NASCAR: The 'other' championship lead that's down to just one point

NASCAR has utilized some kind of playoff format for the Cup Series since 2004, with the modern elimination-style format having been introduced in 2014.

The playoffs consist of 16 drivers, whose point totals are reset ahead of the opening round to 2,000, plus however many playoff points they earned during the regular season. Four drivers are eliminated in the round of 16, and the remaining 12 have their point totals reset to 3,000, plus however many playoff points they have earned up to that point.

Four more drivers are eliminated in the round of 12, and the remaining eight have their point totals reset to 4,000, plus however many playoff points they have earned up to that point. Four drivers then advance to the Championship 4, a single-race round in which the highest finisher of the four is crowned champion.

The subject of playoffs has been debated heavily since the regular season/postseason schedule format was introduced two decades ago, and that debate only heated up when the modern system was introduced 10 years ago.

On more occasions than not, including the two most recent seasons, the Cup Series champion has ended up being somebody other than the driver who scored the most total points, race by race, throughout the 36-race season.

There is a case – a very good case, in fact – to be made that total points no longer mean what they once did even in "non-playoff" calculations, since stages were added to the sport in 2017, meaning that drivers can score points throughout a race, not just at the checkered flag.

Believe it or not, somebody who fails to finish a race in the top 15 can mathematically finish the same as the overall top scorer, while the race winner can finish outside of the top 10 in total points scored.

Regardless, there are still a contingent of fans who pine for the days of a season-long championship format, one which does not include any playoffs or a points reset.

And of course, there are still fans who look at total points scored each season to see who the champion would have been (even though that admittedly takes for granted that all other things remain equal, which almost certainly wouldn't be the case when you start to factor in stage points, playoff points, and their respective roles in various race strategies).

If the season-long format were still utilized in 2024, NASCAR would have a heck of a championship battle on its hands.

There have been instances in recent years during which the season-long championship would have been wrapped up before the finale. Kevin Harvick would have wrapped up the 2020 title with multiple races remaining, and Chase Elliott would have wrapped up the 2022 title early as well. As it turned out, it was Elliott who won the 2020 championship and Joey Logano who won the 2022 title.

This year, however, things are much closer at the top.

Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson leads teammate Elliott by just one point through 30 of 36 races on the schedule, and two other drivers are well within striking distance of the lead.

23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick, who won the regular season title by just a single point over Larson, is just 18 points out of the lead, with Joe Gibbs Racing's Christopher Bell only 19 points behind Reddick.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin would only be 19 points out of the lead himself, had it not been for a 75-point penalty he was issued due to a self-reported Toyota violation stemming from his March victory at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The tightness of this points battle has once again brought to the forefront the question of whether or not the playoffs are truly needed in the modern Cup Series, though it is highly unlikely that they will ever be removed.

The current format, now in its 11th season, was meant to give NASCAR a guaranteed "Game 7" moment every season, and while some may not like the concept and view it as a manufactured way to crown a champion, it has consistently produced those types of situations, without fail.

There are six races remaining on the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series playoff schedule, starting with this Sunday afternoon's YellaWood 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Live coverage is set to be provided by NBC starting at 2:00 p.m. ET, so begin a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss it!