Ben Kennedy won’t rule out 2026 NASCAR playo...

Following the release of the 2026 schedule for all three national divisions, NASCAR government vp and chief venue and racing innovation officer, Ben Kennedy, took half in a media availability to debate a few of the modifications. He was joined by Jusan Hamilton, the managing director, competitors operations.

Together with schedule-specific questions, Kennedy was additionally requested concerning the playoff format for 2026, which has been a subject of intense debate over the summer season months. NASCAR’s official social media graphic lists the standard elimination-style rounds, however Kennedy revealed that the format just isn’t but set in stone.

“It isn’t but,” stated Kennedy when FOX Sports activities’ Bob Pockrass requested concerning the format being locked in. “I do know the playoff committee has had various conferences over the previous a number of months on completely different codecs that we might have a look at, and so they’ve run a handful of simulations on simply varied codecs, collected some fan suggestions.

“I do know there are conversations as early as a pair days in the past on what the way forward for the playoff format seems to be like. Nothing to announce at this time. What I might say, although, is we wish to be sure that we take the time to do it proper, that we accumulate as a lot data as we will, and hopefully no matter this new format is, if there’s a new format, it is one thing that may final a very long time.

“We wish to be considerate and diligent about it, be certain we make the proper choices and strikes and provides each our followers and our rivals one thing that they are often actually happy with going ahead. Transfer to return on that sooner or later.”

What might change?

Whereas no particulars have been revealed by the sanctioning physique, there are a number of options to the present format that repeatedly come up in public discussions: 1. Preserving the present format, however take away the one-race finale and lengthening it into a number of races just like the earlier rounds; 2. A return to the unique playoff format with the driving force with probably the most factors over the course of the ultimate ten races being topped champion; 3. Going again to a full-season factors championship just like the collection had from 1949 by way of 2003.

The primary concern with the present format, which has delivered some incredible moments like Ross Chastain’s 2022 wall-ride, is that it typically produces a champion who wasn’t actually among the best drivers from that specific season. 

One other level of competition has been the ‘win and also you’re in’ side of the present system. Austin Dillon entered Richmond 28th in points, but his impressive victory knocked Chris Buescher (eleventh in factors) off the playoff bubble.

If there’s a new winner from beneath the cut-line this weekend, it would get rid of both Tyler Reddick or Alex Bowman, who enter Daytona seventh and ninth within the common season standings, respectively. There are 20 drivers with an opportunity to do this, going all the way in which again to Cody Ware, who is 36th in the championship standings.