Home / NASCAR / Joey Logano Not Sold On New NASCAR Cup Series Championship Format

Joey Logano Not Sold On New NASCAR Cup Series Championship Format

Jared Turner Written by Sports EditorJared Turner
Updated –
We may use AI tools to support content creation and editing. While we aim for accuracy via strict editorial standards, readers should independently verify important information. Ads on our site are served by Google AdSense and are not controlled or influenced by our editorial team.
Joey Logano

While former drivers like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin have praised the new championship format recently introduced for the 2026 NASCAR season, Joey Logano seems more on the fence.

“Personally, I was one of the rare people that liked the old one just from a fan perspective,” Logano said during a break from a mid-January test at North Wilkesboro Speedway. “I enjoyed it. But if the majority doesn’t like that, then, sure, we’ll change it. And we’ll go race another way. And that’s OK with me, too. That’s kind of where I’m at with it.”

Logano’s lack of enthusiasm likely stems in part from the fact he’s won all three of his championships under the win-and-you’re-in playoff format that the Cup Series used from 2014 through last season.

More than anyone else, Logano mastered the format by which NASCAR crowned the champion of its premier division over the last dozen years. So, naturally, he’s going to be a little bummed about the changes.

But that’s not the only reason the Team Penske driver seems a bit skeptical.

Joey Logano Says Title May Be Out Of Reach For Some Playoff Drivers

One of the biggest differences between the old championship format and the new format, which actually bears striking similarities to the playoff format NASCAR used from 2004-2013, is how point totals will be reset at the end of the 26-race regular season.

Under the most recently used format, playoff points earned from race wins and stage wins during regular season determined a driver’s playoff seeding. Now, playoff points are no longer a thing. Instead, the 16 drivers in the playoffs – formally dubbed “the Chase,” once again – will be seeded based on their points position at the end of the regular season.

The 16th-place driver will begin the Chase 100 points behind the first-place driver. The first-place driver will carry 25 bonus points into the postseason.

“I think if you’re 12th or so going into the playoffs, I don’t think you can win it from that far back,” Joey Logano said. “You’re gonna be 70-plus points back without knowing the real numbers. And you’re gonna have to make that up against the best cars in 10 weeks. Boy, that’s gonna be tough. That’s gonna take a lot to make that happen. You’re gonna have to be really, really, really good, really special to do that.”

Unlike under the old format, the amount of points you’re behind when the Chase starts is the amount you’ll have to make up over 10 weeks to be the champion.

“You’ve got to be pretty solid throughout the regular season to make sure you’re within that top five or so when the playoffs start,” Logano said. “I think it’s a pretty big jump to get yourself into championship contention if you’re too far back. The game has changed.”

Joey Logano Predicts Fewer ‘Do-Or-Die’ Moments With New Format

Arguably the biggest adjustment to the playoffs, aka Chase, itself itself is the removal of elimination rounds. As a result, a win in the postseason – which used to automatically qualify a driver for advancement to the next round – won’t mean as much.

The absence of rounds also means point totals will no longer be reset once the playoffs get underway. Finish poorly in a race, and you’ll have to find a way to make up all the ground you lost.

“The bad days are gonna be harder to recover from,” Joey Logano said. “Consistency is gonna pay off more.”

Almost inevitably, another by-product of having no rounds will likely be less urgency every third playoff race. Previously, the possibility of being eliminated from title contention in the final race of a round would often lead drivers to make bold and sometimes even careless moves they wouldn’t typically make.

Witness, for example, Ross Chastain’s video-game style maneuver on the final lap of the Round of 8 elimination race at Martinsville Speedway in 2022.

Now, with no elimination rounds, such aggression won’t be as necessary. At least most of the time.

“That type of do-or-die moment isn’t gonna be here as much anymore,” Logano said. “That’s what it seems like the fans wanted. It was to have more consistency pay off. Those situations won’t be there as much.”

Jared Turner Written by Sports EditorJared Turner
Jared Turner is a motorsports writer who has covered NASCAR for 20 years. He has interviewed over 20 NASCAR Hall of Famers and around 100 drivers, crew chiefs, and team owners, both past and present. He has also covered the sport for FOX Sports (where he was a two-time recipient of the FOX “X” Award for “Xtraordinary” job performance), NASCAR.com, Sporting News, NASCAR Pole Position Magazine, the SPEED network, and plenty of other online and print-only publications throughout his career. Notably, Jared has penned dozens of articles for NASCAR souvenir programs, including several featured prominently in Daytona 500 keepsakes. A Virginia Press Association award winner and former member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA), Jared has racked up accolades both for his writing and his academic work. He studied both Communication and Psychology at Virginia Tech, where he was permanently enshrined in Phi Beta Kappa — the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society. Jared excels at feature writing and opinion writing, much of which stems from his dedication to all levels of racing.
All posts by Jared Turner
Other News