Before the 2026 season, NASCAR ditched the old "win and in" playoff format after 12 years and reverted back to an iteration of the old "Chase" setup that was used from 2004 to 2013.
The 16 playoff qualifiers are simply the 16 drivers who finish the 26-race regular season in the top 16 in the point standings.
For most of the 2026 season, all race winners had been in the top 16 in the point standings anyway, meaning that the provisional 16-driver playoff field, in and of itself, had ironically been the same as it would have been under the old format.
NASCAR winner drops out of the playoffs
Now that has changed, and we're not just talking about Corey Heim, the part-time driver who isn't championship (or even points) eligible in the Cup Series, getting his first win in Sunday's inaugural Anduril 250 on Naval Base Coronado.
Trackhouse Racing's Shane van Gisbergen, who won four regular season races a year ago despite finishing 25th in the standings (but actually would have made it into the top 16 under NASCAR's new format, due to the new bonus points awarded to winners), won at Watkins Glen International back in May.
But after being collected in a wreck on Sunday in a race he was favored to win from pole, he has dropped to 17th in the point standings.
SVG is five points behind RFK Racing's Ryan Preece for the 16th and final spot in the provisional playoff field.
Under the old format, SVG would have already been effectively locked in as one of eight race winners, and Preece, despite being 16th in points, would be the top driver below the cut line, three points behind Team Penske's Austin Cindric for the 16th playoff spot (eighth spot among non-winners).
There is obviously no guarantee that van Gisbergen will remain outside of the top 16. But there's also no guarantee that there won't be more winners from outside the top 16. That said, every other full-time winner so far this year is currently inside the top nine, with none of those seven drivers less than 114 points above the cut line.
Bottom line, this is the first time we've really gotten to see tangible evidence that the new playoff system is working exactly as it's supposed to. Even if van Gisbergen does end up getting in, and the 16-driver playoff field ends up being the same as it would have been in 2014 or 2019 or 2025 or any year in between, he still has to battle his way in and is no longer able to rely on a May win to carry the full weight of a 26-race regular season.
And that's how it should be.
Sonoma Raceway, where van Gisbergen won a year ago, is scheduled to host the Toyota Save Mart 350 this Sunday, June 28, with TNT Sports set to provide live coverage starting at 3:30 p.m. ET.
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