Hall of Famer Mark Martin has harsh words about modern-day NASCAR

"The word playoff is very catchy," Martin continued. "It's wonderful, except we ain't playing. Nobody plays, and there's not two people out there. It's not the same as ball sports. I don't like it being called playoffs, because it's not a playoff. Even the last round, if it was really a playoff, there'd be four cars on the track, not 36."

NASCAR's playoff format has also drawn criticism due to the 'win and you're in' nature of qualifying for the postseason. If you win a race during the regular season, you automatically qualify for the playoffs, regardless of your position in points before the victory. Martin says the excitement generated by that kind of storyline can be found elsewhere. 

"Winning a race was a different kind of big deal back then," Martin said. "What I say is, TV people need to work harder. They need to change this to more traditional and stick with what we are. TV needs to work harder to make it exciting. They can. Go to people's shops, follow these drivers around, look at these teams, look at these crew chiefs. Bring other interests into it." 

While it's clear that Martin is far from the only one who holds these opinions, whether NASCAR will listen is a different story.