Ingram: Stage system offers incentive for leaders, stragglers

Sep 25, 2017 - 5:29 PM It's a shame the new NASCAR stage system, which encourages drivers to always run full bore, was introduced in a season where two teams and drivers have shown themselves to be the class of the field.

Will Kyle Busch, the winner on Sunday in New Hampshire, and Martin Truex Jr., who won the opening round of the playoffs, alternate victories for the rest of the season?

Until those two face each other in the winner-take-all finale at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, which looks like a reasonable forecast at present, the stage system might turn out to be full boring. As long as there are bonus points at stake, Busch and Truex Jr. will do their best to pound the rest of the field into submission with their thus far dominant Toyotas.

Fans are split in their opinions about the new stages system, but it appears a majority favor it according to informal Twitter polls. The fans who like it appreciate the idea drivers cannot "phone in" their results on any given day and expect to do well in the postseason. If they consistently fail to make the playoffs while driving for front-line teams, their jobs may be in jeopardy as well. (See Danica Patrick.)

The other plus of the stage system is the incentive for those assured of advancing to keep trying to rack up playoff bonus points by winning stages and races. Theoretically, this leads to some exciting racing. But the races at the Chicagoland Speedway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway were less than enthralling when it came to who would win. Busch and Truex Jr. led a combined 461 of 567 laps in those two and Busch won both poles.

Designed, in part, to reward those who have had good seasons and prevent a one-off mishap from leading to elimination, the stage format threatens to keep only fans of two Toyota drivers engaged. With three of the remaining seven races in the opening rounds being hosted by 1.5-mile tracks, it's likely that Busch and Truex Jr. will continue to gather playoff bonus points and victories, the best way to guarantee inclusion in the championship round in Florida.

As it stands, those two have already assured themselves of advancing to Round 2 with their victories prior to the Round 1 closer at Dover. Also clinching a spot in the next round due to amassing enough points are Kyle Larson and Brad Keselowski.

It would be a shame if fans don't find interesting the battles taking place among other playoff contenders as they fight for stage points position by position. At New Hampshire, Jimmie Johnson and Denny Hamlin revisited a long-simmering disagreement about how to race the 1.0-mile oval that was instructional as well as entertaining. One could see how seven-time champ Johnson manages to make it difficult to pass his Chevy when it counts.

The decisive battle of the day took place just outside the Top 10 when Kevin Harvick was turned by Austin Dillon exiting Turn 2. In his resulting spin, Harvick created a smokescreen that led to several drivers being collected, including leader Truex Jr., who was within a lap of winning the second stage. Although Harvick bobbled enough to perhaps make it difficult for Dillon to avoid him, the latter was also on it because he was struggling to advance to the next round.

They may not have been eligible for Stage 2 points, but the two adversaries knew the caution flag would fly at the end of the stage. So, they were fighting for every position prior to their pit stops under yellow.

Harvick was having trouble getting a handle on his Ford to salvage a decent result from a lousy chassis set-up. Despite getting crashed out, his bonus playoff points will likely help him advance. In previous years, such contact could have been fatal to his chances and could have put Harvick back into the "win or perish" scenario that he became famous for turning into victories.

Drivers have engaged in trench warfare since the year the elimination rounds first began in 2014. But the new struggle to get bonus points in Stages 1 and 2 intensifies the need to get ahead. There's no longer tactical decisions to give up positions early in a race in hopes of trying to fix the chassis and handling on pit stops later in the race. Drivers trying to make the most of cars despite handling issues is fairly compelling; it's also a good test of talent.

In a system of three races per round of elimination, the bonus points mean even the lowest driver in the points after two races can still come up with enough points in the third race to advance. Kasey Kahne, for example, had a rear suspension put him behind at New Hampshire, where he finished 35th as the last car running. The result dropped him to last among the 16 playoff contenders.

But Kahne remains within 21 points of the cut line. Because there are 20 bonus points available at Dover, Kahne can still climb out of the hole by having a strong run in the first two stages. The other three drivers below the cut line -- Dillon, Ryan Newman and Kurt Busch -- also have a chance to advance by gaining ground with bonus points.

At the top of the field in New Hampshire, Chevy driver Larson, Toyota man Matt Kenseth, Ford's Keselowski and Johnson were all close enough on handling and horsepower to be in the same neighborhood as the two dominant Toyota drivers. Johnson's final pit stop, delayed by a lug nut issue, dropped his Chevy from fifth to 15th at the finish. These guys may yet make life a little more difficult for the front runners.

Even if Busch and Truex Jr. turn the playoffs into their own private reserve, fans should consider giving the stage system a break. At this, ahem, stage, anybody who beats these two is certainly on his game and will have to work to make it happen.