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The hero factor in NASCAR nearly vanished under the three-race elimination format. In the era of a full-season points system, drivers such as Dale Earnhardt Sr., Richard Petty, Jeff Gordon, and their contemporaries towered over the sport, week after week. The original Chase carried parts of that tradition forward, though never quite to the same height. The elimination model, however, took the sport in a different direction, driven by parity measures, reduced practice time, and instilled a ‘win, and you’re in’ mindset among drivers. Yet despite some of that backdrop still looming, such as stage racing, 2023 NASCAR champion Ryan Blaney has not fully dismissed the possibility of a return to hero-style dominance under the revised Chase format. In earlier decades, teams enjoyed wide latitude to design cars and build engines, and that freedom created visible separation across the field. Certain organizations consistently unloaded faster than the rest, and certain drivers imposed their will without apology. When NASCAR introduced the Chase, wins and consistency were brought closer together, but even then, sustained excellence could still break through. That reality allowed Jimmie Johnson to separate himself from the pack, using wins as leverage to stay ahead of everyone else. That’s why Blaney believes a Johnson-style run of seven titles remains plausible under the current Chase framework. He did not frame it as a certainty, but he did not dismiss it either, saying, “Maybe!” followed by a clear explanation of how such a scenario could unfold. He said, “You could see it. You could see a team just go on a terror for these ten weeks, like Jimmie was able to do… It’s amazing what they can do at all these different types of tracks and not have any trouble in go to execute into their job for 10 weeks.” .@Blaney says respect was lost under the Playoffs era and hopes The Chase brings legitimacy back to racing. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/PTIjhgm2nN — Peter Stratta (@peterstratta) January 12, 2026 Blaney stopped short of predicting it outright, acknowledging how tight the field has become. Still, he left the door open. If a team manages to overpower the competition for eight or nine weeks and lock up the title early, that would show domination at the highest level. The challenge, of course, lies in the nature of the Next Gen car. No previous generation has produced this level of parity, making prolonged dominance far more difficult. For one group to control the championship stretch for two months would be a big achievement. But NASCAR is still making decisions about a measure of creative freedom, and within that margin, sharper preparation can still yield advantages. Jimmie Johnson’s record under the Chase stands as proof of what is possible During the 2004–2013 Chase era, Johnson won five consecutive championships. The argument has always been that a team blending outright speed with specialized preparation for the final ten races could bend the system in its favor. Hendrick Motorsports treated the Chase as a season within the season, preparing cars and strategies months in advance for those specific tracks. That approach fueled Johnson’s run from 2006 through 2010. Across the ten-year Chase era, he won 60 of his 83 career wins and accounted for 24 of Hendrick Motorsports’ 32 Chase victories. Even when he lacked season-long superiority, such as in 2010, Johnson relied on a calculated long-game approach to erase point deficits. But that method thrived in a format where the field was smaller, and mistakes carried less immediate consequence. The modern Chase operates under different constraints. The Next Gen platform compresses advantages; the postseason field has grown to 16 drivers, and point resets magnify risk. Crashes and poor finishes can quickly accumulate, dropping the team behind others in points. At the same time, wins now carry 55 points rather than 40, keeping the balance toward both aggression as well. Ultimately, the actual final…

The Houston Rockets have been one of the hardest teams to figure out in the 2025-2026 season. The squad added Kevin Durant over the summer and has shown that they can go toe to toe with the elites in the competitive West. But there have been more Ls against top contenders than Ws, and one has to wonder if KD, Sengun, Adams, and company can get the job done when the lights are at its brightest. Houston is currently 23-15, which is good enough for the No. 6 seed following their loss to the Thunder. But the Suns are hot on their tail, and the last thing Houston would want is to have to waste energy on the Play-In tournament at the end of the season. One thing that is clearly missing from the Rockets is a veteran who can orchestrate some consistency in the squad, and Dwyane Wade has the perfect choice. The Miami Heat legend suggested that Houston look at adding Chris Paul to their roster, considering the future Hall of Fame Point God is available following his messy exit from the Clippers. “They need an organizer. They need a quarterback. They need a conductor. They need a guy who can get guys in their spots. They need a guy who can play with bigs. They got Sengun, they got Adam. Chris Paul out there. They need a veteran. They need a guy who don’t need to score. Chris Paul out there,” stated Wade on today’s NBA pregame on Amazon Prime. Dwyane Wade suggest the Rockets should go get CP3 pic.twitter.com/godlvqtSkF — NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) January 16, 2026 Wade could certainly be cooking here. CP3 is clearly looking for one final path before he retires. Connecting up with Houston could be the opening he was looking for in Los Angeles, but it depends on Houston’s roster. The Clippers team didn’t seem interested in connecting with the 40-year-old. If the Rockets embrace him, who knows what that can unlock in the 12-time All-Star. It also would allow Durant, another veteran legend, to not have to carry the burden by himself. The burden of being the one who the team looks to during big moments. The burden of holding all the pressure on your back because you are the biggest name. CP3 has the clutch gene just like Durant. At the end of the day, this Rockets season might come down to whether they want to keep riding raw talent or finally lean into experience. Houston has enough firepower to scare anyone, but playoff series are decided in the margins. Late-game decisions, tempo control, and knowing when to step on the gas or slow everything down. That’s where a move like Paul isn’t about box scores or nostalgia, it’s about survival in the West. If the Rockets truly believe this window with KD is real, then adding a steady hand could be the difference between being a fun regular-season problem and a team nobody wants to see in April. The post “They Need a Conductor”: Dwyane Wade Boldly Claims Chris Paul Can Fill Rockets’ Biggest Hole appeared first on The SportsRush.

Among several drivers, team owners, and veterans, Michael Waltrip has now joined the grid in support of the upcoming Chase format. Veterans such as Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Mark Martin had already aligned with fans and drivers who pushed for a return to a regular-ish points structure during the postseason. But while NASCAR has not taken the system fully back to the 36-race points format, the sanctioning body has settled on a middle ground that assigns equal weight to consistency and victories. Waltrip has now provided his own endorsement of that direction. Posting a video on his official X account, Waltrip praised the 10-race playoff structure for rewarding consistency and stage execution while eliminating the three-race elimination format he previously disliked. As he put it, “I want to tell you they got it right. It’s a great balance between consistency, winning. DNFs matter, everything matters. They got it all right.” He added, “We should be as NASCAR fans thrilled that we are gonna get to see how this 2026 championships across all three series play out. I was not a huge fan of the single-race, one-race championship. And now we have 10 races to decide, and that’s exactly what is going to happen. So thank you, NASCAR. Thank you to the former drivers, Mark, Dale, for pitching in, and all the people that gave their opinion, and the current drivers.” NASCAR’s announcement on January 12 confirmed that 16 drivers will qualify for a 10-race Chase based on the number of points they score during the 26-race regular season, regardless of how many regular-season victories they accumulate. I love the 2026 @NASCAR Playoff plan. See you soon on @NASCARONFOX @markmartin @DaleJr pic.twitter.com/suBR6qy1sg — Michael Waltrip (@MW55) January 14, 2026 And in order to provide balance and elevate the significance of wins in the Chase, NASCAR will award 55 points for a victory rather than the 40 points previously granted under the elimination system. Meanwhile, the points leader after 26 regular-season events will enter the Chase with 2100 points, standing 25 clear of the second-place driver and 35 ahead of the third-place qualifier. From third onward, the value of each starting position decreases in five-point increments, with the 16th-place driver receiving 2000 points. Under the Chase format, there will be no eliminations and no single championship decider to award the title. The driver who manages to amass the most aggregate points across the final 10 races will be crowned champion. The structure is quite similar to traditional points racing, with the distinction that it divides the field into a top-16 group for the final stretch of 10 events. The post Michael Waltrip Feels NASCAR Has Finally “Got it Right” With New Format After Playoff Experiment appeared first on The SportsRush.

The Ja Morant and Vince Williams Jr. incident is slowly becoming one of those “WTF” stories. It happened during a Grizzlies practice in Berlin and quickly went viral after audio leaked online. Morant was heard boisterously saying, “I don’t f*** with y’all, I’m with whatever.” As the exchange got louder and more heated, Williams suggested taking it “to the back.” Ja fired back with, “Why? I’m right here.” At one point, Morant even dismissed him with, “You’ve been here five minutes, you’re not like that,” before teammates and coaches eventually stepped in. It was intense enough to show just how frustrated things are in Memphis right now. The Grizzlies are banged up, losing games, and have been butting heads with Ja all season. This latest incident will only stir the pot in the wrong direction. Well, now Brandon “Scoop” Robinson has discovered more about the incident, and surprisingly enough, it has nothing to do with basketball. The famed insider revealed in his latest report that the argument was about a “dinner spot.” Whether that makes any of this more or less cringe remains to be seen. Ja Morant Update: The recent confrontation between Ja Morant and teammate Vince Williams Jr. at a shootaround in Berlin was surprisingly petty. Despite the heated exchange, a source noted: “It had nothing to do with basketball. It was about a dinner spot.” My Latest -… pic.twitter.com/TptMEmFv2b — Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson (@ScoopB) January 15, 2026 The problem with this is that for any other player in the league, this wouldn’t ever be blown to such a proportion. But for Morant, who still has heat from his wild antics on and off the court, it’s playing into a larger narrative. You might assume that this would be the final nail in the coffin for Morant’s time in Memphis. That couldn’t be further from the truth. One source from Ja’s camp told Robinson that he “loves the city and he loves the team. We are going to weather the storm.” Whether that storm getting weathered translates to wins is a question for a later day. It would honestly just be nice to talk about the Grizzlies and it not be some Ja Morant smear piece. Currently, the Grizz are sitting at a 17-23 record, which is currently good enough for the No. 10 spot in the West. If the season ended today, they would still be alive and competing in the Play-In tournament. It’s not ideal, but it’s a jump from earlier in the year when they seemed entirely hopeless. This feels less like a breaking point and more like a reality check for everyone involved. Memphis isn’t a feel-good underdog anymore. Expectations are back, and so is the pressure that comes with them. Ja is still the face of the franchise, whether people like it or not, and moments like this are a reminder that leadership doesn’t just show up in highlights or postgame quotes. If the Grizzlies want this season to mean anything, the focus has to shift from viral side plots to actually stacking wins, because no amount of “weathering the storm” matters if the boat keeps drifting the wrong way. The post “It Wasn’t About Basketball”: NBA Analyst Debunks Reason Behind Viral Ja Morant-Vince Williams Jr. Argument appeared first on The SportsRush.