“Would a Champion Feel Better?”: Dale Jr Questions NASCAR’s Championship Weekend Decision with a Revolutionary Suggestion

Is the current playoffs system the best way to determine the NASCAR Cup Series champion? Well, there’s no definitive answer to the question. Because, on one hand, NASCAR needs to provide the fans with a more entertaining and dramatic finish. Meanwhile, a single finale race just makes things unfair for the drivers who can be taken out by an unforeseen incident. All the Joe Gibbs Racing fans might know better about this feeling after what happened with Christopher Bell at Phoenix last year.

So what is the middle ground or a potential solution to solve this puzzle? There is this theory about a three-race showdown at the end of the season rather than a single race. Even Dale Earnhardt Jr feels that this idea will allow drivers to have a real shot at winning the championship. Rather than a single-day hail-marry attempt, that can go either way for the teams and drivers.

Dale Jr shares his take on the highly debated playoff format

Traditional NASCAR fans liked the idea of a Cup Series champion determined based on the points system. This system was more rewarding for consistent drivers but wasn’t an entertaining prospect. With the turn of a new century, the sanctioning body in 2004 limited the championship hunt only to the top 10 drivers. And later in 2014, the elimination concept was put into play, with the playoff drivers fighting for the spot in the final 4 in a series of three rounds.

However, with this system, it feels like drivers are more focused on making it into the finale race rather than contesting for the championship. This is where Dale Earnhardt Jr feels the current system is flawed. “So a lot of them would say before the Phoenix race, whatever happens at Phoenix happens you know… It made me think that this is a little flawed in terms of we need that championship to be most important by a clear margin.” Dale Jr said via Rubbin is Racing.

So is the three-race final dash idea a solution to the current playoff puzzle? Dale Jr believes so. Sharing his thoughts on the same, he added, “Could a three-race final round produce enough excitement.? Probably So. Would a champion feel better about his accomplishment? I believe just a little bit more, maybe a lot more.”

He further added how brutal is on the drivers to make their championship play in just a single race, “One race man, that’s so tough, it’s brutal to almost have that in your grasp and something trivial take you out of it.”

If you look at the current playoff system, it sure doesn’t credit the consistent running driver. But it allows mid-pack drivers to contest in the playoffs just by winning a single race. Not to forget, the driver can even have a rather timid regular season and blow up in the playoffs to take the crown.

NASCAR drivers are divided over the playoff format

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It’s fair to say most of the Cup Series drivers don’t see eye to eye on a range of topics. Most of the time, they will accept what works in their favor and call it out when it works against them. And so is the case with their views on the playoffs system. Remember, Ricky Stenhouse Jr after winning the Daytona 500, made the playoffs and was booted right in the first round. This is what he had to say after his exit: “I like the playoffs, they are fun.” The driver was quoted via Autoweek.

Meanwhile, Chris Buescher from RFK Racing shared his reservations about the three-race championship decider idea. “If you’re going to take three races and add up points from those, I’d say just go back and add up points from the Daytona 500.” The Texas native had a good regular season with three wins but could only make it as far as the second round of the playoffs.

2021 Cup Series champion Kyle Larson acknowledged the excitement factor with the current system. But, he wasn’t sure if this system produced a deserving champion. “I think for the excitement part of it, if you’re looking for that, what we have now is it. Does the right champion always win? I don’t know.” Perhaps he was aiming a jibe at Ryan Blaney, who turned up in the later half of the season and ultimately took home his first championship.

We have seen NASCAR make tweaks and changes to its racing format. But it is indeed hard to see them completely do away with the playoff rounds and accept the three-race finale system to determine the champion.