Shane van Gisbergen‘s dominant victory at the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race in Mexico City has triggered a massive backlash from fans questioning the integrity of NASCAR’s playoff system.
The New Zealand driver, who entered the race sitting 33rd in the standings with just one top-10 finish through 15 races, secured his spot in the 16-driver playoff field by winning the Viva Mexico 250 at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
Shane van Gisbergen’s Controversial Path to the Playoffs
Van Gisbergen absolutely dominated the race at Mexico City, leading most of the laps and winning by over 16 seconds. It was one of the most impressive performances by a driver on a road course.
But his playoff spot has fans fired up about NASCAR’s “win, and you’re in” rule that lets any race winner into the 16-driver playoff field, no matter how badly they’ve been running all season.
Shane van Gisbergen wins Cup race at Mexico City. He goes from 33rd in the standings to into the playoffs.
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) June 15, 2025
The reaction on social media was brutal. Fans didn’t hold back, calling the situation “absolutely pathetic lol” and saying they were done watching NASCAR. One angry fan wrote, “a car 37th in points is in the playoffs, im done watching nascar.” Another blasted the format itself, saying “This playoff format f*cking sucks.”
Absolutely pathetic lol
— Justin (@justinhugh8) June 15, 2025
This playoff format fucking sucks Bob
— JC_XCV (@JC_XCV) June 15, 2025
a car 37th in points is in the playoffs, im done watching nascar.
— 🦦 (@_blh14) June 15, 2025
Many fans aren’t just mad at van Gisbergen; they’re frustrated with NASCAR’s whole system. They believe it’s crazy that a driver struggling all year can make the playoffs with one lucky win. As one fan put it, “I’ll never understand why it’s a good thing to have a guaranteed first-round exit in the playoffs.”
I’ll never understand why it’s a good thing to have a guaranteed first round exit in the playoffs.
— geoff mendoza (@geoffmendoza1) June 15, 2025
Why van Gisbergen’s Win Feels So Wrong to Fans
Van Gisbergen had only 242 points through 16 races before his win. He’d only finished in the top 10 twice all year and was averaging a 23rd-place finish.
Meanwhile, drivers like Chase Elliott and Tyler Reddick have been running much better all season but might miss the playoffs if they don’t win a race.
To be fair to van Gisbergen, he earned that victory the hard way. He was dealing with travel problems and was actually very sick during the race. However, he still managed to dominate on the road course with a lead of over 16 seconds, showing the skills that made him a champion back in Australia.
This isn’t the first time NASCAR’s playoff format has caused controversy. Ever since they started the “win, and you’re in” system in 2014, fans have complained that it rewards luck over consistency.
Yet, even though van Gisbergen earned his playoff berth the hard way with a gritty drive in Mexico, fans remain discontent.
Van Gisbergen’s situation just gave them another reason to be frustrated with how NASCAR crowns its champion.