“Time to burn the playoff format”: Fans react as NASCAR ratings suffer in Ryan Blaney’s Loudon win

NASCAR fans have reacted to viewership ratings that have come out of the NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Interestingly, one pointed towards ending the playoff system because of the fall in ratings from the previous year.

On September 21, 2025, Ryan Blaney won the Mobil 1 301 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in a dominant performance. From the middle of the front row, Blaney was in front for 116 of the 301 laps, leading also the last 39 laps when the race was very close. His great work allowed him to keep the nearest competitor, Josh Berry, at bay and win his third NASCAR Cup Series season race. As a result, Blaney not only zoomed his career wins counter further but also solidified his spot in the Round of 8 in the playoffs.

Stage 1 was won by him, and throughout the race, he was at the front, passing his teammate and pole winner Joey Logano, and not allowing any threat from his rival, Josh Berry, in the final laps. Adam Stern reported the ratings from the New Hampshire race on X:

".@USANetwork got a 0.70 rating and 1.29 million viewers for Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series race @NHMS, down from a 1.0 rating and 1.88 million viewers for last year's race at the same track and from a 0.96 rating and 1.79 million for last year's fourth playoff race at Kansas."

One fan said:

"I’ve seen enough, it’s time to burn the playoff format"

Jon Iaccino

@ji711

@A_S12 @USANetwork @NHMS @SBJ @GettyImages I’ve seen enough, it’s time to burn the playoff format

Another said:

"imagine how bad it would be if not for the playoffs, there would be negative amounts of people watching"

Alium

@FrenAlium

@A_S12 @USANetwork @NHMS @SBJ @GettyImages imagine how bad it would be if not for the playoffs, there would be negative amounts of people watching

Meanwhile, a fan penned:

"Are you sure those aren’t the truck numbers"

First To The Line

@FirstToTheLine_

@A_S12 @USANetwork @NHMS @SBJ @GettyImages Are you sure those aren’t the truck numbers 😂

Another wrote:

"NASCAR cannot compete with the NFL. Having races on a cable network is a losing proposition. They're getting close to Xfinity ratings on CW, which is not good."

One penned:

"So Playoffs are really preventing viewership falloff right?"

During 30 races, Ryan Blaney grabbed the checkered flag thrice, with Nashville, the Daytona summer race, and the playoff event at New Hampshire. His talent has enabled him to secure victories on various tracks, whether superspeedways or short ovals. Blaney has been in the fifth position or better 13 times and finished in the top 10 on 17 occasions.

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Ryan Blaney on JGR’s abnormal “struggles” during NASCAR race at Loudon

Ryan Blaney commented on Joe Gibbs Racing's (JGR) struggles at New Hampshire Motor Speedway during the 2025 Mobil 1 301 NASCAR Cup Series playoff race. Speaking on the "Dale Jr Download" podcast, Blaney expressed surprise that JGR drivers such as Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, and Ty Gibbs did not perform up to their usual standards at Loudon.

"The Gibbs guys weren't as good as I thought they're gonna be, whether it was new tires or what, they seemed to struggle a little bit more than they normally do at that place," said Blaney.

Reflecting on his win, Blaney described the final 20 laps of the race as some of the hardest he's ever driven, with intense pressure from Josh Berry, who pushed him to try different racing lines to maintain the lead.