Kevin Harvick questions the integrity of NASCAR Playoff system

With the No. 21 of Harrison Burton winning at Daytona and punching his ticket to the NASCAR Playoffs, Kevin Harvick has questions. The Closer isn’t so sure about the integrity of the playoff system.

There used to be a rule that the win and you’re in system only worked if you were top-30 in points. If you were not inside of the top-30, then a win meant nothing as far as the NASCAR Playoffs are concerned.

Now, Harrison Burton, fresh off his Daytona victory, is going playoff racing while sitting 34th overall in points.

Kevin Harvick has a bit of an issue with that.

“Well I just, I just wonder what the balance is between, do we want our best 16 cars?” Harvick explained on his Happy Hour podcast. “Or do we want it to be exciting? This is exciting. And I agree with everything that’s going on and this is not anything against Harrison Burton, this is not anything against Daniel Suárez but are those our best 16 cars that we’re going to have racing for the championship? Or does it matter? If you have five or six guys that are in there that were gonna be 30-something in the points or 20-something in the points, is the integrity of the playoffs, is it putting our best foot forward as far as representing our best 16 cars as we go into the playoffs.”

Now, I will say here, Kevin Harvick has it right about Burton. 34th in points, -517 to Tyler Reddick. However, outside of Burton and Austin Dillon, every winner this season sits in the top-20 in points. Daniel Suárez is 17th overall in points, 25 back from Kyle Busch in 16th. Austin Cindric is 19th overall.

His point is valid about cars like the 3 and 21 who have had terrible seasons. Perhaps a points requirement needs to be put back in place. But this season is not a glaring example of multiple backmarkers making it into the postseason.

Kevin Harvick worried about ‘wasting spots’

Of course, the postseason in all sports is supposed to be exciting. There are those underdog stories in every tournament and playoff format. But no one expects Harrison Burton to go on a run to the Round of 8.

No one expects most of the drivers to go on a run. But if you don’t have a Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, or Chris Buescher – does that cheapen the product?

Those are drivers capable of winning. Capable of going on hot streaks with multiple top-5s in a row. They have all won in dramatic ways.

Kevin Harvick wants those kinds of drivers in the playoffs. The ones who are vying for the top-10 in the season.

“That’s my point,” Harvick explained. “As a top-10 team just because they haven’t won should that mean their season should be completely lost when you have a 30th-something place car make the playoffs and kick a top-10 guy out that could make a run in the playoffs? Because the 21 is not making a run in the playoffs, the 99 is not making a run in the playoffs. There are just some of those guys who have won a race, Austin Cindric’s not making a run in the playoffs. I just, I think, are we wasting spots?”

Despite having his numbers a bit off, Harvick is making a great point here. Even with those wins, the likelihood of these drivers making deep runs is slim. But there’s always a chance, especially with Atlanta as race one in the Round of 16.

Kevin Harvick isn’t so sure about a points requirement either. He thinks the championship is still questionable due to the one-race championship format. Could we ever see NASCAR move to a two or three-race championship round?