The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series playoff field is set. The field of ten showcases some surprising teams. This represents a great opportunity for some drivers and teams to have some time in the spotlight. Yet, I believe said drivers’ time in the spotlight could be better optimized by rethinking the truck series playoffs.
I mainly want to look at three areas. First, I want to look at the general playoff schedule and amount of races. Second, I want to look at the number of drivers in the playoffs. Third, I want to look at the amount of breaks that occur within the Truck Series playoff schedule. Also, all three of these specific areas are intertwined.
10 enter. One will become a champion.
The 2023 #NASCARPlayoffs are here! pic.twitter.com/378lbyPh0C
— NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Trucks (@NASCAR_Trucks) July 30, 2023
The NASCAR Playoffs are Here… or are they?Â
The truck series playoff field was set on July 29th after the completion of the regular season finale at Richmond. The first race of the playoffs isn’t until August 11th. The truck series has an off week for the first week after the playoff field was set. That’s a “great way” to keep the interest of viewers after a race to make the playoffs. (Please note the sarcasm.) Right off the bat, NASCAR needs to be rethinking the truck series playoffs.
Meanwhile, both the cup series and Xfinity series playoffs begin the very next week, after the field is determined. The Kansas Lottery 300, at Kansas Speedway, is the last race before the Xfinity playoffs. This race is on September 9th, while the first playoff race is on September 15th at Bristol Motor Speedway. Finally, the cup series regular season ends at Daytona on August 26th. The cup series playoffs begin the very next week at Darlington on September 3rd.
Clearly, the NASCAR Playoffs are here, just with a one week delay for the truck series. Furthermore, the playoffs do not all begin at the same time. Instead, NASCAR has opted for this confusingly staggered approach as to when the playoffs begin for each series. The truck series playoffs are the earliest. Yet, the Xfinity series playoffs are the latest. Finally, the cup series playoffs, which happen to have the most races, begin in between the two lower series.
Changing the Number of Drivers (and Races):
It is odd that the top national series has the most playoff spots at 16. The Xfinity series has 12 spots. Meanwhile, the truck series has 10, as I mentioned earlier. The cup series playoffs have the most races at 10, while the two lower national series both have 7 races. At the very least, I don’t see why the truck series can’t have 12 playoff spots. This would give some consistency to how the playoff rounds function across all three national series.
Personally, I believe it would be better to have the same amount of playoff spots and races across all three national series. The current format just does not make sense to me. If anything, one would think that the very top national series would have less playoff spots. Meanwhile, the Xfinity would have a little more. Then the trucks would have the most.
It is not my goal with this article to look at all three series playoff schedules. Therefore, I will not look at altering the Xfinity series playoffs. Bristol Motor Speedway is a great opening playoff round for the Xfinity series. Still, if it were up to me, I would expand the truck series playoffs to 10 races and 16 drivers. This would open up the truck series playoffs to more drivers and more viewers, while the Xfinity series could still function as a more precise filter/feeder series for Cup.
Maximizing Visibility with Schedule Changes:
The truck series seems to have more of the style of racing that NASCAR seems to desire. First, the races are shorter. Therefore, the driving style is a bit more aggressive. NASCAR could capitalize on this by altering the truck series playoffs schedule. This could be done without increasing the cost of operating a truck series team, just by rearranging the schedule.
While it is nice to see the trucks race at different tracks from the other two national series, I don’t believe it should do so during the playoffs. Not only would I expand the truck series number of races and drivers, I would also put them on the same playoffs schedule as the cup series. This would be great for fans who show up to the track, but would also provide a better television package for the playoffs.
For the surprising truck series teams: McAnally-Hilgemann Racing, Rev Racing, and Rackley W.A.R., this would be an even better showcase. They would receive more coverage. This would also be true for any additional teams and drivers to make the truck series playoffs, in the extended version which I’ve imagined. This could be done without increasing the cost too much to compete by simply rearranging the schedule.
Conclusion:
The NASCAR Truck Series has some great talent. It has shorter races and the style of racing that many current NASCAR fans seem to enjoy. If the trucks were to race the same playoff schedule as the cup cars, it would grant them more exposure. Personally, I’d like to see all three series race the same playoff schedule with the same amount of drivers. NASCAR could save the different tracks and all the breaks for the regular season. Let us know what you think about rethinking the truck series playoffs in the comment section below.
