Points Formats & Penalties

Who would have won [the Cup Series championship] in the Winston Cup Format? Something tells me it would not have been Joey [Logano]. – Clyd, YouTube

Well, I hope that “something” also tells you Powerball numbers, because you’re spot-on. According to Twitter user @NWCS_Standings, if the traditional Winston Cup points format (used between 1972-2003) were still in place, Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott would have taken home the big trophy despite his mid-race tangle with Ross Chastain in the Phoenix Raceway finale.

In fact, the Georgia driver would have locked up his second Cup Series title merely by starting the final race in Phoenix. 

Or wait — technically his first, since Kevin Harvick would have been the champion in 2020 had that season run according to Winston Cup points. And actually, it wouldn’t be Harvick’s second either …

Congratulations to @joeylogano for winning the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Championship and @chaseelliott for winning the 2022 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Championship. #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/8iBgjOkMTa

— NASCAR Winston Cup Series Standings (@NWCS_Standings) November 7, 2022

Hot take alert: it doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, there’s only one 2022 NASCAR Cup Series champion, and it is always and forever going to be Logano and the No. 22 team.

Is that really fair, since Elliott and the No. 9 crew were the best in the sport throughout the majority of the season?

Yes, it’s fair. They all knew the rules when they signed up, how many points each position is worth and when winning a race is all that matters. If you want to see a series without that confidence, just look at F1’s (accidentally) title-deciding Japanese Grand Prix and try to tell me NASCAR is the inconsistent one. Everyone’s working from the same rulebook, but when it comes to the championship, to quote Ricky Bobby’s favorite movie, there can be only one. 

Or maybe Lightning McQueen said it best: “one winner, 42 losers.” (Damn, remember the days when there were 42 losers?)

It’s commonly-repeated in YouTube comments sections that had there never been a Chase for the Cup, Jeff Gordon would be a seven-time champion, and Jimmie Johnson wouldn’t be. Frankly, I’m not so sure. 

If Chad Knaus and Johnson didn’t need to prioritize the last 10 races of the season every year after 2004, they wouldn’t have. But when prioritizing the last 10 races was what the format demanded, they were far, far better at…