NASCAR’s 10-race “Chase” for a championship begins Sunday night, and with it, the latest attempt at perfecting a formula to award a sport’s biggest prize.
Last offseason, NASCAR dumped its previous playoff format, which culminated in a single race to crown a winner among four finalist drivers. Introduced in 2013 to amp up the drama at the end of the season, drivers and fans found the elimination-style postseason a bit too unpredictable, with the year’s top car on a season-long basis not winning the trophy since 2021.
Last year, a late caution ultimately cost Denny Hamlin a chance at his first championship in 20 full seasons on the circuit. “In this moment, I never want to race a car again,” Hamlin said afterwards.
But he came back, and now the 45-year-old is the favorite to win this year, with 10 events to rack up more points than the 15 other competitors still alive in the title race. As the “No. 1 seed,” Hamlin starts with more points in a format designed to reward both consistency and victories down the stretch.
“I think all of the drivers would tell you it’s a more fair way to do it,” Hamlin said on Wednesday.
