{"id":446861,"date":"2026-02-01T08:31:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T08:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/446861\/"},"modified":"2026-02-01T08:31:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T08:31:09","slug":"kevin-harvick-reacts-to-nascar-returning-to-the-chase-championship-format","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/446861\/","title":{"rendered":"Kevin Harvick reacts to NASCAR returning to the Chase Championship format"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick<\/a> believes NASCAR\u2019s<\/a> decision to move back toward the Chase-style championship format strikes a balance between creating big moments for fans while still rewarding consistency across the season.<\/p>\n

Speaking on the latest episode of Kevin Harvick\u2019s Happy Hour<\/a>, Harvick said<\/a> the revised system represents a compromise, dangling between entertainment demands and competitive fairness.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a great compromise, because there are a lot of parties involved,\u201d Harvick said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got television, who wants those cuts and moments every few races, but sometimes those moments are fabricated.\u201d<\/p>\n

Continuing, Harvick pointed to last season as an example, arguing Denny Hamlin arguably had the strongest playoff performance, only to see his title hopes slip away due to one costly pit call.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose one moments are great,\u201d Harvick explained<\/a>. \u201cBut how many times have we seen a season-long points battle come down to one moment? And people are fine with it because so many things lead up to that moment that it doesn\u2019t make or break your whole season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moreover, Harvick particularly praised the emphasis now being placed on winning while also penalizing poor finishes. Drivers who consistently avoid DNFs could benefit significantly under the format.<\/p>\n

\u201cWinning still has to be important, but when you get a DNF, it needs to hurt,\u201d Harvick added. He noted that drivers such as reigning champion Kyle Larson, who often push aggressively for wins, could feel that impact, while more consistent drivers like Chase Elliott and Joey Logano may gain ground by regularly maximizing difficult days.<\/p>\n

Harvick also noted the format changes how teams approach race strategy throughout the year. Under the new system, recovering positions after accidents or mechanical issues could become critical for salvaging valuable points.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a competitor, you race to the format,\u201d Harvick said. \u201cI don\u2019t make the format. I don\u2019t care what it is. I just want to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that the days of teams focusing early on building playoff-specific cars may be fading, as falling too far behind in points could be impossible to overcome: \u201cIf you\u2019re past fifth or sixth when you get into the playoffs, you\u2019re done. Unless you have a Tony Stewart-type run and win five races,\u201d Harvick elaborated.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s great about it, you still have a chance. But if you\u2019re too far back, you\u2019re going to be in big trouble trying to win the championship.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Harvick, the takeaway is simple. The new format still allows dramatic moments but better rewards season-long performance. A balance he believes the sport has been searching for.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick believes NASCAR\u2019s decision to move back toward the Chase-style championship format strikes…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":446862,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[446],"tags":[49,48,634,82],"class_list":["post-446861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nascar","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-nascar","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/446861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=446861"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/446861\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/446862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=446861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=446861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=446861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}