NASCAR brings back The Chase, drops win-and-in playoff rule
NXTbets Pro | Published On: September 1, 2026
NASCAR playoff overhaul
NASCAR will return to The Chase championship format for all three national series starting next season, and the change puts points back at the center of postseason qualification. The old win-and-in rule will be removed. Drivers will make the field strictly through the standings, which means a victory alone will no longer lock in a playoff berth. The Cup Series will take 16 drivers into The Chase, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series will take 12 and the Craftsman Truck Series will take 10. Once the postseason starts, NASCAR will use no eliminations. It will reseed the points one time after the regular season, then let the title fight play out from there. In Cup, the points leader will begin The Chase at 2,100 points. The regular-season champion will have a 25-point cushion over the second seed. The champion in each series will be the driver with the most points after the season finale or postseason races, so the title will go to the most productive driver across the full run rather than to the driver who wins the most dramatic single moment. Race wins will be worth 55 points, which keeps victory important while still putting the standings in charge of who advances.
NASCAR season setup
The regular season still sets the stage for the title chase. The Cup Series will race 26 times before The Chase begins, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series will run 24 regular-season races and the Craftsman Truck Series will run 18. Those totals define when the playoff fields lock in, and they also determine how much of the schedule feeds the standings before the title picture tightens. Drivers who do not make The Chase will still race for points, so the full field stays active across the season even after the playoff cut line is set. NASCAR’s format keeps every race tied to the standings because points remain the path into the postseason and the way the champion is crowned at the end. The move also gives each series a clear structure. Their postseason lengths will be 10, nine and seven races, respectively. That structure keeps the standings central through the rest of the title race.
Chase race route
The Cup Series playoff schedule will run from Darlington Raceway to Homestead-Miami Speedway, with stops at St. Louis, Bristol, Kansas, Las Vegas, Charlotte, Phoenix, Talladega and Martinsville in between. That gives the 10-race postseason a fixed route and a set finish, with Homestead-Miami Speedway serving as the final stop. The O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and Craftsman Truck Series will follow shorter Chase formats, but they will use the same core rules. No eliminations will come after The Chase starts. Points will be reseeded only once after the regular season. The champion in each series will still be the driver with the most points when the postseason ends. NASCAR’s revised setup ties together the regular season and the playoffs more tightly than the old win-and-in model did. Drivers can still earn 55 points for a win, but the standings now decide who gets in and who leaves with the title. The result is a format built around consistency from the first regular-season race through the final checkered flag, with the points table carrying the full weight of the championship chase.
