Winning in NASCAR may now be more important than ever

One of the most important aspects of NASCAR's new "Chase" format that will be used to determine the sport's champions in 2026 and beyond is the increase in the amount of points awarded to a race winner. 

Since 2017, NASCAR has given the race winner 40 points, the runner-up 35 and on down by one point for the rest of the field. 

But in 2026, NASCAR has increased the winner's pot to 55 points, ensuring that, even with stage points, no driver can score more points than the winner. 

In a points system that will now reward consistency on a more consistent basis and will be based solely on points with only one reset before the 10-race postseason begins, that makes winning races more valuable — perhaps even more so than it ever has been. 

Why winning is more important

Winning races has always been why teams compete. Fans flock to racetracks and tune in on television to see drivers compete for the win. But regarding the champion, winning has always been nice — but never a true measure of a driver separating themselves from their competition. 

In the previous iterations of NASCAR's full-season points format, race winners weren't given as big a points advantage as they are now. And while NASCAR's playoff format from 2014-25 saw wins be a ticket into both the playoffs and each round of the postseason, the multiple points resets in the playoffs made those guarantees feel partially empty. 

But that's no longer the case. Wins may no longer ensure postseason participation, but it does guarantee, at the very least, a points advantage over the runner-up and every other driver in the field. Should a driver sweep the stages and earn the point for the fastest lap, they could earn up to 76 points in one race (or 86 in the Coca-Cola 600, which has four stages as opposed to the normal three)

"If any of us are out there not trying to give our all to win, we probably need to move on to something different," said Billy Scott, crew chief for Tyler Reddick, on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Friday. "I think putting the extra points established with winning does still make it significantly more important than anything else you're going to accomplish on the day."