Kyle Larson Slams NASCAR Playoffs In Bold Statement - 'Devalues The Championship'

17 hours ago 1

Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR driver Kyle Larson has issued a bold critique of the current NASCAR playoff format. He argues that this format lowers the value of securing a championship win.

This debate has been ongoing since the playoff system's introduction in 2004 and has intensified in recent years, particularly during the 2024 season where Joey Logano clinched his third championship, despite having a mediocre regular season.

The NASCAR playoff system has a history of controversy stemming from its inception as the "Chase" in 2004.

It has seen numerous updates, but the current format involves a 26-race regular season where the best of the bunch are guaranteed a spot in the 16-driver playoff field.

This setup culminates with playoff points that track performances specifically into the playoffs.

Kyle Larson has been vocal about his dissatisfaction surrounding this, arguing that the format tends to overlook what he believes to be the essence of the sport, which should prioritize race wins and consistent performance over season-long achievements.

Larson, who bagged six wins in 2024, feels the system doesn't duly value these successes.

He maintains that achieving multiple race victories within a single season poses substantial challenges that should be more directly related to winning a championship.

Commenting on the playoff format on HendrickMotorsports.com, Larson explained:

"If anything, I just think the format, in a way, devalues a championship. Especially in the Next-Gen era.

"So, I think obviously you'd like to win the most races and win the championship and all that, but I think winning six races, that's extremely tough to do, and we were a factor in many more than that."

Larson's stance is backed by the fact that drivers with consistently strong seasons, like Christopher Bell, also didn't advance to the Championship 4.

Despite his disappointment about not winning the title, Larson remained optimistic about his achievements and valued his race wins just as much as a championship. He added:

"I really wasn't that upset during the week of Phoenix because I knew no matter the result, we were going to end the season with the most wins.

"And to me, these days, that's as important as winning a championship."

NASCAR COO Steve O'Donnell has previously spoken about the possibility of introducing changes to the playoff format. He explained earlier this year, as previously reported by Newsweek Sports:

"What I would say is that we'll have an industry working group that will take a look and is already taking a look at the playoffs. The great thing about our system is that this evolved through discussions with the industry- everyone had an input into the product and the format that you see today and that will continue.

"We'll look at different ideas, and if we can make tweaks to enhance it we certainly will do that, but we're not going to do it unless we feel like it's in the best interest of the sport and really drives even more engagement from our fans."