Nascar overhauls playoff format as Chase returns for 2026

• Chase format returns after being used between 2004 and 2016
• Wins will no longer guarantee a driver qualifies for the postseason
• Last season’s playoffs averaged new low of 1.87m viewers

Nascar has overhauled its playoff format, bringing back the Chase for the 2026 season.

In the Cup Series, 16 drivers will qualify for the ten-race Chase at the end of the season based on their points tally from the 26-race regular season.

The 16 drivers will be decided solely on points scored across the season, meaning it is no longer enough to win one race and qualify for the postseason.

To emphasise the importance of race victories, the points awarded for wins will increase to 55, up from the previous 40.

The title of ‘regular season champion’ will be discontinued, but finishing first in the standings will still offer a significant advantage in the end-of-season Chase. The points leader will begin the ten-race format with 2,100 points, 25 more than the second-place driver and 35 more than the third-place qualifier.

From third place onwards, the points advantage will decrease in five-point increments, with the 16th-place driver starting the Chase with 2,000 points.

Under the Chase format, there are no eliminations and no single championship race to decide the title. The driver who accumulates the most points across the final ten races will be crowned champion.

This format mirrors the system used between 2004 and 2016, before the winner-takes-all finale was introduced from 2017 to 2025.

Nascar president Steve O’Donnell said the Chase offers a balance between those who favour a full-season points system and those who prefer a postseason playoff format.

“We believe we’ve struck that balance,” O’Donnell said. “We’ve got the best of both worlds where every race matters. We’ve talked to a lot of folks in the industry. We’ve run a lot of different models and believe this is the best place to land really to get back to who we are.

“That’s the core of Nascar and we’re really excited about the 2026 season.”

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BlackBook says…

Change has come to Nascar but some will argue it doesn’t go far enough.

The existing playoff format guaranteed drama in deciding the Nascar champion, as each year four drivers would head into the final race with a chance of victory.

However, this also meant that luck played a significant role in determining the champion. Just look at Denny Hamlin, who lost out on last year’s title due to a late-race caution, which had nothing to do with him, after leading for most of the race.

For some, the entire concept of the playoffs felt too manufactured and too far removed from crowning a deserving champion based on the performance across the season. Interest in the playoffs hit a record low last year, with an average of 1.87 million viewers, marking the first time it had fallen below the two-million mark.

Supporters of the playoffs will be pleased to see the Chase return, maintaining an element of postseason drama. Yet, this may not be enough to convince Nascar’s detractors that the series is truly listening to its fans, who so far seem divided on the changes.

O’Donnell believes the overhaul provides the best of both worlds and ensures every race matters. But the season essentially resets for the Chase, with the driver in first place just 100 points ahead of the driver in 16th – fewer than two race wins – regardless of the gap at the end of the regular season.

In the aftermath of commissioner Steve Phelps’ resignation following Nascar’s bruising legal battle with 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports (FRM), the series needs unity. It remains uncertain whether the Chase will help provide this.