Corey Heim's dominance in the 2025 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series has ignited a familiar debate over the sport's playoff system, with fans and insiders once again split over how championships are decided.The 23-year-old Tricon Garage driver rolled into the postseason as the Regular Season Champion, with a 62-point cushion over the elimination line after scoring a series-best seven wins in the first 16 races. But the format crowns a champion based on a single race at Phoenix, which has left many questioning if a year's worth of dominance can once again be erased in one afternoon.The Athletic's Jeff Gluck weighed in following Heim's Richmond win. Sharing a fan's observation that Heim has led 1,125 laps this season - nearly 900 more than any other competitor - Gluck wrote on X alongside a Simpsons angry mob GIF while reacting to a post by Holly Cain, a sportswriter, as per her X bio:"This site if Heim misses the Championship 4."The post struck a nerve, resurfacing the very same complaints that have followed Corey Heim's near-misses in each of the last two seasons: four wins but fourth in points in 2023, six wins and second overall in 2024, each time denied by the winner-takes-all playoff finale.Xfinity Series rookie Jesse Love jumped into the discussion with a blunt counterpoint."Promise you people will complain regardless. If he wins it like he probably will and deserves to, people will complain about the domination. If he loses it then the system’s terrible and we need to go back to regular points. 👍 focus on the good and the good gets better ppl," he wrote on X.Love's perspective speaks to the no-win reality surrounding the current playoff format. When one driver steamrolls the field, the championship lacks drama. However, when the system produces a surprise champion, thanks to late-race chaos or luck, it is mostly written off as illegitimate. Notably, Gluck has weighed in critically on the NASCAR playoff system. He has tried analyzing its credibility and the influence of television networks, which he argues prioritize drama and ratings over sporting legitimacy.Corey Heim, with his record pace this season, has become the latest lightning rod in that conversation. For now, Love insists the focus should remain on the positive - Heim's growth, his team's execution, and the excitement heading into the postseason.Corey Heim's 2025 playoff preview: lessons learned, focus sharpenedCorey Heim during qualifying for the Fresh From Florida 250 at Daytona. Source: ImagnCorey Heim's 2025 regular-season numbers speak for themselves. Seven wins, more than 1,100 laps led, and the youngest driver with 18 career wins in the Truck Series. He's already locked in the No. 1 seed and put himself in position for the single-season wins and laps led records.But as Heim knows better than most that things can turn sideways pretty quick. Twice before, he's seen dominant years dissolve under the pressure of the playoff format. That's why he believes his team's approach this season has been different."I feel like for me, there was some struggle areas last year that kind of lingered throughout the year and we never quite got past that. But we were able to hone in on that in the offseason and sort of clear those up as far as maybe some packages that we brought to specific race tracks that didn’t work, and maybe some pit road stuff. My personal development as far as my driving style at some places," Heim explained, per Jayski.The playoffs begin at Darlington and Bristol, tracks that Tricon Garage has run well at. But the second round brings the Roval, Talladega, and Martinsville - a combination of unpredictability that is expected to bring surprise contenders into the Championship 4.Corey Heim has been down this road before and knows that one mistake or one untimely caution can end a season's worth of work. But as he steps into the playoffs with the series' best truck and the most momentum, he remains confident that this year's adjustments have him better prepared than ever.