Jordan Jordan Bianchi and Jeff Gluck discuss the new NASCAR Weekly show coming to truTV this Thursday night
On the latest episode of Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi’s podcast, The Teardown, Bianchi revealed he would be on a new weekly NASCAR recap show by TNT Sports that will air on truTV on Thursday evenings. The show, NASCAR – Inside the Playoffs, will air each week at 7-8 p.m. ET and will also be available to stream on MAX.
The announced cast will be accomplished broadcaster Shannon Spake, NASCAR “Chief Hype Officer” Mamba Smith, former crew chief Steve Letarte and Jordan Bianchi, a NASCAR reporter for The Athletic, who will cover breaking news. It will also feature a rotating cast of current drivers. According to Bianchi, Kyle Busch will join the show in the first two episodes.
“This is going to be so much fun,” said Shannon Spake. “I get to talk about the sport I have been a part of for 20 years in two totally different settings, alongside some of my greatest friends and most respected peers in the industry. The fans have been so good to me over the years, and I’m excited to take them further inside the action of the postseason while staying up to speed on some of the fun and entertaining things unfolding away from the track.”
As Harrison Burton prepares to campaign in his first NASCAR Cup Series race weekend as a Playoff competitor ahead of this weekend’s Playoff opener at Atlanta Motor Speedway, he does so with a milestone start up for grabs. By competing at Atlanta, the driver of the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford Mustang Dark Horse will make his 100th career start in NASCAR’s premier series.
A second-generation racer from Huntersville, North Carolina, Burton made his inaugural presence in the Cup circuit at Talladega Superspeedway in April 2021. By then, he was campaigning in his second full-time season in the Xfinity Series for Joe Gibbs Racing and was coming off a four-race victory season as he also achieved the 2020 Xfinity Rookie-of-the-Year title. Driving the No. 96 Toyota Camry for Gaunt Brothers Racing, Burton rallied from starting at the rear of the field to finish 20th.
In July 2021, Burton was named as the driver of the iconic No. 21 Ford Mustang for Wood Brothers Racing for the 2022 Cup season, where he replaced Matt DiBenedetto and contended for the Rookie-of-the-Year title. Burton’s rookie Cup campaign commenced on a rough note after he was involved in a multi-car wreck during the 64th running of the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. It resulted in the North Carolina native flipping on the roof before rolling back on all four wheels while battling towards the front on Lap 62 of 200 and ending up in 39th place in the final running order.
During his next 18 scheduled events, Burton would finish no higher than 11th and notch a total of six top-20 results before securing his first career top-10 result at Atlanta Motor Speedway in July, where he led nine laps. Three laps later, he achieved his first career top-five result at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course by finishing in third place amid a wild overtime finish. While not in contention of making the 2022 Cup Series Playoffs, Burton would proceed to finish in the top 20 seven additional times during the final 14 events on the schedule, which included an 11th-place run at Martinsville Speedway in October, before settling in 27th place in the final standings and in the runner-up spot behind Austin Cindric for the rookie title.
Remaining at Wood Brothers Racing for the 2023 Cup season, Burton commenced the season by finishing 26th during the 65th running of the Daytona 500 after being involved in a late multi-car wreck. He then finished no higher than 15th twice during his next 11 starts before posting his first top-10 finish with a sixth-place result at Darlington Raceway in May. Burton would then manage an eighth-place finish at Pocono Raceway in July during his next 13 starts as he would not make the Cup Series Playoffs for a second consecutive season. Managing a 15th-place result at Martinsville in November and three top-20s throughout the Playoffs, Burton ended up in 31st place in the final standings and an average-finishing result of 24.7 with only two top-10 recorded results.
Through the first 24 regular-season events of the 2024 Cup Series season, Burton had recorded a single top-10 result, where he finished 10th at Talladega in April, but was strapped with an average-finishing result of 26.9. By then, he was informed in early July that he would be replaced by Josh Berry in 2025.
Then in August, Burton outdueled Kyle Busch during an overtime shootout to score his first elusive Cup Series career victory at Daytona with his father and former NASCAR veteran Jeff Burton calling the event’s broadcast. The Daytona victory made Harrison Burton the 205th competitor overall to win in NASCAR’s premier series as he both secured a spot into the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs and delivered the milestone 100th career win for Wood Brothers Racing.
Through 99 previous Cup starts, Burton has achieved one victory, two top-five results, six top-10 results, 73 laps led and an average finishing result of 24.2. Despite finishing in 21st place during this past weekend’s regular-season finale at Darlington, Burton will commence the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs and his first pursuit for a first Cup title in 14th place in the Playoff standings with 2,005 points.
Harrison Burton is scheduled to make his 100th Cup Series career start at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Quaker State 400 on Sunday, September 8, with the event’s broadcast time to occur at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.
Before CBS broadcast the 1979 Daytona 500 in full from flag to flag, NASCAR races were not broadcast all the way through and instead were tape-delayed. NASCAR tape-delay races would instead be shown in parts with broadcasters, but on rotation in a show like ABC’s Wide World of Sports or NBC Sports World.
This was very popular with the networks on the weekends and sometimes weekdays in the late 50s to the 1980s to show sports that would have a niche interest in the eyes of the networks. Fan interest was also put into play in terms of what niche sports were shown. NASCAR races were also broadcast live through these programs as well.
It wasn’t until 1978 when legendary NASCAR Broadcaster Ken Squier and NASCAR Chairman at the time Bill France Jr. convinced CBS to air the 1979 Daytona 500 from start flag to checkered flag. At first, CBS was very hesitant to air the full event due to concerns about the four-hour length of the race and the viewability of it. Before that, they would show parts of NASCAR races on their version of Wide World of Sports called CBS Sports Spectacular.
Flag-to-flag coverage of a race had never been tried before by any network. Then later that year Mr. Squier convinced Neal Pinson, who worked at CBS and CBS Sports at the time, to air the entire Daytona 500 on CBS TV from green flag to checkered flag across the US. After that, the rest was history. What also helped was on the day of the 1979 Daytona 500 there was a massive snowstorm across most parts of the US but the race track didn’t have that issue.
This led to many people staying in their homes and watching TV. This was a godsend to NASCAR and CBS. Thousands of people flocked to their TV sets and watched that year’s Daytona 500. The Daytona 500 is one of those Super Bowl-like events millions watch today when it’s on FOX, which acquired the rights to broadcast it in 2001 after NASCAR and CBS stopped working together. If it weren’t for Mr. Squier and CBS, as well as NASCAR’s family, the France family, we wouldn’t have full races and NASCAR coverage on TV and on video like we do today.
1. Kyle Larson: Larson dominated at Darlington, leading 263 laps, but faded late on his way to a fourth-place finish in the Cook Out Southern 500.
“Darlington is a race steeped in NASCAR tradition,” Larson said. “And nothing puts the ‘Southern’ in the ‘Southern 500’ quite like an Australian accent calling the race.”
2. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin finished seventh at Darlington.
“Is Richard Childress the biggest crybaby in NASCAR?” Hamlin said. “He must be. He still thinks his grandson Austin Dillon’s actions at Richmond should not be penalized. Talk about an entitled @%#$^&. Of course, I could be talking about Childress or Dillon.”
3. Tyler Reddick: Reddick’s No. 45 Toyota was fast, but he was afflicted with stomach issues all race long. But the 23XI driver toughed it out and finished 10th and won the regular season title.
“I did some unspeakable things in the cockpit of my car,” Reddick said. “My crew was actually calling me ‘Austin Cindric,’ because I was driving the ‘No. 2’ car.”
4. Christopher Bell: Bell finished third in the Cook Out Southern 500.
“Darlington is one of the longest races on the schedule,” Bell said. “And I don’t just mean for drivers. Some fans have actually been known to sober up during the race.”
5. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski finished 14th at Darlington.
“Luckily,” Keselowski said, “I had already clinched a playoff spot, so my race was fairly drama-free. I wasn’t on the playoff bubble. I guess, in the context of this race, the ‘playoff bubble’ was what was going on in Tyler Reddick’s stomach.”
6. Chase Elliott: Elliott struggled at Darlington but put up a late charge to finish 11th in the Cook Out Southern 500.
“I wasn’t much of a factor on Sunday,” Elliott said. “I mean, it could have been worse. I could have been the car that finished directly behind Tyler Reddick. Talk about a debris caution. So much for clean air.”
7. Ryan Blaney: Blaney was knocked out of the race just two laps in when Martin Truex Jr. lost control and slammed into Blaney’s No. 12 Penske Ford. The damage eliminated both cars, with Blaney finishing last in 37th.
“Martin was man enough to take responsibility for the accident,” Blaney said. “He even called himself an ‘idiot.’ It’s refreshing to see someone in this sport with the integrity to call themselves that. If only someone else had the integrity to call their grandson an idiot.”
8. Kyle Busch: Busch was unable to chase down Chase Briscoe in the closing laps at Darlington and took the runner-up spot. Needing a win to advance, he will miss the Playoffs.
“My No. 8 car was primarily sponsored by Morgan And Morgan,” Busch said. “They are a personal injury law firm, and I can proudly say that not only does M & M call me a client, they often call me a defendant.”
9. Chase Briscoe: Briscoe drove his way into the Playoffs, dramatically holding off Kyle Busch in the closing laps to win the Cook Out Southern 500.
“Stewart-Haas Racing is closing its doors after this season,” Briscoe said, “so I’m very hesitant to say I’m ‘fired’ up for the Playoffs.”
10. Bubba Wallace: Wallace started on the pole and finished 16th in the Cook Out Southern 500, a result that wasn’t quite good enough to clinch a playoff spot.
“Michael Jordan was in the pits again offering his support,” Wallace said. “He’s put a lot of money into the 23XI Racing team. I don’t know exactly how much, but if Michael’s invested just half as much in this team as he’s lost on the golf course, then 23XI should be worth billions.”
In a span of 367 grueling laps of the 2024 Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, Chris Buescher and Bubba Wallace went from competing against one another for the 16th and final berth to this year’s Playoffs to both being knocked out of contention amid a new race winner capitalizing on the Playoff’s “Win and You’re In” format.
The diminished Playoff hopes for Buescher and Wallace occurred after both dominated the headlines throughout the Darlington weekend and withstood a series of on-track trials of their own to remain in Playoff contention until the drop of the checkered flag and the conclusion of this year’s 26-race regular-season stretch.
The battle between Buescher and Wallace commenced with the latter striking first as he led the first 34 laps from the pole position. Wallace would proceed to finish in second place at the conclusion of the first stage period and accumulate nine stage points while Buescher ended up in 10th place, which allowed Wallace to overtake Buescher for the 16th and final Playoff berth.
Throughout the second stage period, Buescher would regain the upper hand by a slight margin as Wallace slipped out of the top-five mark. Despite ending up in 13th place at the second stage’s conclusion while Wallace finished ninth, which enabled him to claim an additional two stage points, Buescher leaped back atop Wallace for the final Playoff berth.
Then throughout the final stage period, late drama struck for both Buescher and Wallace that began with 46 laps remaining when the former got squeezed into the backstretch’s outside wall by Todd Gilliland before he proceeded to spin the latter. Despite sustaining slight cosmetic damage to his No. 17 BuildSubmarines.com Ford Mustang Dark Horse entry, Buescher remained both on the lead lap and above the cutline. Then with 24 laps remaining, Wallace’s Playoff hopes took a hit after he was collected in a multi-car wreck in Turn 2, when he ran into the rear of a wrecking William Byron before he was rammed in the rear by Noah Gragson sending Wallace spinning below the track. Despite plummeting below the leaderboard, Wallace was able to keep his damaged No. 23 U.S. Air Force Toyota Camry XSE under power and in race pace.
With Wallace initially appearing to lose ground to Buescher on points for the final Playoff berth, Buescher was then placed at a disadvantage as Chase Briscoe, who came into Darlington in a “must-win” situation, rocketed away with the lead during a late-race restart with 17 laps remaining. For the final 17 laps, Briscoe would fend off Kyle Busch, another Playoff “must-win” contender, to win the race and leapfrog both Buescher and Wallace in the Playoff standings to secure his spot into the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs.
For Buescher, the outcome resulted in the Prosper, Texas, native being the first competitor who was scored outside the top-16 cutline and missing his third opportunity to make the Playoffs a year after he transferred all the way to the Round of 8 and won three races.
From losing to a record-setting finish of 0.001 seconds to Kyle Larson at Kansas Speedway to sustaining a cut tire amid a late-race battle for the win with Tyler Reddick at Darlington, both occurring earlier in May, Buescher reflected on various instances where he missed opportunities to secure a regular-season victory that would have locked him into the Playoffs. With a total of five top-five results and 12 top-10 results in 26 races, the Texan also attempted to reflect on the positives made earlier in the season that would enable him to conclude the 2024 season on a strong note.
“We got back in contention there at the end and got a decent finish out of it,” Buescher said on USA Network. “We just didn’t quite get it done again and we’re on the outside looking in. It’s just the system we’re all playing in. We had such a great year. Everyone at [Roush Fenway Keselowski] has worked so hard. We’ve been so fast. We’ve outrun so many of these cars that are gonna get to run for a championship, but that’s the system and we didn’t work it right.”
Like Buescher, Wallace, who made his first Cup Series Playoffs and finished a career-best 10th a year ago in the final standings, was also left disappointed on pit road despite a late summer surge to fight his way back into the Playoffs. But his hopes evaporated with the recent surge of surprise winners that include Chase Briscoe and Harrison Burton. Nonetheless, the Mobile, Alabama, native praised the fight and determination exhibited by his No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota team in keeping both the driver and team in contention until the regular-season finale’s conclusion.
Currently, Wallace has racked up career-high stats of five top-five results and 10 top-10 results, both of which equal his total accumulated results from the previous two seasons. With his current average-finishing result of 15.8, which marks his personal best, Wallace has 10 races remaining on the 2024 schedule to add to his stats and notch his first Cup victory in two seasons.
Photo by John Knittel for SpeedwayMedia.com.
“We were back and forth on our U.S. Air Force Toyota Camry,” Wallace said. “We were a little too loose, a little too tight. And the caution a couple laps on tires where we stayed out, I don’t know if that was the deciding factor or not. I was so tight there and got back there in traffic in a spot we hadn’t been all day and got caught up someone else’s mess. It’s unfortunate. I hate it for our guys. Man, hats off to [Briscoe]. I thought I did something yesterday. They one-upped us and showed up when it was game time, so that’s pretty badass so congrats to them. Man, just wasn’t good enough for 16th this year. I hate that. It stinks saying that, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort from all of us on this No. 23 car. Best of luck to [Reddick] and hopefully, a Toyota wins.”
Overall, both Buescher and Wallace join Ross Chastain, Kyle Busch, Todd Gilliland, rookie Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell, rookie Josh Berry, Noah Gragson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Erik Jones, Ryan Preece, Austin Dillon, Daniel Hemric, Justin Haley, Corey LaJoie, John Hunter Nemechek and rookie Zane Smith as full-time Cup Series competitors who did not qualify for the 2024 Playoffs. Nonetheless, all have the final 10-race Playoff stretch to contend for as high as 17th place in the final standings.
The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season continues with the upcoming Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, which will commence the Playoffs. The event is scheduled to occur next Sunday, September 8, at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.
DARLINGTON, S.C. — Darlington Raceway lived up to its reputation Saturday night to a sold-out crowd as the track “Too Tough to Tame” delivered all the twists and turns we’ve come to expect.
The Southern 500 was the final race of the NASCAR Cup Series regular season and emotions ran high in anticipation of the upcoming series Playoffs. When the checkered flag waved, Chase Briscoe crossed the finish line first in his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford to win the Southern 500, secure his spot in the Playoffs and emerge as the regular season champion. It was Briscoe’s second career win in the series.
But it wasn’t easy one as he held off a hard-charging Kyle Busch in the final closing laps. Busch was also fighting for a spot in the Playoffs but came up short finishing 0.361 seconds behind Briscoe.
“I was sideways, countersteering. I felt like I was in a Sprint Car,” Briscoe said. “Yeah, this night just literally went perfect. The pit crew did an incredible job and I was crying after the checkered because I just won the Southern 500.
“This is a crown jewel and what makes this race so special is all you race fans. Every time we come here it’s sold out. It’s awesome and we love you guys. The last time I won here was during COVID, so I didn’t get the experience with the fans, so I’m grateful you guys are here and I can’t wait to celebrate.”
After the race, a disappointed Busch described the final laps as he raced Briscoe for the win.
“I’m proud of everyone on the No. 8 Morgan & Morgan Chevrolet team today for finishing second. We didn’t have much speed throughout the majority of the race. We were just mired in traffic, and we weren’t able to get up through the field. Once we did get up there, I felt like we were going to have a shot at running in the top five during those last three or four restarts. But then we had a shot for the win and just couldn’t make it up there.
“We needed Chase Briscoe to have about three more laps on his tires, maybe. If his tires would have been just a little bit more used up, I could have gotten there. I got within his wake, and as soon as I got within his wake I felt my car come out of the racetrack and I didn’t have enough to overpower that. I really hate it for everybody at RCR because we’ve put a lot of effort and work into our Chevrolets.
“We didn’t have much speed there through a majority of the race,” Busch said. “We were just mired in traffic, and we weren’t able to get up through there. “But once we got up there, I felt like those last three or four restarts, we were going to have a shot running in the top-5. But then we had a shot for the win and just couldn’t make it up there.”
It will be the first time Busch has missed the Playoffs since 2012,
Christopher Bell finished third, followed by Kyle Larson, Ross Chastain, Chris Buescher, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Corey LaJoie and Tyler Reddick to complete the top 10.
Kyle Larson led 263 laps and won the first two stages but his fourth-place finish left him one point short of claiming the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season title which went to 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick. Larson will, however, start the Playoffs as the No. 1 seed with 40 Playoff points.
Buescher’s sixth-place finish, unfortunately, was not enough to advance him to the Playoffs as Martin Truex Jr. and Ty Gibbs advanced based on points earned throughout the season even though both were involved in wrecks.
With an advantage of just a single point, Tyler Reddick clinched the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Regular Season Championship after a wild Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, September 1.
The two-time Xfinity Series champion from Corning, California, persevered and ground through an event that spanned nearly four hours and seven cautions for 39 laps. Amid his battle on the track to contend for the regular-season title, Reddick himself was also battling an illness that he first radioed to his team after the first stage period that ended on Lap 130, where he finished fourth and picked up seven stage points.
Receiving medicine, water and crackers from his No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota pit crew to maintain his health from inside the cockpit, Reddick fought through his illness to steer his car to an eighth-place result after the second stage period on Lap 230. By then, he had accumulated a total of 10 stage points, three from the latter stage period. With Kyle Larson sweeping the event’s first two stages, however, Reddick had a 17-point advantage he had coming into the Southern 500 weekend disappear as Larson was in prime position to win his second regular-season title.
For the majority of the final 130 laps throughout the final stage period, Larson continued his early dominance by dominating with the top spot on the track as Reddick was struggling to keep pace with the front-runners.
Then through a series of late-race incidents and late green flag pit strategies ensuing as Larson would be challenged late by Denny Hamlin and eventual winner Chase Briscoe for the top spot, Reddick opted to pit during an extensive caution period that started with 24 laps remaining due to a heavy multi-car wreck that involved Reddick’s teammate Bubba Wallace, who was trying to race his way into the Playoffs.
Restarting inside the top 12 during a 17-lap shootout to the finish, Reddick would manage to gain two spots and claim the checkered flag in 10th place for his 18th top-10 result of the 2024 Cup Series season. With Larson falling back to fourth place despite leading a race-high 263 laps and winning the event’s first two stages, Reddick emerged on top of the regular-season standings by a single point over Larson as the former emerged as a regular-season champion for the first time in his fifth full-time season in the Cup Series level,
With his accomplishment, Reddick, who is in his second consecutive season driving the No. 45 Toyota for 23XI Racing, joined Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott as competitors to win a Cup Series Regular Season Championship. The championship was also the first of any type in NASCAR for 23XI Racing, which is in its fourth season in competition.
With the regular-season title and 15 Playoff points, Reddick will commence the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs in third place in the Playoff standings with 2,028 points, where he is four points behind runner-up Christopher Bell and 12 points behind Playoff points leader Kyle Larson entering next weekend’s Playoff opener at Atlanta Motor Speedway
Amid the relief of securing the 2024 regular-season championship, Reddick could not overlook the disappointment and the run he had at Darlington that nearly cost him the title.
“Things fell our way there at the end,” Reddick said on USA Network. “[The regular-season title]’s huge for us,” Reddick added. “This is what this team’s all about. I feel like this is the worst night we’ve had in months and months speed-wise wise and we still finished 10th. It was kind of an all-out struggle for us, so just really proud of everybody on this team, staying behind me. Shame we gave some points up. I feel like this is a race we could win, but it’s really nice to, in year two for me here at this team and year four of this team for [the team overall], to get the regular season championship like we did.”
With the 2024 Cup Series Regular Season Championship officially locked up, the 2024 season overall is shaping up to be Reddick’s best season overall in NASCAR’s premier series. The Californian has won twice this season, the first occurring at Talladega Superspeedway in April before he won two weeks ago at Michigan International Speedway. In addition, he has racked up 11 top-five results and 18 top-10 results, the most he has garnered in a Cup season, throughout the 26-race regular-season stretch. With a season-best average-finishing result of 11.2, Reddick enters the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs as a prime favorite to contend for this year’s championship.
Tyler Reddick’s pursuit for a Cup Series championship commences next Sunday, September 8, at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Quaker State 400. The event’s coverage is scheduled to commence at 3 p.m. ET on USA Network.
Bubba Wallace was fastest in NASCAR Cup Series qualifying, winning his third career pole in the 23X1 Racing No. 23 Toyota with a 167.146 mph lap and will lead the field to green for Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500.
His starting position could prove pivotal as he is currently the first driver below the cutoff for the series Playoffs.
“Looking at us coming in, being on the bubble, 21 points out, a ton of pressure, well I think the pressure just switched,” Wallace said after qualifying. “We’re not here to mess around. I showed up with a more open and calm demeanor, free and relaxing demeanor, but at the same time, I don’t want to be messed with. So it’s a fine balance you have to walk.
“We’ve been really good here in qualifying and we’ve also given up a really good race car trying too hard from what I’m hearing from data and just not getting back to the basics. So today, I’ve determined that Darlington is probably one of the, if not the hardest places to qualify. Just the way you have to approach practice to the qualifying trim, it’s totally different.”
Wallace is currently in 17th, one spot below the 16-driver cutoff for the Playoffs. His strategy in preparing for Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 is to focus on every aspect of the process, as he explains below.
“Anything can happen so we have to run our own race,” he said. “It makes it a lot easier for us. Having that first pit stall and as long as long as we execute and make the right calls, be great on pit road then — all I want is every single person a part of this team, including myself, is to go to bed tomorrow night saying, ‘We did whatever we could. We did all we could.’ And maybe it was good enough, maybe it wasn’t so that’s the lottery ticket we’ll find out tomorrow after the race.”
Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar (167.010 mph) was second quickest, followed by Stewart-Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe (166.270 mph) and Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson (167.015 mph). Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. (166.236 mph) completed the top five drivers in the qualifying session.
Tyler Reddick (167.004 mph), Ryan Blaney (166.040 mph), William Byron (166.540 mph), Christopher Bell (165.743 mph) and Chris Buescher (165.855 mph) completed the top 10.
Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway is set for Sunday at 6 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on USA with radio coverage provided by MRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
With one race to go in the regular season, everything is on the line for the NASCAR Cup Series drivers at Darlington Raceway’s Southern 500 on Sunday evening.
Who will tame the Lady in Black and advance to the Playoffs in the regular season finale and who will be crowned as the regular season champion? With only three spots remaining in the Playoffs, one thing is certain; the on-track action will be intense.
23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick is poised to earn the regular season championship, leading the standings over Hendrick Motorsports drivers, Kyle Larson (-17) and Chase Elliott (-18). Larson, the defending race winner, is hoping to give Reddick a
“I love racing at Darlington, and it was cool to get that first (Cup) win there last year in the Southern 500,” he said. “We’re 17 points down, but we’re going to race hard for stage points and hopefully be able to battle for the Regular Season Championship at the end of the race.”
Thirteen drivers have already earned the opportunity to compete in the 16-driver Cup Series Playoff field by virtue of wins – Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, William Byron, Harrison Burton, Austin Cindric, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick and Daniel Suarez.
Of the winless drivers, and currently ranked in 14th place, Martin Truex Jr. (+58) is in the best position to advance to the Playoffs. But he acknowledged the demanding nature of the track and the obstacles he will face.
“The challenge is that it’s a long race, a lot of pit stops and a lot of chances for things to go wrong,” he said. “Track position is obviously really important. To go through 13 sets of tires or whatever it is, and track position and what it means there, and to keep track position, it’s tough to stay up front and be consistently really strong. It’s tough to do there, and we hope we can do that on Sunday night.”
He’s followed by Ty Gibbs (+39) in 15th, and Chris Buescher (+21) in 16th place. But that can quickly change if there is a new winner.
The following drivers can clinch with a win at Darlington – Martin Truex Jr., Ty Gibbs, Chris Buescher, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe, Todd Gilliland, Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell, Josh Berry, Noah Gragson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ryan Preece, Daniel Hemric, Austin Dillon, Justin Haley, John Hunter Nemechek, Corey LaJoie and Zane Smith.
Although Austin Dillon won at Richmond Raceway, he was denied an automatic berth in the Playoffs after a ruling by NASCAR that his actions at the end of the race when he made contact with Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin, were deliberate and unacceptable.
Wallace improved his chance of making the Playoffs after winning the pole for Sunday’s Southern 600.
“Anything can happen so we have to run our own race,” he said. “It makes it a lot easier for us. Having that first pit stall and as long as long as we execute and make the right calls, be great on pit road then — all I want is every single person a part of this team, including myself, is to go to bed tomorrow night saying, ‘We did whatever we could. We did all we could.’ And maybe it was good enough, maybe it wasn’t so that’s the lottery ticket we’ll find out tomorrow after the race.”
The Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 is set for 6 p.m. ET Sunday and will be broadcast on USA with radio coverage provided by MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
This weekend NASCAR travels to Darlington Raceway. The Cook Out Southern 500 is the final race of the NASCAR Cup Series regular season for the first time since the Playoffs began in 2004.
Thirteen drivers have already earned a spot in the 16-driver Cup Series Playoff field – Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Alex Bowman, William Byron, Harrison Burton, Austin Cindric, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Tyler Reddick and Daniel Suarez.
The regular season Cup Series Champion will also be decided at Darlington. Tyler Reddick can clinch with 44 points, while Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott can only clinch with help.
The Xfinity Series will compete on the 1.366-mile track on Saturday afternoon. There are only four races remaining in the Xfinity Series regular season with 12 drivers advancing to the Playoffs. Five drivers have already clinched a spot – Justin Allgaier, Shane van Gisbergen, Austin Hill, Sam Mayer and Chandler Smith.
The CRAFTSMAN Truck Series takes a break from competition before the series Playoffs resume at Bristol Motor Speedway on September 16.
Saturday, August 31 10:30 a.m.: Xfinity Series Practice Timed-Groups 1 and 2-15 minutes each NBC Sports App
11:10 a.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying Impound-All Entries/Single Vehicle-1 Lap NBC Sports App
12:35 p.m.: Cup Series Practice Timed-Groups A & B-20 minutes each USA/MRN/SiriusXM/ NBC Sports App 1:20 p.m.: Cup Series Qualifying Impound-Groups A & B-Single Vehicle-1 Lap-2 Rounds USA/MRN/SiriusXM/ NBC Sports App
3:30 p.m.: Xfinity Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help a Hero 200 Stages end on Laps 45/90/147=200.8 Miles USA/MRN/SiriusXM/ NBC Sports App Purse: $1,303,907
Sunday, September 1 6 p.m.: Cup Series Cook Out Southern 500 Stages end on Laps 115/230/367=501.32 Miles USA/MRN/SiriusXM/ NBC Sports App Purse: $8,644,143
