NASCAR’s Chase – What Could Have Been?

The final four drivers that will compete Sunday for the Sprint Cup Championship (L-R) Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex, Jr.

Mike Mercurio

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will crown their 2015 champion on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, pitting the top four drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup in a winner-take-all race for the title.

When Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Martin Truex, Jr. and defending series champion Kevin Harvick take the green flag on Sunday, all of them will be there because they earned the right. They all qualified to be there based on the rules NASCAR laid out. But you can't help but wonder "What Could Have Been?"

When first announced in 2004, the "Chase" was envisioned as NASCAR's version of the playoffs, a way to add some excitement and increased competition to what had become an otherwise mundane championship battle for the previous few seasons.

NASCAR Chairman and CEO announced the new "elimination" -style format in 2014

Rainier Ehrhardt/Getty Images

The Chase was the brainchild of NASCAR Chairman Brian France, the grandson of NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr., and France had grand ideas that the Chase would be comparable to the playoffs like the NFL or the NHL or Major League Baseball.

Last year, NASCAR added a new twist to the Chase – an "elimination-style" format broken into four rounds, with the final round being the winner-take-all race at Homestead, with France comparing the final race to a "Game Seven" or a Super Bowl.

When it comes to the "elimination"-style of the Chase, the fan in me loves it. As a long-time NFL fan, I can appreciate the excitement that a playoff atmosphere can bring. I especially enjoy the "one-and-done" format that exists in the NFL, and the mantra that "Anything Can Happen In The Playoffs".

And it happens every year in the NFL – a team with a perfect record and an odds-on favorite to go all the way runs into a team that barely eked into the post-season and they suddenly find themselves in the sidelines wondering "What Could Have Been?". The team's entire season done in by an errant pass here, and blown call there, someone dropping the ball.

THAT is what NASCAR wanted. The same excitement and level of competiveness as the NFL playoffs. They wanted the swagger, the pressure – and the TV ratings – that goes along with "Anything Can Happen In the Playoffs".

Excitement they got. Swagger? Check. Increased competition on the track? Somewhat.

Unfortunately they also got errant passes, blown calls, and people dropping the ball.

The journalist in me, though, sees that trying to bring in a playoff system that works for stick and ball sports is a flawed system. Yes, "Anything Can Happen In the Playoffs", but it doesn't quite mesh with auto racing.

For an example, let's go back to the NFL.

In November of 2014, the Arizona Cardinals were enjoying their best season since 2008, with a 9-1 record and looking at locking up the no. 1 seed in the NFC. But just a few weeks into the month, quarterback Carson Palmer took a bad step during a game against St. Louis Rams and was lost for the year with a torn ACL. Arizona limped into playoffs with an 11-5 record and lost in the wild-card playoffs to the Carolina Panthers.

It was a disappoint loss, but "Anything Can Happen In the Playoffs" – and the Cardinals and their fans were left to wonder "What Could Have Been?"

Looking back at start of this year's Chase, Matt Kenseth was seeded third with four wins – tied with Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch – and won the second race in the opening "Challenger Round" to advance along with Joey Logano. Kenseth and Logano were among the favorites to win the title, and indeed, Logano swept the "Contender Round" to advance.

Joey Logano (22) spins Matt Kenseth (20) while battling for the lead at Kansas Speedway

But one of Logano's wins came at the expense of Kenseth, who got spun off the bumper of Logano's Ford while leading at Kansas, denying Kenseth was could have been a clinching victory into the next round of the Chase.

NASCAR took no action against Logano; purists called it "hard racing". "Anything Can Happen In the Playoffs", right?

Kenseth would later be eliminated following a last lap wreck at Talladega the following week, leaving another top-seeded playoff contender to wonder: "What Could Have Been?"

Logano moved onto the next round, but saw his championship hopes crushed when Kenseth enacted his revenge and walled Logano while leading at Martinsville.

NASCAR this time lowered the boom on Kenseth, suspending him for two races, saying his "actions have no place in NASCAR".

The fan in me loved seeing Kenseth take out Logano. Apparently, I wasn't alone.

But the journalist in me can't help but feel that Kenseth's actions were a direct result of NASCAR own flawed playoff system. Let's think back to the Arizona Cardinals and Carson Palmer – what if the other team had deliberately knocked Palmer's legs out from under him and caused his injury? Would the NFL had lowered the boom? You betcha.

There's precedent for such actions in the NFL. In 2010, it was brought to light that the New Orleans Saints had paid out monetary rewards to players who intentionally targeted players on the other team. The NFL's reaction was swift and unprecedented, leading to multiple fines and suspensions.

So did NASCAR come down on Logano when he took out Kenseth? Nope. In fact, France embraced it.

"That's quintessential NASCAR," sad France, further adding that the Chase "does reward aggressive racing at the end of the day."

Huh.

Two weeks later at Martinsville, Kenseth (20) got his revenge on Logano (22)

So what does Kenseth do? Two weeks later at Martinsville Speedway he comes back and retaliates. New Orleans Saints-style.

Sure, grass-roots fans will say "That's Racin'". Wrong. That WAS racing, back in 1995 when walling a guy at Martinsville was just one race, not in 2015 when that race is one of three only chances for a driver to advance for a shot at the championship.

It wasn't really a mistake that France tried to make NASCAR's championship battle more exciting for the fanbase and the folks watching on TV. The mistake France made is trying to make NASCAR something it's not. NASCAR is not the NFL. NASCAR is not Major League Baseball or the NHL, and "Anything Can Happen In the Playoffs" is little comfort for the teams that fought all season to be in the championship hunt just to have their legs taken out from under them by the other team and are forced to sit on the sidelines and wonder "What Could Have Been?"

But the fan in me still loves it.