NASCAR What If: The 2004 Chase Under 2014 Rules
Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
Final Race – Homestead-Miami
Below are how the final-four drivers in the chase ran at Homestead-Miami and how the championship panned out.
- Jimmie Johnson – 2nd place
- Jamie McMurray – 7th place
- Mark Martin – 11th place
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. – 23rd place
In this season under the 2014 rules Jimmie Johnson would have won the championship. In case you were wondering, Greg Biffle won the final race that season and Jeff Gordon ran third right behind Johnson.
If NASCAR had dreamed up this current chase system some 10 years ago it would have had an immediate impact on history as Kurt Busch would not have won the championship in 2004.
Be on the lookout for the 2005 edition of “NASCAR What If” sometime in the near future.