Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports are the only NASCAR Cup Series teams with four entries. They are also the most successful teams in the sport and are heavy favorites to take at least one of their drivers to the championship final each season. But what are the chances that they will find the four pilots there?
Dave Alpern, president of Joe Gibbs Racing, discussed this in a video for his team’s media recently. He said, “There’s only two organizations that could happen, and that’s Hendrick Motorsports or Joe Gibbs Racing, because we’re the only ones that have four. We’re the only ones that have ever had three. I can tell you one thing. It’s really stressful.”
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He likened it to multiple kids participating in the same thing, knowing that several of them are going to lose. As stressful as such a scenario might be, he acknowledges that it would be an incredible problem. “I would love to try it one year. I’m sure our friends will love it too,” he added.
The logistics and workload that such a context would require would be enormous, to say the least. Additionally, the current format will require three of the cars to each win a race in the round of 16 of the playoffs and then have the final car qualify on points for that to happen. So technically this could happen. Alpern hopes that will happen. But the question is whether that will ever be the case.
He expressed his hope, “In a way it would be great because you would win the championship the week before. But it looks like the playoff format could change. So we may never know.” NASCAR is set to announce key changes to the existing playoff format. Word is circulating around town that a multi-race championship round is being considered instead of a single race.
Speculation will have to wait until the official message comes from Daytona. Until then, Joe Gibbs Racing fans can look back at the historic 2019 season, when the team entered three drivers in the Championship 4. Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin had competed for the title alongside Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick for the title, with Busch ultimately winning it.
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