NASCAR Cup Series: How different would history look without the playoffs?

Without the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs, the history of the sport would look a whole lot different. Here is just how different it would look.

The 2003 NASCAR Cup Series season was the final season during which some form of playoffs was not used to determine the champion. The 2018 season is the 15th season to feature the playoffs and the fifth season to feature the current playoff format.

The 2018 champion has still not been determined, as the first round of the playoffs, the round of 16, has just come to an end.  Because of this, only 14 times has a champion been crowned following the playoffs.

Only six of the 14 champions since the 2004 season were the points “champions” and would have been champions without the playoffs. Meanwhile, eight of the points “champions” did not end up being crowned champions as a result of the playoffs.

Of course, different drivers in different positions in various playoff races throughout these seasons would likely have taken different chances if the playoffs were not in place.

Therefore, it would be unfair to suggest that certain drivers would have definitely won certain championships throughout these 14 seasons had the playoffs not been introduced.

But with all other things being equal, the list of champions from the 2004 season through the 2017 season would look a lot different without the playoffs having been introduced that it does with the playoffs having been introduced.

Here is the list of the six champions from the 2004 season through the 2017 season who were also the points “champions” when they won their championships. Also included on this list are what number championship each driver’s championship was or championships were for that driver.

Here is a list of the eight points “champions” for the 2004 season through the 2017 season who did not actually win the championships that they would have won if not for the playoffs. Also included on this list are what number championship each driver’s championship was or championships were for that driver. and where each driver actually finished in the championship standings during the seasons when they would have won the championships.

Here is a list of the eight drivers who were actually the champions in each of these eight seasons. Also included on this list are what number championship each driver’s championship was or championships were for that driver.

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The are several things that would not be the same as far as the champions go had the playoffs never been introduced. First and foremost, Jimmie Johnson would not be a seven-time champion. Instead, Jeff Gordon, a four-time champion, would be tied with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt for the most championships in Cup Series history with seven and Johnson would be a three-time champion. Kevin Harvick, a one-time champion, would also be a three-time champion.

Busch brothers Kurt and Kyle would have combined to win zero championships instead of both having earned one championship up to this point in their careers. Tony Stewart and Carl Edwards would have both been two-time champions when they retired at the end of the 2016 season, but in reality, Stewart retired as a three-time champion while Edwards retired having never won a championship.

Who will win the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series championship and future NASCAR Cup Series championships? How often will the points “champion” actually win the championship? How often will a driver who otherwise would not have won the championship win it because of the playoffs? Are the playoffs here to stay, and if so, will their current format continue to be used?

Regardless of your opinion on how gimmicky the playoffs are, one thing is certain: they do make things far more interesting late in the season.