Every format even the Winton had it's problem. But at the end of the day just be thankful we don't have 2 different conferences like they were planning to do in the 90s

I like how Larson wins the 2021 championship in all formats. Really highlights what a dominant, historic season that was

If Gordon was a 7 time that would mean there would’ve been a point in time for one race Where all 3 seven times would’ve raced with each other 1992 Season Finale at Atlanta Somehow it always goes back to that race

Jeff in that alternate timeline being a 7-time champ??? *I WANT THAT TIMELINE AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA*

What pains me most about the decision to implement a playoff format after Kenseth's title isn't the fact that it's created many illegitimate-like champions, it's the fact that NASCAR essentially told us fans that consistency winning a championship is wrong and boring, when in reality it's what truly makes a champion in Motorsports. They want us to believe that anybody winning at any time and gaining the ultimate prize is the correct way, despite that going against all forms of logic. Those in charge just don't seem to understand the basics of Motorsports, they only truly care about headlines and money.

I like how Newman’s 2003 was partially the inspiration for the chase yet he wouldn’t have won in any of these scenarios

Fun fact: the British Superbike Championship implemented a Chase-like format in 2010, which they called The Championship Showdown, that spans the last 3 rounds (7 races). It has bonus points for regular season wins and podiums applied after the reset. Ironically, it was introduced for the exact opposite reason as in NASCAR; Leon Camier won 19 of 26 races in 2009 and won the championship by a massive 136.5 points.

That damn tie breaker in 2011 still haunts me as a carl edwards fan

MY favorite random stats, Tony Stewart is the only driver to win a championship in both the regular season format and the chase format. He's also the only driver to have a Winston Cup, Nextel Cup, and Sprint Cup championship

I believe that A full season points format should be used, but it's important to understand that every driver who won the title deserved it. Did Jimmie Johnson win 7 championships? Yes. Was he the best driver for 7 different seasons? Probably not (07, 10, and 16 especially) but he did what he had to do to win. In my heart, Gordon may be an 8x champion or Harvick may be a 4x champion but those records have been written. Do I want a full season format to return? Yes, and I believe one day it will, but for now the playoffs do what it set out to: entertain people, and as a BK fan I was on the edge of my seat since 2013 seeing if he can take the crown, whether legitimate or not.

I have enjoyed every format I’ve watched in my lifetime. The biggest thing I look for is that NASCAR just COMMITS to one. It was tough trying to keep up with them changing the points system for the better part of a decade. I’m glad they’ve finally settled down and committed to the current playoffs. Nobody can deny that it’s generated, by far, the most drama and excitement this sport has ever seen.

Man, imagine Harry Gant winnin championship in his 50's.

Once we see the season-long champions list at 8 minutes it really shows just how much better that system would’ve been. There isn’t a single person on that list that didn’t deserve it in those seasons. It also accurately reflects the dominance and consistency these legends had throughout their career. It’ll always be weird that Gordon never got another championship when he showcased brilliance time and time again. Or harvick being a 4 time champion highlighting just how much better he was at SHR. Carl Edwards being a two time champion and having something to show for those incredible seasons he had.

"the chase is on" sounds more epic than the playoffs beginning

This production quality is top notch. You deserve so many more subscribers my friend, keep pushing!

With me living in Wisconsin, we will forever call 2004's change "The Matt Kenseth Rule". Its still amazing how he even got 1 championship in the first place. With the new format, WINS matter the most, not consistency which is why i havent really gone to a NASCAR race ever nowadays

"No matter what goofy gimmicks they try to employ, that's why we love NASCAR." Ehhhhh, I'd have to disagree there. Give them credit for trying? Absolutely! But I'd rather have at least the initial Chase format, or Season-long points - and the removal of Overtime and stages (points and cautions) as a whole. I've only watched COTA and Chicago, and plan to watch the other road course races this year since stage cautions are removed. But I can't say I love something (stages and Overtime) that didn't need fixing, because it wasn't broken.

It’s very interesting to see the “what ifs” when it comes to NASCAR’s point formats. And I think it goes to show how much more random the playoffs can be. Less multi-time champs, a lot more 1 or 2-time champs, just less dynasty drives due to the chaos the playoffs promote

Nascar '05 wasn't the first game to feature multiple series. The exact first game to do it idk but Dirt to Daytona the absolute legend did it with the weekly series, Whelen modified, truck and cup series back in '02. Arguably still the best Nascar game to date.

Nascar 2005 was my childhood, it was a vibe.

Nah, Jeff Gordon sharing 7 titles with Earnhardt and Petty feels orders of magnitude more righteous than JJ. Also, let's be honest: Harvick got shafted during this era. His race consistency is clearly the mark of a 4x champion.

One thing abundantly clear : Kevin Deserved Better.

Correction : under the last 9 seasons of the post season format, the rightful champion walked away with the crown 3 times. Larson in '21 was the 3rd one. And he almost lost it had it not been for a late caution setting up one final pit stop where Larson's team stepped up and got it. Proof that NASCAR is indeed a team sport. But it *STILL* shouldn't come down to a single moment.

I would love for Nascar to go back to a full season points format Because if they did Nascar fans would 100% complain it’s boring I feel like it’s give and choose when it comes to playoffs or seasons long format. If you think that they would race the same then this year would have been good but last year Chase Elliott would have dominated even thought we had so many winners. If you think they would have raced differently than by definition the playoffs are just as valid. When a driver leads the points and doesn’t with the championship we can’t for sure say that he would have done the same in a season long points since they would have raced differently. Not to say the current format doesn’t need to change but I don’t think season long points are the way to go honestly

As much as the Johnson-Gordon 7 Cup Swap hurts, there’s one other thing that hurts potentially more than that: Denny Hamlin winning any titles at all. Oh please god no!

One of the best nascar youtubers

And still throughout the hypotheticals mark Martin still dosen't win a championship 😢

I still stick to my guns that the concept of a 6 driver/6 race Chase would be the best use of a “Chase” due to not having fluff drivers making it and having more than one race to prove you deserve it

with these intros, does that mean the next video will just be called “thunder” and be about every rained out race this year?

The playoffs would be better if we got rid of "win and you're in" and didn't imply win and you're in until the playoffs start each round.

What blows my mind is the post season has been around for over a QUARTER of Nascar life and somehow fans still act like they don't exist

Here's what I'd do: Remove the win and you're in thing Make the stage points reward smaller Give some sort of boost for the regular season champion... Maybe like a first round bye or something?

You forgot two more point systems. The 1972-1973 system that awarded points per lap completed, and the 1974 system that was again based on prize money.

Interesting video. When you mentioned that there would have been no "Hail Melon" without the playoff system, I was also wondering what would've happened if Kyle Larson never said the N word? Would he'd stayed at Ganassi and transitioned to Trackhouse to be Suarez teammate? In that case, what would've happened with Chastain? Would Larson went to SHR instead as Tony wished? Would he still be a champion?

I like the idea of the chase. But personally I’d give it a spin. The top 12 drivers in points race in a 10 race chase to crown a champion, but I not done yet. After 5 race, or half the chase, or 6 drivers in the bottom 6 spots get eliminated. I like the idea of the elimination aspect keeps me on my toes. That leaves the last 6 drivers to tough it out for the next 5 races to crown the champion. I don’t think win-&-in is a good idea in or out of the chase but I think bonus point should be added for drivers in the chase so it’s not a complete reset. Or we could just do a full season points, whatever works I guess

My thing was always that I felt like the chase/playoffs could have worked, but it should have been more representative of the overall skills needed throughout the season. For instance, if there's 5 superspeedway races in the "regular season" but only 1 in the playoff, then anyone who runs strongest at the superspeedways is at a disadvantage in the playoffs. It'd be like if the Warriors had to play half their playoff games without a 3 point line.

Thank YOU for making such epic videos! Denny Hamlin winning his rookie championship is just insane!

Amazing use of graphics in this one- especially in the hypotheticals. Well-done, and congrats on the milestones!!!

"NASCAR DIED WITH DAEL!!!!" mfs when they realize Dale Jr. would have been a champion if they introduced the Playoffs one year earlier

looking back, i think the first chase rules worked properly fine. it made sense. no knockout rounds, just one, final, reset. a 'playoff structure' that was functional for motorsports. stages and knockout rounds is wayy too gimmicky

Kyle Larsons 2021 Championship: "I am, Inevitable."

I actually don’t mind the playoffs, can make it much more interesting down the stretch. What I would do however is take the regular season champion and put him directly into the championship 4. Needs to be a bigger deal then it is and giving them a guarantee at a shot at the title is the least they could do

Think of the list drivers who were screwed by the Chase/Playoffs like Jeff Gordon, Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick etc. No disrespect to Jimmie Johnson who benefited the most from the playoffs, he definitely wouldn't have won 7 cup titles in a normal Winston Cup points format.

Whenever it's brought up what would've happened if the Chase was never invented, it's always painful to think that Carl would've won two titles like he should have

The dumbest thing to me that I don't hear other people mention is that the cars that are eliminated aren't gone, they're still on the damn track with the playoff drivers. Imagine if every football team kept playing through to the Super Bowl even though they weren't in the playoffs

I dont care that you have 20k subs, you deserve so much more. These are top notch videos man, ive never seen anything like these

The 12 driver version will always be my favorite

1:55 80 DRIVERS?! I hope pics of that shit exist cause it sounds wild. Great video!

What’s funny is 2017 Martin truex kicked the fields ass so bad he wins that years cup in all versions of the cup

I don't think it's talked about enough how the introduction of the chase/playoffs has done much more damage than just tainting the legacies/certain seasons, making it hard/unnecessarily complicated to follow and just overall making the series look like a farce of a championship in the eye of your average racing fan (note that I didn't say sports fan, important distinction). If the points I just listed weren't enough, on top of all that, NASCAR has created an impossible standard of action/drama to fulfill, and now even a 1992 style championship season would go completely unnoticed, since it happens every single year, by the same mechanism, the same structure, just with different actors. It may sound stupid, but "boring" seasons are just as important as the blockbuster ones, because that allows a once in a lifetime championship to shine, instead of drowning in a sea of forced, unnecessarily dramatized action. The 2021 Abu Dhabi title decider (although botched at the last second by race control) was all the more special and high octane, because it followed a period of total domination by Hamilton and Mercedes. And to anyone starting to worry about low ratings, low viewership, etc. during said period, F1 is doing better than ever, and was doing better than ever right in the midst of what on the surface seemed absolute monotony, but in reality is just a high performance athlete and high performance team delivering and putting together years of unrivaled excellence. And to my knowledge a 1998 or 1999 season, where the champion was decided atleast a week in advance, happened to be right in the middle of NASCAR's most popular period, so there is not really a tangible connection between "boring" and the sports' popularity, true fans will know how to appreciate and cherish their heroes. And if you need the random BS that the playoffs provide to feel entertained, imo you're in the wrong place watching motorsports. Reward your heroes for doing well in the most plausible sense, and stop forcing your oxydocone-screwed interpretation of excitement on the fans, drivers, teams and officials - yes I'm talking to you, Brian.

10:28 Dale jr didn’t score a win in 2013 that would be weird

As a Kurt Busch fan I'm suddenly a fan of every points system but the Winston points 😂

If the Playoff era taught us anything, it's the fact that Penske is a Mickey Mouse Championship merchant

Wow great vid man. Probably one of the best nascar videos I've ever seen. Always wanted to see someone tackle all these points formats at once and showing how different history would be

Allways a good day when ellyproductions uploads

Can't wait for the inevitable dirt to Daytona video

Awesome video! The hypothetical timelines and the overview of history was so cool to see.

Don’t watch nascar but your videos are amazing and always an instant click

Great production, and very eye-opening hypotheticals. Good stuff!

Gordon doesn’t get the love he deserves, imo he his the greatest to ever do it. stats and facts to back it up too.

Been watching your older videos recently so was ecstatic to see this pop up in my feed. You deserve more subs.

Even in all these hypothetical scenarios, all the different formats, Mark Martin still doesn’t have a championship which is the most Mark Martin thing ever.

Finally, someone who doesn't sugarcoat the past and does the tired "playoffs bad other formats good" bit. Great vid!!

Oh my god I love this thumbnail. Just needs his Winston west car.

0:08- “First game to implement multiple series” *cries in dirt to daytona*

I love the playoff system. It keeps things chaotic

Imo The Chase was the perfect middle ground between the old points format and what we have now with the playoffs. 10 races, 10-12 drivers all duking it out to win the championship. If you were the best throughout the year then you better continue being that. If you had a few bad races during the regular season nows your chance to put on a show and beat the rest. No 3 race elimination style where 1 race kills your chances, just 10 races to see who can put together the best end to their season. It's definitely not perfect, but after having the playoffs I'd much rather go back to The Chase which feels far more legitimate than what we have now. Still entertaining without anywhere the amount of gimmicks that we have today.

I don’t see the issue with Kenseth’s 2003 season. Why should someone be rewarded for being patchy and inconsistent, as opposed to being relentlessly fast, reliable and consistent? Consistency is a key part of motorsports but now you can win a NASCAR championship with a few strategically timed wins, even if you perform poorly in all of the other races

This was a super interesting way to present this loved the alternate realities

On the thumbnail that 98 truck. I worked for the guy that co owned that team with brad Daugherty. The team was long closed when I started working for liberty auto group but it was always a cool tie for me.

Kyle Larson did pretty good in 2021 so he should be on that list. It’s only happened three times. 7:35

I've been a NASCAR fan my whole life, but I've recently been getting more into IndyCar, and man, I forgot what no-nonsense racing used to feel like

11:07 truer words have never been spoken.

Everyone: talking about the playoff system Me: Is that London Bus racing???

1:33 imagine if the all star race 1 million dollar pay out existed during that time 😱

yeah that reddit post would've been using the 2014-16 chase format, because I remember from one of iceberg's videos that bobby labonte would've won in 01 using the 2017 format. would be interesting to use that format to see if harvick in 08, dick brooks in 75, and junior in 13 all still get winless championships

It never fails to amaze how capabale Elly is of never mentioning Kyle Larson

The Deep Rock Galactic music fits surprisingly well.

Keep up the good work man!

If only Carl actually won 2 championships

ANOTHER ELLYPRODUCTIONS BANGER 🗣️🔥🔥🔥

great video, well done!

I’m gonna be real with you dawg, I like the playoffs more than I should. Yes I want to see the champion do more than finish second every week. Yes I aware my logic is flawed, my desires are flawed, and I am the one person nascar appeals to. But man, it is nice to have an actually exciting finale*

NHRA uses a system similar to the original Chase. I don't know how, but it works out well for them.

wow really cool information, keep up the good work!

“No matter what goofy gimmicks they try to employ, that’s why we love Nascar.” That’s where you’re wrong. That’s exactly why I barely watch these days despite growing up a total die hard

Imagine we had points for only the top halfish of the field per race like F1 since 2010.

i like how in the alternate reality jeff and jimmie practically switch championship counts

The chase format certainly isn't the best, but I'd take it over what we have now any day of the week.

Part of the appeal of the full-season format today is that it feels like a phantom championship right under our noses. Yes, "they would've raced differently" is a cliche by now and if the full-season points are anything but dominant it can be called into question but there are occasional times, like Harvick in 2020, where its clear who the best driver is all year. At the end of the day, though, you race under the format you're given. The alternate storylines playing out in a slightly different universe are pretty tantalizing, though: Gordon wins 7 titles over 20 years while Johnson, though still great, maintains a shorter period of dominance when he wins 3 titles in 8 years from 2006-13. Kevin Harvick, the man who replaced Dale Sr, wins 4 titles from 2010-20 and is with little doubt seen as a top 10 driver all-time. Kyle Busch doesn't win a title until 2018 but then goes back-to-back. Edwards, of course, wins 2 in 4 years. It doesn't have to be realistic but it's very interesting to think about.

Genuine question for anyone kind enough to enlighten me, an F1 and Endurance fan: why do you put up with a system in which it is theoretically possible for a driver to win all races on a season, while leading every lap, except for the very last one, and still lose the championship because of that?

when I clicked 2 Views 4 Likes Bro is breaking KZfaq

4:40 Man that DRG music was a mental flashbang.

WAKE UP HONEY, IT'S ANOTHER ELLY BANGER

This is a great video

I don't think NASCAR realizes that, underneath all the stage points and playoff points, they actually have an awesome points system RIGHT NOW. 🙂

I actually love the idea of the playoffs, but it definitely needs some tweaking. Stages should stay, but no stage cautions, and the championship 4 should be 3 races instead of 1

10:23 And Dale didn't even win a race in 2013

These vids have are great

Even though it would be more fair to have a traditional point system, in a certain way the playoffs make NASCAR a unique series