NASCAR Receives Their Perfect Finale with Chase Briscoe Win

Who needs Daytona for the regular season finale? Darlington Raceway provided all of the necessary drama that NASCAR wants for their setup to the playoffs. Constant points tracking around the cutline? Check. Surprise strength from an unexpected driver? Check. An upset winner to make the entire cutline battle completely pointless? Big ole checkmark. Chase Briscoe wheeled the 14 car to victory lane in the Cook Out Southern 500. Although it was an upset win, Briscoe had winning speed all race long. He qualified third, ran inside the Top-5, and battled for the lead before the chaos at the end. From over 100 points out of a playoff spot to the last of the 16 drives, Briscoe pulled it out in one of NASCAR’s crown jewels.

A storybook ending unfolded in Darlington for NASCAR. Chase Briscoe, a well-liked driver by fans and the garage, wins the Southern 500 in the regular season finale to boost his closing organization to the playoffs. To boot, his wife is pregnant with twins. This is the drama and attention that the playoffs seeks to bring. NASCAR loves how this played out tonight. Every lap contained drama. The battle between Bubba Wallace and Chris Buescher. Martin Truex Jr wrecking out early. Ross Chastain attempting a “hail melon” move via pit strategy. Ty Gibbs getting caught up in the big one. What more could fans, TV, and their partners want?

For those who want to enjoy NASCAR as a sport rather than entertainment, this week further stretches the legitimacy of the NASCAR playoffs. Last year, Bubba Wallace pointed his way into the playoffs with 620 points. This season, Chris Buescher sits 11th in points with 690 and misses the chance to run for a championship. After the Southern 500, 6 playoff drivers sit behind 2 drivers who are not in the playoffs in points. 4 of those drivers sit outside the Top-16, with one sitting dead last in points. Not to mention that there is a 15th winner who got his win striped (justifiably) to remove him from the playoffs. What a great system.

Yes, every team knows the game heading into the season. Banking on pointing into the playoffs is a fools errand, especially in the parity-ladened NextGen era. 2 of the drivers to miss out on the playoffs lost races by a combined .008 seconds (Buescher and Busch). There are 26 races on the table for these teams to win. Of the 4 notable drivers on the outside looking in, all of them had a teammates who won. 3 of them won multiple races last year. In today’s NASCAR format, not winning is almost inexcusable.

With all that said, it does not change the ridiculous nature of how this sports league runs their process for determining a champion. If it is all about wins, why bother keeping track of points? Winning should be everything, correct? Then the only way to make the playoffs is to win. If there are not 16 winners, then use Top-5s or best average finish to determine the rest of the field. That would be as legitimate as how NASCAR is currently running their sport.

While this might sound like sour grapes, there is this sentiment in the fanbase. And yes, it is more than the 60-plus year old fans who yearn for the Winston Cup format. Would a return of that format be a welcome one? Yes, of course it would be. However, that is not practical (unfortunately). Even with a playoff system, there is way to keep it legitimate without the needless gimmicks. In the current format, this is a gimmick rather than sport. Can the gimmick be thoroughly entertaining? Yes, but that does not mean it feel legitimate.

By comparison, look at what IndyCar produced this weekend in their doubleheader at the Milwaukee Mile. After the first race, Alex Palou looked to be on the verge of essentially clinching the championship. Then, he found engine troubles earlier to put him behind the 8-ball. Will Power looked to capitalize to shrink the championship lead as much as possible heading into Nashville. Once the second race was complete, Palou left Milwaukee with a 33 point lead. Still, today’s IndyCar race had plenty of drama around the championship with no playoff format in sight. Additionally, did Scott McLaughlin or Pato O’Ward look saddened by the lack of playoff/championship implications to their wins? Of course not. Because winning still matters even without a playoff system.

As discussed this week heading into the Southern 500, the current playoff format should not deprive the feel-good moments of Harrison Burton’s and Chase Briscoe’s wins. Both are great stories that surpass the dumb playoff implications. Did the playoffs truly elevate these moments? Not really. Honestly, do you think winning the Southern 500 would mean less to Chase Briscoe if it meant no playoffs? Same question goes to Harrison Burton about his first career Cup win and Wood Brothers’ 100th.

NASCAR and the supporters of this format have convinced themselves that it does add value. Maybe the Southern 500 or Daytona does not need the added importance. However, the summer Pocono race needs that extra spice. If not for the drivers, then the ratings and media attention. Yet, the boost from these playoff moments, including the Hail Melon, do not make a dent into the ratings. Sure, there is a social media pop and maybe some mainstream media will pay attention for a week or so. However, the ratings and clicks are not following in the same way. There could be plenty of reasons for this, but a main one seems to be how forced it feels. None of this is natural. Not only is it not natural, this format turns the best stock car racers into complete idiots are the end of races.

When every race is a “must-win” or “Game-7” moment, then it no longer feels special. NASCAR openly admits that is what they are trying to do, but then is confused why the Championship Race does not draw more viewers due to it. Sports fans enjoy those do-or-die moments because they occur infrequently. So when they do pop up, then it is truly special and something to remember. That is why 1992 is remembered so fondly. It might mean you get a 2003, where a driver wins the championship a race early with one win. However, the trade-off is that special season. Look at F1; they have it down to a formula. One driver dominates for a length of time, then there is a close battle for the championship and the torch is passed.

Now, there is a balance that NASCAR does need to draw between sports and entertainment. Although it would be thoroughly legitimate, no one wants the days of a driver winning a race by multiple laps. At that same time, a NASCAR race being whittled down to a restart/overtime fest because a playoff spot is on the line. There is a happy balance. Now, one could argue NASCAR could return to a season’s long format would help. However, the more important thing to do is work to market the greatness of the sport rather than the gimmicks.

Looking around the entertainment world, returning to what initially made something popular is working. A somewhat ironic example is the WWE. The leader in wrestling is hitting their best marks since the late 1990s/early 200s. This is mostly due to a return to what worked during the hey-day. NASCAR could do the same.

One last thing; there is a dirty secret that NASCAR does not want to acknowledge. Winning a championship is not as important as everyone says it is. In NASCAR, winning races has always been seen as the better measure of the great drivers. Yes, fans and media acknowledge the 7 championships of Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. However, their win totals are more noteworthy and impressive. Ask a random fan about who the better driver was between Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson. Despite Johnson having more championships, most would pick Gordon. As much gripe given to Denny Hamlin about his lack of a championship, he will still go down as one of the greatest if (and when) he hits 60 wins.

The championship is important, but it usually follows successful winners. That is why it is so weird (and unlucky) that Mark Martin and Denny Hamlin do not have one. Also, it is also why fans are so willing to disregard championships in modern day. Sure, the playoffs and current format do not help. However, if there was that strong clamoring for the important of the championship, it would not have been tossed aside so easily. Instead, the new measure for greatness is Championship Four appearances paired with wins.

NASCAR has implemented a playoff format that survives on chaos, calamity, and drama. In a sense, it does work. This year’s Southern 500 will be discussed as a great race filled with drama. A restart-heavy ending where Cup Series professionals turn into ARCA rookies will wash away the aero-issues of the NextGen and middling first half. Chase Briscoe’s feel good win will be ignored because he gets lumped in with 15 other drivers for the playoffs. Now, the playoffs will take center stage with two superspeedways and two road courses in the first two rounds. Time for chaos.