The NASCAR Xfinity Series playoffs are supposed to pack drama into every lap, but if you ask the drivers themselves, not everyone’s thrilled with how the system works. Some want more races, others want fewer. A few even want to tear the whole thing down and go back to the good ol’ days of straight-up points racing.
So, if the guys behind the wheel could change one thing about the current playoff format, what would they actually do?
Let’s just say the answers were all over the place, and honestly, it makes for a fascinating “what if” conversation.
Several drivers want to see the championship decided over a slightly longer span, rather than hanging on one winner-take-all race.
Connor Zilisch didn’t hesitate: “Make the final round three races.”
Sheldon Creed echoed that thought with a bit more detail, “I think I would go to a 3-round Final Four. Kind of best-of-three series.”
That “best-of-three” concept gets thrown around a lot in NASCAR circles. It would give championship contenders a chance to rebound from bad luck or a blown tyre, instead of seeing their whole season collapse in one afternoon.
A three-race finale could reward consistency, not just clutch performance, something fans and teams might actually appreciate.
Bringing Back the Old-School NASCAR Xfinity Points Battle
Then there are the traditionalists, the ones who think the whole playoff system is just too gimmicky.
Austin Hill was blunt about it, “I’m extremely old school. So, you know, it would kind of just do away with the playoff format. And just race like old-school point system throughout the year.”
There’s a certain appeal to that, right? Back when every lap of every race mattered from Daytona to Homestead, and the champion was simply the most consistent driver across the season.
Harrison Burton leaned in that same direction, just a little softer: “Maybe incentivise season-long points a little bit more.”
And Sam Mayer would love to rewind the clock, too: “I’m a huge fan of the ten-race Chase. I thought that was a lot of fun when we had that. Sometimes it can take away from having that final race at Phoenix or Homestead or wherever it is. Think I’d change a lot of things.”
There’s clearly nostalgia for a time when the grind of the full season held more weight than a single dramatic finale.
Tweaking the Cutoff Rules and Win Priority
Some drivers don’t want to scrap the NASCAR Xfinity format entirely; they just want to fine-tune it.
Brandon Jones offered this middle ground, “I love the ‘win and you’re in’ kind of thing. But maybe if you had a cut-off line, then you still had to make it in on points.”
Meanwhile, Nick Sanchez wants victories to carry even more weight: “I feel like wins should separate you, maybe a little bit more, from the guys that are in on points. I think that would be something they’d be interested [in].”
And then there’s Taylor Gray, who didn’t mince words at all: “Honestly, probably scrap all of it.”
There’s no unanimous answer here, and that’s probably the most telling part. Whether it’s adding more races, emphasising season-long consistency, or just tossing the system out, drivers clearly see room for change.
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