“I’ve heard 6 drivers”: Bubba Wallace’s spotter gets candid about possible playoff format for the Championship round

Bubba Wallace’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, reacted to the rumoured 3-3-4 NASCAR playoff format for the 2026 season. Beginning next year, the Championship weekend will rotate among several tracks and venues, catering to multiple new markets.

For Kraft, that’s a great alternative to the old 36-race segment that he still is a fan of. But what will the 3-3-4 format actually look like? One might ask.

Currently, the format has three races spread over three playoff rounds, plus a one-race Championship round at Phoenix Raceway, which is held in the first week of November. But in the 3-3-4 format, NASCAR would be expected to host three races in the Round of 16, three in the Round of 12, and a dedicated four-race championship finale.

“I, personally, would want a full season format,” Kraft said recently on the Door Bumper Clear podcast (50:11). “But I know that there's gotta be a balance somewhere. I think this is a good compromise where you don't have a one-race playoff, you have a four-race playoff.”

“Now we're gonna go to basically every damn racetrack...we hit all different race tracks if this is what happens. I think it's gonna be, the rumors I've heard, six drivers probably,” he added.

There are four different kinds of tracks in NASCAR: short tracks, intermediate ovals, superspeedways, and road courses. So it makes sense if the four-race championship segment includes one of each. Moreover, this could make the playoffs less random and give the drivers a better and fairer opportunity to compete for the ultimate honor.

This year, Bubba Wallace is a playoff driver himself, and therefore, he has a shot at his first NASCAR Cup Series championship. The Alabama native sits eighth in the drivers' standings, with a one-point cushion on the cutoff line. His 23XI Racing teammate, Tyler Reddick, is ranked 12th, three points behind the cutline.

Bubba Wallace opens up about the rumored 3-3-4 Championship format

Bubba Wallace, driver of the No. 23 Toyota Camry for 23XI Racing, doesn’t really care about the championship format. With the Round of 12 set to begin this coming weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the driver is totally dialled in.

While reflecting on the probable shake-up in the current Championship format, Wallace said he cares more about his performance and winning races.

“You can leave me out of the format talks,” Bubba Wallace told the reporters during Friday’s qualifying at Bristol Motor Speedway. “If I have a contract and have a car and have a team and all this stuff, I’m gonna go race whatever it is and try to be the best at that. I could give two craps about how it is.”

Bubba Wallace then explained his stance. As someone who has been around for almost nine years, the driver is well aware of everything that’s going on. But his job is to drive his car and win races for his team. The way he sees it, doing that will make a champion, no matter what the format is.

“Cool, doesn’t matter what format it is, you are the best of that current format,” he added.

Bubba Wallace is now ahead of the fourth race of the 2025 playoffs, the Mobil 1 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Scheduled for Sunday, September 21, the 301-lap event will be televised on USA (2 p.m. ET onwards) with live radio updates on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.