NASCAR confirm 2026 playoff format still in question despite major announcement

A senior NASCAR official has admitted that the playoff format for 2026 is not yet set in stone, despite the schedule being announced in full on Wednesday.

Wednesday's reveal saw a number of races – ten in the Cup Series, seven in each of the Xfinity/O'Reilly's Series and Truck Series – marked down as playoff races, leading many to assume that the tacit announcement was that the postseason format will remain the same despite a number of complaints from drivers and fans.

NASCAR HEADLINES: Kyle Busch shows true colors as Connor Zilisch provides massive injury update

However, NASCAR executive vice president and chief venue and racing innovation officer Ben Kennedy revealed when addressing the media later in the day that fans will have to wait until at least 2027 to see a revamped championship system.

Whether that will come in the form of a three-race championship round, the removal of the playoffs, or a significantly smaller alteration altogether remains to be seen, with dozens of proposals flying around in the media.

NASCAR Schedule 2026 Every Cup, O'Reilly Auto Parts and Truck Series race confirmed

NASCAR coy on playoff changes

Asked directly if the schedule confirmed that the current playoff system will remain for 2026, Kennedy said: "It’s not yet. I know the playoff committee has had a number of meetings over the past several months on different formats that we could look at, and they’ve run a handful of simulations on just various formats, collected some fan feedback.

"I know there are conversations as early as a couple days ago on what the future of the playoff format looks like. Nothing to announce today. What I would say, though, is we want to make sure that we take the time to do it right, that we collect as much information as we can, and hopefully whatever this new format is, if there is a new format, it’s something that will last a long time.

"We want to be thoughtful and diligent about it, make sure we make the right decisions and moves and give both our fans and our competitors something that they can be really proud of going forward.

"More to come on that in the future."

READ MORE: NASCAR announces historic IndyCar crossover race

Related