beat Jimmie Johnson to the 2004 title. Naturally, the fans were hooked on the idea of a competitive championship battle. However, it was that man Jimmie Johnson himself, who exposed a loophole.

For a popular sport like NASCAR, the owners are constantly trying to build up its audience. Unfortunately, it appeared that they took it a step too far in the wrong direction. To be precise, there was less emphasis on the NASCAR regular season and more importance placed on the playoff rounds. It didn’t take long for teams and drivers to pick up the loophole and use it to their advantage. Among the first were Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus, who used the first 26 races to perfect their car. So by the time the Playoffs arrived, the #48 car was a monster.

But coming back to the original discussion. Who do you think is to blame for the race we had this past Friday?

WATCH THIS STORY: Kurt Busch Admits He ”Didn’t See That Coming” as Controversy Causes Winner to ”Take the Fall” Amid Truck Series Miracle