Motorsports

Team Penske NASCAR Cup Series Race Report – Indianapolis – Speedway Digest

Published

6 months ago

July 28, 2025

AUSTIN CINDRIC No. 2 DISCOUNT TIRE FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 10TH STAGE 1: 31ST STAGE 2: 24TH FINISH: 15TH POINTS: 17TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang Dark Horse team showed speed and resilience in Sunday’s Brickyard 400 presented by PPG at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, rebounding from a mid-race setback to finish 15th. In total, he led a race-high 40 laps throughout the day. After qualifying 10th, Cindric moved into the ninth position early and took the lead following a Lap 18 caution when the team opted to stay out. He held the point, reporting his happiness with his car’s clean air balance, before pitting under green with eight laps to go in Stage 1. The strategy dropped him to 31st at the Stage break, but staying out under caution allowed him to restart fourth for Stage 2. Cindric cycled back to the lead as others pitted, but a blown right-rear tire forced him to limp to pit road with just over 15 laps remaining in the Stage. After receiving right-side tires, he went on to finish the segment in the 24th position. Cindric received the free pass and visited pit road for four tires and fuel, and lined up 23rd – on the lead lap – for the restart. Just looking to reset after the misfortune, Cindric and the Discount Tire team fired off for the final Stage looking to make the most of the laps left before making a green flag pit stop with about 40 laps remaining. A light rain shower over Turn 1 brought out the red flag with six laps left in the crown jewel event as Cindric was scored in the 20th position, setting up an overtime finish at The Brickyard. As the chaos played out, the Team Penske driver fought through to take the checkered flag in the 15th position.

CINDRIC’S THOUGHTS: “We had a really strong Discount Tire Ford Mustang today. It was great to lead laps and have pace up front, just unfortunate to have a tire go down. Proud of the fight from everyone to battle back and get a solid finish out of it.”
RYAN BLANEY No. 12 MENARDS/DELTA FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 24TH STAGE 1: 12TH STAGE 2: 1ST FINISH: 7TH POINTS: 7TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Ryan Blaney picked up his fifth stage win of the season as he and the No. 12 Menards/Delta Ford Mustang Dark Horse team turned in a seventh-place finish in Sunday’s Brickyard 400, marking their 10th top-10 result on the year. After taking the green flag from 24th, Blaney worked his way into the top-20 by the halfway point of the opening stage before crossing the line 12th in Stage 1 as varying strategies throughout the field began to unfold. Despite restarting the second segment from 24th, the No. 12 Menards/Delta Ford made its way up to third in the running order during the green flag pit cycle before a caution with 10 laps remaining in Stage 2 prompted crew chief Jonathan Hassler to leave Blaney on track to assume the lead before the field took the green with four to go. Blaney ultimately held off the No. 5 in the closing laps to secure his fifth stage win of the season. Due to maximizing their fuel window on the prior run, Blaney pit a lap early for his scheduled stop under caution, resulting in having to restart at the tail of the field, but the 12 team’s strategy put them back out in front on lap 128 before making one final trip to pit road with 10 laps to go. A brief rain shower brought out the red flag with four laps remaining with Blaney scored 22nd, setting up a green-white-checkered finish once track drying was complete. Blaney successfully evaded a multi-car incident on the backstretch during the first attempt before going from 13th to seventh on the final restart of the afternoon to rally for a top-10 result.

BLANEY’S THOUGHTS: “Yeah, we pieced together a good day. Starting towards the back, it’s just hard to make up ground and pass, so we were trying to do the best job of strategy that we could. We made good moves to win the stage. I knew we were going to pay the price for it, but it was hard to give it up and nice when you’re able to hang on like that. We just scratched and clawed and were able to finish seventh. It was a day where we weren’t the best, but we made something happen, and those are the days that we should be proud of.”
JOEY LOGANO No. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 15TH STAGE 1: 34TH STAGE 2: 8TH FINISH: 32ND POINTS: 12TH
RACE RUNDOWN: Joey Logano and the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse team had the right strategy to put them in contention for the win in Sunday’s Brickyard 400, but a flat right rear tire with 26 laps to go followed by sustaining terminal damage in a multi-car incident in the closing laps ultimately resulted in a 32nd-place finish. Logano took the green flag from 15th before an early caution on lap 18 saw crew chief Paul Wolfe keep the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford on track – one of three teams to do so – as Logano lined up to restart on the front row. Logano was able to maintain his track position up until a scheduled green flag stop on lap 41 in order to flip the stage, resulting in a 34th-place finish in Stage 1. With a majority of the field pitting during the stage caution, Logano cycled back up to sixth to take the green flag for Stage 2 and settled into eighth in the running order. As the green flag pit cycle began to shape up, Logano took the lead with 17 laps remaining in the segment and was called to pit road during the same lap for four tires and fuel. A caution seven laps later brought another wave of cars down pit road, allowing Logano to get back into the top-10 prior to the restart before going on to pick up an eighth-place result in Stage 2. The varying strategies throughout the field began to take shape in the final stage as Wolfe brought Logano to pit road early in the cycle on lap 117 for right sides tires and fuel as the two-tire stop allowed Logano to jump those ahead of him and eventually take the lead once the cycle was complete. However, with 26 laps to go, Logano suffered a flat right rear tire on the backstretch that forced him to come down pit road under green. The No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford then lost power while attempting to leave the pit stall and subsequently went two laps down before rejoining the field. Following a brief red flag for rain with four laps to go, Logano lined up 27th for the first green-white-checkered attempt before a multi-car incident unraveled ahead of him just before the entrance to turn three, resulting in the No. 38 sliding down the track and making contact with the right front of the No. 22. The 22 team attempted to fix the issue on pit road, but the damage ultimately brought an end to the afternoon in Indianapolis.

LOGANO’S THOUGHTS: “We had the race-winning strategy, just unfortunately didn’t get a chance to see it all the way through after we lost the right rear. [Crew chief] Paul [Wolfe] and the guys hit on everything all day with staying out during that first caution to get us track position early and it seemed like it was only going to be a matter of holding off everyone behind us and having enough fuel for the final 20 or so laps. Disappointed to see it end that way but still proud of the effort this weekend”
The NASCAR Cup Series makes its way to Iowa Speedway on Sunday, August 3, where Ryan Blaney returns as the defending race winner. Iowa also marks the return of NBC who will broadcast the remainder of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. Race day coverage of Iowa begins at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday on NBC, MRN, and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Team Penske PR

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Motorsports

NASCAR restores 10-race ‘Chase’ championship format – Orlando Sentinel

Published

1 hour ago

January 13, 2026

Your Sports Nation

By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR’s nearly two-year study into an overhaul of its championship-deciding format concluded Monday with the reveal that in 2026 the stock car series will return to a 10-race version closely resembling the very first iteration introduced 22 years ago.

The system will return to a 10-race format consisting of the top 16 drivers in the regular-season standings. There will be no driver eliminations every three races, winning will be incentivized and its name will return to “The Chase.” The driver with the most points at the Nov. 8 finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway will be the champion.

“As NASCAR transitions to a revised championship model, the focus is on rewarding driver and team performance each and every race,” NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell said. “At the same time, we want to honor NASCAR’s storied history and the traditions that have made the sport so special.

“Our fans are at the heart of everything we do, and this format is designed to honor their passion every single race weekend.”

The changes come amid fan complaints to periodic tweaks of a system that was largely unchanged from its 2004 introduction to 2013 when Jimmie Johnson won six of his record-tying seven championships.

Changes slowly followed, with eliminations, an expanded field, a win-and-in guarantee and finally a winner-take-all season finale.

Fans had grown weary of the changes. Regular-season victories guaranteed a slot in the 10-race playoffs, a win in any of the first three three-race rounds advanced a driver into the next round, while the bottom three drivers at the end of each round were eliminated.

Finally, the winner was simply the highest-finishing driver among four remaining title contenders in the season finale.

THE TIPPING POINT

That system reached its breaking point in November when Denny Hamlin dominated the race until a late caution changed the final sequence and Kyle Larson won his second title by simply finishing ahead of Hamlin despite Larson not leading a single lap at Phoenix Raceway while mired in a 25-race losing streak.

Hamlin had won two playoff races – a Cup Series high six victories on the season – and led 208 of the 319 laps at Phoenix. He was the leader with three to go when a late caution changed the outcome and sent the race into overtime; Larson finished third, two spots ahead of Hamlin, to automatically claim the championship.

It wasn’t the only race on the final weekend of 2025 that didn’t finish as expected.

Corey Heim had 11 victories at the start of the Truck Series finale at Phoenix but needed to dip his truck low in an outrageous seven-wide scramble in overtime to secure the title. He did pull out the win and NASCAR dodged the controversy of the most consistent driver being denied a championship because of a gimmicky format.

NASCAR wasn’t so fortunate the next night in the Xfinity Series when 10-race winner Connor Zilisch lost the championship because Jesse Love won the race. Love opened the season with a win at Daytona and closed it with a win at Phoenix – his only two victories of the season but good enough in that format for a championship.

Fan discourse – which had been building for several years and intensified after Joey Logano won two titles in three years including in 2024 when he advanced on another’s driver elimination – exploded after Hamlin.

The changes announced Monday were already in the works and came after an extensive review that included collaboration between owners, drivers, automobile manufacturers, tracks, broadcast partners, and fans.

“Going into Phoenix was a hold your breath moment,” O’Donnell said. “We recognize someone winning the championship, absolutely they won it by the rules. But was it the best format that we could go with? The tide had turned in the garage.”

The new format is designed to bolster the importance of each race and reward consistency while maintaining the importance of winning. It will be known as its original name, ‘The Chase,’ with an also accepted use of ‘postseason,’ NASCAR is eliminating the vernacular ‘playoffs’ and ‘regular-season champion.’

NASCAR’S NEW FORMAT

Moving forward, the driver with the most points after the postseason finale will be champion in all three NASCAR national series. The Chase will comprise of the final 10 races for the Cup Series.

NASCAR has eliminated the automatic berth into the playoff field earned by winning during the regular season, a move designed to increase the importance of every event on the schedule and emphasize consistency throughout the regular season.

A race victory win will now earn the winning driver 55 points, up from 40 points, to reward drivers who battle for wins instead of settling for a solid points days. NASCAR hopes it encourages aggressive racing and strong team performance.

Points for all other positions, including stage points, remain the same.

The points leader after the regular season will receive a 25-point cushion over the second seed as the points will be reset for the 16 Chase drivers. A win in a playoff race no longer earns the automatic advancement into the next round – a move NASCAR says prevents teams from using the remainder of that particular round as preparation time for the finale.

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NASCAR returns to 10-race Chase format to decide national series champions – Speedway Digest

Published

2 hours ago

January 13, 2026

Your Sports Nation

NASCAR is heading full-steam into the future with a return to the past.

In response to growing sentiment among fans and stakeholders in the sport, the sanctioning body has opted to revive the Chase format to crown champions in its top three national series.

In the Cup Series, NASCAR’s top division, 16 drivers will qualify for a 10-race Chase based on the number of points they score during the 26-race regular season, according to the format announcement on Monday at NASCAR’s Production Facility in Concord, N.C.

Gone is the “win-and-you’re in” provision that governed qualification in the elimination Playoff format in use from 2014 through 2025. Under the Chase format, the top 16 drivers in points will compete for the series title irrespective of the number of regular-season victories they accumulate.

To provide balance and to elevate the importance of wins in the Chase format, NASCAR will award 55 points for a victory versus 40 under the elimination system. Points for all other positions, including stage points, remain the same, though Playoff points, an important element of the elimination format, are now a thing of the past.

No longer is there Regular Season Champion, but finishing first in the standings will continue to have substantial value. The points leader after 26 races will start the 10-event Chase with 2100 points, 25 more than the second-place driver and 35 more than the third-place qualifier.

From third on down, the value of each position to start the Chase declines in five-point increments, with the 16th-place driver receiving 2000 points. Under the Chase format, there are no eliminations and no single championship race to decide the title. The driver who scores the most aggregate points in the final 10 races will be crowned champion.

In the newly christened NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, 12 drivers will compete in a nine-race Chase; in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series, 10 drivers will vie for the championship over seven races. Those numbers are commensurate with the respective proportions of the schedules of those two national divisions.

Landing on the Chase format followed lengthy discussions involving owners, drivers, manufacturers, tracks, broadcast partners and fans.

NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, a vocal advocate for a full 36-race championship format, was delighted with the compromise that revived the Chase.

“I think that this is the most perfect compromise that you could ever ask for,” Martin said at the announcement. “It’s going to require our 2026 champion to be lightning fast and incredibly consistent, and that’s what we can all get behind.

“So, I’m really excited. I think it’s fantastic. I would just appeal to the race fans, all the race fans, but especially the classic fans who say to me, ‘I don’t watch anymore.’ I say we need you. Come on back. We’re headed in the right direction. Come back and join with us, and we’ll keep making progress.”

Like Martin, NASCAR president Steve O’Donnell feels the return to the Chase provides a delicate balance between those who favor a full-season points race and those who prefer a postseason playoff.

“We believe we’ve struck that balance,” O’Donnell said. “We’ve got the best of both worlds where every race matters. We’ve talked to a lot of folks in the industry. We’ve run a lot of different models and believe this is the best place to land really to get back to who we are.

“That’s the core of NASCAR… and we’re really excited about the 2026 season.”

Chase Elliott, the 2020 Cup Series champion, grew up watching drivers compete in the Chase, the system used from 2004 through 2013, and was enthralled by what he saw.

“A lot of those years of (seven-time champion) Jimmie (Johnson) dominating and the (2011) championship of Tony (Stewart) and Carl (Edwards) all during the Chase were incredible runs. I think we oftentimes forget how good we had it through all those years of Chase format.

“I think it’s a really nice compromise. I think getting a full season was going to be a pretty big challenge, and I’m not sure there’s really a better place to land than a true 10-race Chase, really similar to what we had through those years of the epic battles that we saw.”

Kyle Larson, who won his second Cup title in November at Phoenix Raceway, favors the longer format, even when it was just theoretical—and even though next year’s final race is moving to Homestead-Miami Speedway, one of his favorite tracks.

“Even though Homestead’s arguably my best track and most dominant track, I still would feel like I have a better opportunity to win a championship going off—whatever it may be—a 10-race, three-race, four-race sort of point-earning thing,” Larson said two weeks before the Chase format was announced.

“With more races, it’s a little bit more in your hands… I think what we had kind of ran its course.”

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NASCAR restores 10-race ‘Chase’ championship format – Press Telegram

Published

3 hours ago

January 13, 2026

Your Sports Nation

By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer

“As NASCAR transitions to a revised championship model, the focus is on rewarding driver and team performance each and every race,” NASCAR President Steve O’Donnell said. “At the same time, we want to honor NASCAR’s storied history and the traditions that have made the sport so special.

“Our fans are at the heart of everything we do, and this format is designed to honor their passion every single race weekend.”

The changes come amid fan complaints to periodic tweaks of a system that was largely unchanged from its 2004 introduction to 2013, when Jimmie Johnson won six of his record-tying seven championships.

Changes slowly followed, with eliminations, an expanded field, a win-and-in guarantee and finally a winner-take-all season finale.

Finally, the winner was simply the highest-finishing driver among four remaining title contenders in the season finale.

THE TIPPING POINT

It wasn’t the only race on the final weekend of 2025 that didn’t finish as expected.

NASCAR’S NEW FORMAT

Moving forward, the driver with the most points after the postseason finale will be champion in all three NASCAR national series. The Chase will comprise of the final 10 races for the Cup Series.

Points for all other positions, including stage points, remain the same.

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Motorsports

‘Shelby Legacy: Past, Present, and Future’ Tireside Chat at Savoy Automobile Museum

Published

3 hours ago

January 12, 2026

Your Sports Nation

CARTERSVILLE, GA – The Savoy Automobile Museum announced that its next Tireside Chat Series will be January 24, 2026. Join Wayne Carini—television personality and owner of F40 Motorsports—and Aaron Shelby, grandson of Carroll Shelby and member of the Board of Directors of Carroll Shelby International, for an engaging conversation on the Shelby name’s lasting impact on car culture, the importance of preserving its legacy, and the future of performance vehicles.

Wayne Carini—television personality and owner of F40 Motorsport

Aaron Shelby, grandson of Carroll Shelby and member of the Board of Directors of Carroll Shelby International Savoy Automobile Museum

The evening begins with a reception at 5:30 p.m., followed by the program at 7:00 p.m. This is a ticketed event. Tickets can be purchased on the event page at savoymuseum.org.

A ticket purchase to the program includes admission to the museum. Attendees are encouraged to take a few minutes to visit the temporary exhibit, Shelby Built, on exhibit now through March 1, 2026.

For those few left out there that do not know, Carroll Shelby was an American automotive designer, racing driver, and entrepreneur best known for his involvement with AC Cobra and Mustang-based performance cars. He was the only individual to win 24 Hours of Le Mans as a driver, team manager, and manufacturer, as well as known for creating high-performance cars for both the street and track. He not only worked for Ford but also collaborated with other manufacturers. This exhibit highlights not only the most well-known vehicles, but also some of the lesser-known ones.

NOW ON DISPLAY

1966 Shelby Mustang GT350 Fastback, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum
1966 Shelby AC Cobra MKIII 427 Roadster, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum
1967 Shelby Mustang GT500, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum
1983 Dodge Shelby Charger, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum
1986 Dodge Shelby Omni GLHS, On loan from Larry and Rachelle Weymouth
1989 Dodge Shelby Dakota Pickup, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum
1999 Shelby Series 1 Roadster, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum
2013 Ford Mustang Shelby GT 500 Super Snake Coupe, On loan from Rickey & Pat Stone Collection, Calhoun, GA
2022 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500 Heritage Edition, On loan from The American Muscle Car Museum

This exhibit, Shelby Built, is sponsored in part by Tom & Ann Earley

Savoy Automobile Museum is located at 3 Savoy Lane, Cartersville, GA. The museum is open Tuesday – Sunday. Savoy Automobile Museum is the latest program to join Georgia Museums, Inc. (GMI), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that operates Bartow History Museum, Booth Western Art Museum, and Tellus Science Museum. Dedicated to growing the resources of these cultural institutions, GMI strives to provide the highest quality museum experiences. For more information, visit savoymuseum.org.

If you like stories like these and other classic car features, check out Old Cars magazine. CLICK HERE to subscribe.

Want a taste of Old Cars magazine first? Sign up for our weekly e-newsletter and get a FREE complimentary digital issue download of our print magazine.

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NASCAR reverts to the Chase for the Championship format in 2026

Published

4 hours ago

January 12, 2026

Your Sports Nation

Starting in 2026, NASCAR will revert to a variation of the Chase for the Championship format it used to crown its champions from 2004-to-2013.

In other words, no more win and you’re in and no more multiple elimination rounds. Most importantly, the sample size to determine the champion is no longer a single race but a 10-race points race.

However, unlike NASCAR’s first version of a playoff, which included 10 and then 12 drivers, this version will feature the expanded 16 that the most recent version used over the past decade.

But again, winning is no longer the point of entry as the top 16 drivers in points following the 26-race regular season will make the Chase for the Championship. However, winning races will have an increased impact on the new format as wins count for 55 points instead of 40.

Second place will still pay 35 points, third 34 points, so on and so forth.

Once the Chase for the Championship begins, the regular season champion will begin the final 10 races with a 25-point advantage over the second-place finisher down to 100 over the 16th seed.

1st: 2100
2nd: 2075
3rd: 2065
4th: 2060
5th: 2055
6th: 2050
7th: 2045
8th: 2040
9th: 2035
10th: 2030
11th: 2025
12th: 2020
13th: 2015
14th: 2010
15th: 2005
16th: 2000

The O’Reilly Series and Craftsman Truck Series will feature a Chase for the Championship too with 12 and 10 drivers respectively. The NOAPS Series will feature a nine-race Chase and the Trucks will feature a seven-race Chase.

NASCAR will still feature stages, which also continue to pay stage points, which provide even more opportunities to score points to make the playoffs and race for the championship over the final 10 races.

Quotes

“I was really excited to hear the news that we were getting a little closer to a full 36-race format. This is as close in my opinion that you can get without going all the way.

“What I believe it does is it makes it simpler for our fans to follow. I’m a fan of the sport, and now I’m compelled to plug in every single week because I know there’s a long form objective for my driver to accomplish to be able to give himself the opportunity to win the championship.

“So even though my driver may have success early on in the season, it does not assure him success in the postseason. So with the way that they’re going to stack the bonus points and everything else, it’s critical that these drivers have success every single week. Every single race, every single lap will have more importance. I think it’s fun for the drivers to have a more clear objective for how to get to the championship and easier for our fans to follow.”

Watch: Mark Martin on 10-race Chase: ‘This is the most perfect compromise’

The fans were yelling at me we want full season points. So I yelled even louder and almost got thrown out, as Steve said.

“I think that this is the most perfect compromise that you could ever ask for. It’s going to require our 2026 champion to be lightning fast and incredibly consistent, and that’s what we can all get behind. So I’m really excited. I think it’s fantastic. I would just appeal to the race fans, all the race fans, but especially the classic fans who say to me, I don’t watch anymore. I say we need you. Come on back. We’re headed in the right direction. Come back and join with us, and we’ll keep making progress.

“One more thing. For the broadcasters, for the media, the journalists and everyone, this is a time for a change, a change in how we cover the sport, and that means, instead of every week talking about the cutoff line, the playoff, who’s in, who’s out, all these things, we need to focus even more on our heroes.

“These guys behind me that are winning these races are our Pearsons and our Yarboroughs and our Buddy Bakers of today, and we need our fans to connect with these guys. We need them to connect with the crew chiefs. We need to connect with the engineers as well. Give the fans something that they can connect to and help us bill these superstars like they deserve to be.”

Watch: Elliott on The Chase returning: ‘We’re making history’

“Not only to Mark and Dale and even guys like myself and Ryan, who I think have kind of screamed at some of these things over the course of time of just wanting it to be better. I think we all want it to be better because, to Dale’s point, we are fans of this sport. I grew up a fan. I watched that video. A lot of those years of Jimmie dominating and the championship of Tony and Carl all during the Chase were incredible runs. I think we oftentimes forget how good we had it through all those years of Chase format. I think it is a really nice compromise. I think getting a full season was going to be a pretty big challenge, and I’m not sure there’s really a better place to land than a true 10-race Chase, really similar to what we had through those years of the epic battles that we saw.

“I personally appreciate Steve and the folks at NASCAR for being able to come together with our TV partners and making everyone happy. That’s a really hard thing to do, and I think sometimes we all forget about that and just how many pieces make this puzzle.

“Really proud to be here. I can say that with complete honesty. This is something that I’m proud of as a competitor, something I’m looking forward to competing in and against these guys with, and I think, just from my perspective, challenge the race fans this year, let’s enjoy what we got. We’re so quick to complain about everything, everything that we have and everything that we do. Let’s enjoy what we have because we’re making history whether you like it or not.

“Celebrate the champion. Celebrate the guys who went out there and did a good job. I think this format promotes that. Let’s enjoy what we have. We’ve got a pretty cool thing at the end of the day. Let’s not forget about it, and enjoy what we got today.”

“I think probably all three of us sitting up here are at the age where we all grew up, the Chase was in place, and this is what we watched as kids. I loved seeing it, and I loved seeing close battles.

“I feel like it also is going to — I sit back, and I look at this new format, and sometimes we all get grief about over aggressiveness and things like that, and sometimes you get put in these situations where it’s a win and move on type scenario. I think it’s going to clean up a lot of the racing side of it and get back to the purity side of it to where it is a little bit more of not brash, a little bit more of the beautiful art form that I grew up loving.

“I am a huge fan of it, like Chase said and all these guys said. I appreciate NASCAR for listening. I appreciate all these guys, Mark and Dale, for being big voices for us. It’s just fun to be a part of it. I look forward to next year, and consistency is going to be a massive part of it.

“It’s not going to be — I don’t think you’re going to get guys who get out and say good points day. It’s still going to be winning is a huge product of it because of the increase in the winner’s points. Yeah, I’m excited. I hope everyone is as excited as we all are to be a part of it and for them to watch it on TV.”

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NASCAR Brings Back ‘The Chase’ Championship Format for 2026 Season – Speedway Digest

Published

5 hours ago

January 12, 2026

Your Sports Nation

NASCAR is turning back the clock in 2026, reintroducing “The Chase” as the championship format for its three national series. The move marks a return to the postseason structure that defined the NASCAR Cup Series from 2004 to 2013, following an extensive review process involving team owners, drivers, manufacturers, tracks, broadcast partners, and fans.

The revamped system emphasizes consistency and performance across the entire season while maintaining the drama of a playoff-style finish. Under the new format, the driver with the most points after the postseason will be crowned champion in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The Chase will span the final 10 races for the Cup Series, nine for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and seven for the Truck Series.

Several key changes accompany the return of The Chase:

No More “Win and You’re In”: A race victory will no longer guarantee a playoff berth. Drivers must perform consistently throughout the regular season to qualify.
Bigger Points for Wins: Winning a race will now earn 55 points, up from 40, reinforcing the value of aggressive racing and strong team execution.
Points-Based Qualification: The top 16 drivers in regular-season points will make The Chase in the Cup Series, with 12 and 10 drivers qualifying in the O’Reilly Auto Parts and Truck Series, respectively.
Regular-Season Champion Advantage: The points leader entering The Chase will start with a 25-point cushion over second place.
Seeded Points Structure: Drivers will begin The Chase with tiered points, starting at 2,100 for the top seed and descending to 2,000 for the 16th seed.

The changes aim to create a larger sample size for determining champions, increase the significance of every race, and reward season-long excellence while keeping winning central to the sport’s identity.

Chase Seeding Points:

1st: 2100

2nd: 2075

3rd: 2065

4th: 2060

5th: 2055

6th: 2050

7th: 2045

8th: 2040

9th: 2035

10th: 2030

11th: 2025

12th: 2020

13th: 2015

14th: 2010

15th: 2005

16th: 2000

With The Chase returning, NASCAR hopes to blend tradition with modern competition, delivering a format that honors its history and keeps fans engaged through every lap of the season.

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