Just six races on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule have been contested so far, but even before the season began, there was hype surrounding the new postseason format which NASCAR introduced over the offseason.
The new format is a throwback to the old "Chase" format which was used from 2004 to 2013, but perhaps more importantly, it eliminated the much-maligned "win and in" knockout Championship 4 format that had been used for the past 12 seasons.
There is a much greater emphasis on points than there was during the Championship 4 era, and to make up for the lack of "win and in", NASCAR rightfully boosted the value of victories by 15 points.
Is it perfect? Absolutely not; no "solution" was going to be. NASCAR could have done more to the points format than simply boost the value of wins from 40 to 55 points, and the fact that stage racing can effectively determine a champion still doesn't sit right.
But many fans have argued that the new playoff format came at a perfect time, as 23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick, winner of four of the season's first six races, is actually getting to reap the benefits.
He has a 95-point lead in the standings over Team Penske's Ryan Blaney, who has one win, instead of a 50-point lead, like he would have had under the previous format. So naturally, the format is said to be "working".
But how much is this really a benefit?
Regardless of how the regular season standings look, the regular season champion is set to start the 16-driver playoffs with 2,100 points, 25 more than the driver who finished the regular season in second place in the standings.
Reddick's total points lead could be 200 points, or it could be a single point; regardless, that points lead is set to become exactly 25 at the start of the Chase. That 25-point lead cannot be increased by winning during the regular season.
It's one of the ways that the new playoff format could actually come back to bite Reddick, or anybody else for that matter.
Under the old format, that lead could have actually properly reflected his dominance due to playoff points. Just six races into the season, Reddick already has 18 more playoff points than the next closest driver (Blaney).
Reddick has earned 20 playoff points with his four wins, while Blaney has earned seven, including five thanks to his win at Phoenix Raceway and two thanks to his two stage wins. Reddick would also be in line for the 15 bonus playoff points that were awarded for winning the regular season title; the runner-up used to be awarded 10 himself.
With 20 races remaining on the regular season schedule, that 18-point lead would have had the chance to grown if Reddick keeps winning, under the previous format. But now, it's capped at 25 points.
Of course, that's just one side of the story.
The main benefit of this new format is the fact that the playoffs only consist of a single 10-race round. A dominant driver's season can no longer be completely sunk by the volatility of a three-race playoff round, or possibly even a single-race championship decider.
There is technically a way for NASCAR's champion to be crowned before the season finale under this new format, whereas before, a driver could have won the first 35 races and missed out on the title in race number 36.
And let's not forget that the boosted value of wins isn't just for the regular season; playoff wins are set to be worth 55 points each as well, which keeps the value of winning arguably just as high as it was under the old setup.
Still, the fact that Reddick's points lead is 95 is somewhat misleading when it comes to the level of praise being heaped upon the new playoff format. The size of that lead, in and of itself, means absolutely nothing when it comes time to crown a champion.
And in that way, it's actually just like it was when the old format was in place.
Race number seven on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Cook Out 400, which is set to be shown live on Fox Sports 1 from Martinsville Speedway starting at 3:30 p.m. ET this Sunday, March 29. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and catch all of the action from the Ridgeway, Virginia oval!