You need elimination, people.(NASCAR)(National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing)

As the remaining innings dwindled during Game 7 of the National League Championship Series at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, I kept wondering if NASCAR ever could achieve this fever pitch among its fans.

The answer is simple: It can't--not without a playoff system.

NASCAR fans take auto racing every bit as seriously as stick-and-ball supporters take their sports, but it's different. There's no mistaking the energy at a Major League Baseball playoff game or during the NCAA Tournament.

As I strolled through the stands at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday morning, that same anticipation didn't exist before the race despite Nextel Cup racing being in the throes of the Chase. Something was missing.

Whether it's baseball, basketball or football, the crescendo of excitement during the playoffs builds from the minute you park your car and walk to the stadium. A certain buzz is in the air and the camaraderie between fans sporting the same colors pulls people together. But there is no home-track advantage in NASCAR. Fans pull for 43 different drivers.

According to MB2 Motorsports general manager Jay Frye, the Chase is working. In years past, maybe two or three drivers would receive most of the attention, but the Chase has moved the spotlight onto 10. Still, with 10 teams in the Chase but 43 teams in the field, the number of players involved in the sport dilutes the overall enthusiasm.

"There was huge drama going for the '92 championship when Alan Kulwicki beat Bill Elliott and Davey Allison for the title;' Frye says. "(NASCAR championships) just usually don't play out like that. Normally, it doesn't come down to a final game.