NASCAR fans have been begging for changes for years, and changes were finally made to the playoff format after 12 seasons of the four-round knockout setup. The postseason is still set to consist of 16 drivers and 10 races, but the only points reset is set to come before the "Chase" begins.
Additionally, "win and in" is now a thing of the past. The 16 playoff drivers are set to be the 16 drivers who rank inside the top 16 in the point standings after the 26 regular season races, period.
To further incentivize winning, however, rather than simply riding around hiding out mid-pack collecting points, NASCAR has boosted the value of wins from 40 to 55 points. All other point tallies, including from stage results, have remained unchanged.
1 team in, 2 teams out if NASCAR used 2026 format in 2025
Going back to the 2025 season, the playoff field obviously would have looked a bit different under the 2026 format. But just how different would it have looked?
Different enough that not one but two teams that qualified for the playoffs would not have made it, and a team that was shut out completely would have had not one but two drivers competing for the championship.
Three drivers from outside the top 16 in the regular season point standings qualified for the playoffs in 2025 thanks to their victories. Those drivers were Wood Brothers Racing's Josh Berry, Trackhouse Racing's Shane van Gisbergen, and Richard Childress Racing's Austin Dillon, who finished 21st, 25th, and 26th, respectively.
However, van Gisbergen actually, and somewhat surprisingly, would have gotten in under the new format also. The 60 extra points he would have scored from his four regular season wins, tied for the most in the series, would have vaulted him up to 16th in points. Berry and Dillon each only won once and would have missed out in 20th and 25th, respectively.
But while Wood Brothers Racing and Richard Childress Racing would have been left out of the postseason entirely, RFK Racing would have had two drivers in instead of none.
RFK Racing's Chris Buescher finished 11th in the regular season standings, and teammate Ryan Preece finished 14th. But because Hendrick Motorsports' Alex Bowman was the last driver to get into the 16-driver field on points from ninth, both Buescher and Preece missed out.
And with teammate Brad Keselowski down in 19th, RFK Racing missed the playoffs altogether for the first time since 2022.
Had the 2026 format been utilized a year ago, Keselowski would have been the only RFK Racing driver left on the outside looking in after the regular season.
The 36-race 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season is scheduled to get underway on Sunday, February 15 with the 68th annual Daytona 500, which is set to be shown live on Fox from Daytona International Speedway starting at 2:30 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV and catch all of the action from the season opener!