NASCAR SERIES

Friday Bristol Notebook

Notebook Items:

Ross Chastain optimistic despite spotty record at Bristol
Denny Hamlin’s approach to Bristol is far different from last year’s
Rookie Shane van Gisbergen faces difficult challenge at Thunder Valley
Josh Berry’s task at Bristol is clearly defined

September 12, 2025

By Holly Cain & Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

Ross Chastain optimistic despite spotty record at Bristol

BRISTOL, Tenn.— Ross Chastain comes to Bristol Motor Speedway ranked high enough in the Playoff standings that he should reasonably expect to transfer into the second round following Saturday night’s cutoff race.

But he acknowledges it’s been a learning progression at the sport’s traditionally high-action, high-banked short track, where he’s finished 35th or worse in five of his 10 starts.

Chastain, driver of the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, goes into the Bass Pro Shops Night Race ranked 11th among the 16 Playoff drivers. He holds a 19-point edge on 13th place Austin Dillon with only the top 12 racers remaining championship eligible following Saturday night’s checkered flag.

Since his victory in Charlotte’s Coca-Cola 600 in May, Chastain has posted six finishes of 11th or better.

“I think it puts us in a spot where we are fast enough to stay above the cut line, but a failure or an error, it's easy to hit the wall here,” Chastain said. “They've painted them (the walls) back to their old all-black. They're waiting on you if you make a mistake, so we’ve got 500 laps to get through.”

Although Chastain has never won—and never led a lap—at Bristol, the encouraging thing is that two of his three career top-10 finishes at the track have come in the last two visits. And he scored a career-best sixth-place effort here in the 2022 fall race.

“I love the track, and I love driving up here,” Chastain said. “I love driving on it, even when I've been slow and was really bummed. … I don't know if it's coming together or not, but Phil Surgen (crew chief) has been giving me good race cars here, and we need that next step to put us really in contention to try to win.

“We've taken the step to get to the top 10, and we want to keep that going and take the next one.”

Denny Hamlin’s approach to Bristol is far different from last year’s

What a difference a year makes. Two races into the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, Denny Hamlin was six points below the cut line entering the elimination race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Hamlin had finished 24th in the Playoff opener at Atlanta and 23rd the following week at Watkins Glen, needing a solid performance at Thunder Valley just to advance to the next round.

With a fourth-place result, Hamlin vaulted to sixth in the Playoff standings and staved off elimination until the penultimate race of the season at Martinsville.

This year, Hamlin comes to Bristol fresh from his fifth victory of the season, at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, knowing he’ll be part of the Round of 12.

The circumstances are different, and so is the mind-set, no matter how often a driver will tell you the approach to every race is the same.

“It was definitely different,” Hamlin said of last year’s effort. “I try to approach each week the same when it comes to my process, but now certainly, your mind plays games with you, though. There is certainly a different mind-set when you are locked in versus being below the cut or being near the cut, so without a doubt, I’m resting much, much easier this year in the Playoffs in general.

“I’m way more loose with it—whatever the results are, the results are. So that helps, and on top of that, winning—it just makes me even looser. Certainly, yes, anytime I go into a cut race and I’m close to the cut, I have to pull myself back to not think about the things that I don’t control, and that is typically what I think drivers would say when they get in these scenarios where they are facing elimination.

“They are worrying about all of the things they can’t control. It is certainly a different mind-set.”

Rookie Shane van Gisbergen faces difficult challenge at Thunder Valley

The season’s rookie sensation, Trackhouse Racing’s Shane Van Gisbergen, has won a rookie record four races and boasts the two largest margins of victory in race wins this year (Mexico City and Watkins Glen, N.Y.).

But the former Australian Supercars champion finds himself ranked 14th of the 16 Playoff drivers—15 points below the cutoff line that will determine which 12 drivers continue a championship run following Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The New Zealander said the half-mile Bristol high banks have been some of the most challenging racing he’s faced since becoming a full-time NASCAR competitor last season.

He finished 38th at Bristol this Spring in his only previous NASCAR Cup Series start at the track—his No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet retiring early with a suspension problem. He was 18th in his only other Bristol start in last year’s NASCAR Xfinity Series event.

“Pretty level at the moment, we know it’s not going to be easy, just haven’t been good enough the last couple weeks,” Van Gisbergen said of his outlook for the weekend with so much on the line.

“Need to put together a solid night if we’re to have any chance. I really struggled here at the first (race), so tried to study and prep the best I can and hopefully have a good night (Saturday). This is probably the hardest track for me driving with the way the banking is and how close it is, how short the lap is. It’s a world away from anything I’ve ever done.

“Just knowing I’ve got a good team around me. The car looks really good, and the prep’s been really good. I know as a team we can be really competitive here. The weakness is me, but I’ve done everything I can this week to try and be the strength.”

Josh Berry’s task at Bristol is clearly defined

After early accidents in the first two NASCAR Cup Series Playoff races left Josh Berry last in the postseason standings, the driver of No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford comes to Bristol Motor Speedway with absolute clarity.

Berry must win Saturday night’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at the 0.533-mile short track, or his run in the postseason is over.

In the Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway, Berry crashed off the second corner of the opening lap and finished last. A week later, contact with Chase Elliott’s Chevrolet sent his Mustang spinning into the wall, and Berry again was credited with a last-place finish.

After the two disasters, Berry is 45 points below the elimination line for the Playoffs’ Round of 12 and must win to escape summary ouster from the 16-driver Playoff field.

“We go every week to go win, really,” Berry said. “That’s what we all work towards week-in and week-out, to be competitive and to win races, so just because of the situation that we’re in, it’s not like we can try extra hard or do something different that we normally wouldn’t do.

“Maybe there’s a play strategy-wise that we could throw if we felt like we had to, but outside of that, it’s about just doing all the little things right and executing a solid night and just giving ourselves the opportunity. That’s all it really amounts to.”

Thursday Bristol Notebook

Notebook Items:

LARSON GOES FOR THIRD STRAIGHT WIN AT BRISTOL
HAAS FACTORY TEAM CONFIDENT IN FORD FOR PLAYOFF DRIVE
CREED OPTIMISTIC FOR FIRST VICTORY

September 11, 2025

By Holly Cain

NASCAR Wire Service

LARSON GOES FOR THIRD STRAIGHT WIN AT BRISTOL

BRISTOL, Tenn. – The last two races at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway have essentially been Kyle Larson highlight reels and the Playoff driver would like nothing more than to continue that domination in Saturday night’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race (7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet led 462 of 500 laps in last year’s Playoff race at the famed half-miler and 411 of 500 laps in the series previous visit earlier this year – an incredible 87 percent of the laps turned in that time. His total laps out front at Bristol – 1,762 – is the most at any NASCAR track where Larson has competed.

A win Saturday night would make him only the fifth person in series history to win three consecutive races on the always-challenging Bristol high banks.

“The atmosphere is always up for the (Bristol) Night Race," said Larson, who is third in the standings, the highest ranked driver without a Playoff win heading into the first elimination race of the 10-race championship push.

“The night race just means more to me, I don’t know if everyone feels the same way but I want to win all the races but I would like to win the night race over the spring one if I had to pick one or the other just because winning under the lights at Bristol is pretty awesome," Larson continued. “It's not considered a crown jewel but in my mind it’s the one I want to win really badly every year.”

*HAAS FACTORY TEAM CONFIDENT IN FORD FOR PLAYOFF DRIVE

Earlier this week, the Haas Factory Team, which fields Fords for Cole Custer in the NASCAR Cup Series and Sam Mayer and Sheldon Creed in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, announced it would be switching power-plants to Chevrolet in 2026.

With the news coming just as the NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoffs begin Friday in Bristol, Tenn. the drivers were asked if they worried any about Ford’s commitment to the team as it embarks on a title run.

Both Mayer and Creed were quick to insist Ford’s backing has not waned despite the upcoming manufacturer swap.

“I can only speak for the Xfinity Series side and what I’ve experienced so far," said Mayer, who starts the Playoffs Saturday night at Bristol ranked third in the standings.

“For us, it’s wide-open. We are a go and we are gonna go win the championship with Ford. That’s what they want. That’s what we want and everyone at Haas Factory Team is behind us as well with that.

“I actually just got out of the sim yesterday afternoon for Bristol and had a really good day with it. I think we’re in a really good spot for that, and I think that’s gonna continue throughout the rest of the season because it’s in all of our interests to go out there and have a really good, strong finish to the rest of the season for all of us.”

*CREED OPTIMISTIC FOR FIRST VICTORY

Sheldon Creed is not only eager to get the Playoffs going in his pursuit of an Xfinity Series title. He’s eager to raise his first career race trophy in the series.

With a runner-up showing in Martinsville, Va. earlier this season, Creed set a new record of second-place finishes (14) without a victory. The good news for him is that he’s finished second in four of the seven Playoff tracks, including the final three stops of the championship run – at Talladega (Ala.), at Martinsville and at Phoenix.

What does he selfishly wish for more, that maiden win or a season title?

“Both," he said with a smile. “I think first is to get that win finally. It’s been a challenging three-and-a-half years. We’ve been close numerous times, but haven’t been as close lately. I think I’d be lying to myself if I said we were right on the edge lately, but I think the first goal is to win.

“The second goal is just to be able to score as many points as possible and get ourselves to the Round of 8, and then refocus from there on where we think our strengths are, whether that be in Vegas, Talladega or Martinsville, and if we can win there, then focus goes to Phoenix on how are we gonna win there.”

NASCAR Weekend Preview: Bristol Motor Speedway

September 10, 2025

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

Austin Dillon stays close as NASCAR Cup Playoffs move to Bristol

It’s not often that a driver leaves a race track proud of an 18th-place finish, but that was clearly the case with Austin Dillon after last Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.

In fact, finishing 18th was a triumph for the driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, and it left him within striking distance of the Round of 12 entering Saturday’s Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on USA, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Dillon is the first driver below the current elimination for the Round of 12, with the Playoff field set to be cut from 16 drivers to 12 on Saturday night. Dillon trails 12th-place Austin Cindric by 11 points and 11th-place Ross Chastain by 19 points—and it took a concerted effort by his team at Gateway to stay that close.

“We were terrible (on Sunday),” Dillon said of the performance of his car at the track in Greater St. Louis. “Our whole organization just missed it this weekend, but we executed great. I'm proud of the effort this No. 3 Dow DayGlo Chevrolet team gave for what we had for a race car. The guys did all we could to strategize, and running long worked.

“At the end of the race when we finished 18th, that was the best we were all day. We got stage points in Stage 2 and that was huge. It gives us a shot going into Bristol Motor Speedway. Hopefully, we bring the best car that we can so that we can make a run and advance into the next round of the Playoffs.”

Overtaking one of the drivers ahead of him will be a challenge for the 35-year-old. In 20 starts at the 0.533-mile concrete oval, Dillon has one top five to his credit (fourth in 2016), four top 10s and an average finish of 17.8. He did earn a 10th-place result in the spring race this year.

Cindric’s average finish in five starts at Thunder Valley is 22.6, and his best result is 13th last year. Chastain has posted three top 10s in 10 starts, all coming since he joined Trackhouse Racing in 2022 and all in the Gen 7 race car. Chastain was seventh in the 2025 spring race.

Shane van Gisbergen, four points behind Dillon after two Playoff races, likely will have to depend on calamity to others to advance, and both Alex Bowman and Josh Berry—35 and 45 points below the elimination line, respectively—for practical purposes will be driving in must-win scenarios.

Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin already have claimed two of the berths in the Round of 12 with their respective victories at Darlington and Gateway. At 60 points above the elimination line, Kyle Larson likely will enjoy 500 laps around the high-banked track without worrying about ouster from the postseason.

Bristol is a track where Larson’s high-speed mastery has been in full display. Winner of the last two races at the Last Great Coliseum, the driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet led 873 of a possible 1,000 laps in those two events.

Larson comes to the elimination race on a streak of six straight top-five finishes, including three wins. And though Goodyear is providing a softer right-side tire for Saturday’s race, Larson believes his history at the track will weigh more heavily on his performance there.

“I’m not really going into it with any different mind-set than what we typically would go to Bristol,” Larson said Wednesday during a Zoom conference with reporters. “I’ve been to Bristol with many different packages and tire combinations, probably, and Bristol’s still Bristol.

“It races amazing, and I’ve always been competitive there. I just feel like I’ve got a natural feel for the pace and rhythm that it takes to go good there. I hope our car’s close again and we can execute a good weekend like we have the last two times there.”

Connor Zilisch rides a wave as NASCAR Xfinity Playoffs begin

As Justin Allgaier begins the defense of the long-awaited NASCAR Xfinity Series title he won at Phoenix Raceway last year, the focus, appropriately enough, is on his rookie JR Motorsports teammate, Connor Zilisch.

The 19-year-old driver of the No. 88 Chevrolet has won seven of the last eight races, including the last four straight, tying Sam Ard (1983) and Noah Gragson (2022) for the Xfinity Series record for consecutive victories.

Zilisch, the Regular Season Champion, is 59 points above the current elimination line for the Playoffs’ Round of 8 entering Friday night’s Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on CW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

He plans to keep his remarkable streak going as the postseason begins.

“This No. 88 team has been on a run this year, and four wins in a row is a rare feat, but we aren’t going to take any of that for granted going into the Playoffs,” Zilisch said. “(Crew chief) Mardy (Lindley), my whole team and my pit crew continue to execute every week, and we don’t plan on turning down the intensity anytime soon.

“It has been awesome to have the success we have had this season, and we plan to unload another fast WeatherTech Chevrolet this Friday.”

At 30 points above the current cut line, Allgaier is the only Playoff driver besides Zilisch with any degree of comfort entering the Playoffs.

The remaining 10 Playoff drivers, from Sam Mayer in third to Austin Hill in 12th, are covered by a spread of 16 points. Mayer is 11 points to the good while Hill, who lost his regular-season Playoff points under penalty for wrecking Aric Almirola at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, is five points below the elimination line.

The extraordinary closeness of the Playoff field all but guarantees an intense scramble for position in Friday night’s Playoff opener at Thunder Valley.

Chandler Smith expects to rally from Darlington disappointment

For a driver who finished 30th in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series Playoff opener at Darlington Raceway and currently occupies next-to-last place in the standings, Chandler Smith has a surprisingly sanguine outlook entering Thursday night’s UNOH 250 Presented by Ohio Logistics at Bristol Motor Speedway (8 p.m. ET on FS1, NRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

“Honestly, I’m not too worried about it,” said Smith, who crashed out of the Darlington race after 14 laps and is two points below the current elimination line for the Round of 8. “…Going back to Bristol, we were really strong there earlier this year," said Smith. "Then New Hampshire as well, so I’m not really worried about the point situation.”

In fact, Smith won the spring race at Thunder Valley from the third starting position. Both he and Front Row Motorsports teammate Layne Riggs have had consistently fast Fords of late.

“We’ve still got two races left going back to Bristol, where we won earlier this year and then New Hampshire for the last race of this round, where I’ve been really strong in the past as well,” Smith said.

“I’m not really discouraged or anything about that. I think our trucks here recently have been really good. Everybody at Front Row Motorsports has been giving me a truck capable of going out there and winning.”

The Sept. 20 EJP 175 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway will trim the Playoff field from 10 drivers to eight. Smith trails eighth-place Jake Garcia by two points and seventh-place Rajah Caruth by four. Kaden Honeycutt is 10th in the standings, seven points below the elimination line.

Already guaranteed a spot in the Round of 8, eight-race winner Corey Heim goes for his fourth straight Truck Series victory on Friday. Heim has taken the checkered flag in four of the last five races, three times from the pole position.

With Playoff victory, Denny Hamlin nears personal milestone

September 8, 2025

By Reid Spencer

NASCAR Wire Service

MADISON, Ill. — Denny Hamlin spent much of his post-race press conference relishing the freedom he earned with Sunday’s victory in the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.

With his ticket already punched for the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 12, Hamlin can race with abandon next Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, while others are scrambling to keep their title hopes alive.

Having secured his 59th career Cup victory at Gateway, Hamlin is free to pursue the distinction he covets most, a place in the top 10 all-time Cup race winners. With one more victory, Hamlin would tie Kevin Harvick for 10th on the career list.

Hamlin is a four-time winner at Bristol, with three of his victories coming in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, which will serve as the Round of 16 elimination event on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET on USA, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

“I would love to get 60 at Bristol—that would be fantastic,” Hamlin said. “I'm not going to change my preparation for Bristol. All this win (at Gateway) did was just add work to the week, 'cause it allows us to now get ahead to the next round.

“There's no way I'm willing to go to Bristol compromising my normal routine. I feel as though being locked in, how many are locked into the next round? Just two… I mean, you cannot race Bristol thinking about points. If you do, you can finish pretty good, but you're not going to win the race, because you have to run that track at 10/10ths all the time.

“You're going to be pushing at the edge, up against the wall. It's people that have to chase points (who) are not going to be able to push it to the edge like they need to to win at that track. I think there's a small group of us that have an advantage now going into next week, because that's what it takes to win there… That's just a massive advantage. It's hard for me to put it in words.”

A Denny Hamlin who thinks he has an edge is a dangerous Denny Hamlin. True, his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate, Chase Briscoe, enjoys the same advantage, as does Kyle Larson, who is poised to clinch a Round of 12 berth unless absolute disaster strikes.

Briscoe won the Playoff opener at Darlington, and Larson has a 60-point margin above the current elimination line, but neither seems as hungry for a Bristol win as Hamlin.

“I think there's just some people that are different,” Hamlin said. “I talked about it at Dover in the post presser there (after his July 20 win) that I'm sure there's someone more competitive than me. I just have never met them…

“I just think that there's a few people in every sport that are just built a little different, and they just won't settle for anything but winning.”

Hamlin is approaching the end of his career. At 44 years old—soon to be 45—he recently signed a contract extension limited to two years—declining to opt for more.

“I'm just not going to leave this sport on my deathbed, you know, just leaking oil, running in the back of the pack,” Hamlin said. “I have way too much pride for that. I'm way too cocky for that. There's just no way. I want to be able to win my last race.

“To do that, I'm going to have to retire when I'm racing like this.”

To the championship that has eluded him for 20 years, Hamlin seems almost indifferent. He prefers to measure his career with checkered flags.

“It's always been about number of races,” Hamlin said. “The only one I thought about was this year and the Daytona 500, thinking that (I’m) probably only going to do this twice more. Brickyards, right? I haven't won the freaking Brickyard. I'm going to have two more shots at it, and that's it, to round this thing out.

“There are certain races that I do have countdowns for. Championships isn't one of 'em. Obviously, it's well-documented that I want to get the wins, and I feel like that will carry its weight long after.

“When you compare me to someone that's maybe got one or two, maybe three championships, and half the wins, I don't think that person's better than I am.”

Saturday World Wide Technology Raceway Notebook

Despite the weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth at the performance of Hendrick Motorsports at Darlington Raceway, Kyle Larson actually helped himself in the Playoff-opening Cook Out Southern 500.

Yes, Larson finished a lackluster 19th last Sunday, sandwiched between Hendrick teammates Chase Elliott in 17th and William Byron in 21st. But Larson’s ability to collect points in the first two stages, combined with the misfortunes of others, enabled him to gain 12 points versus the current elimination line in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

Now 38 points to the good, Larson is third in the standings behind Southern 500 winner Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin entering Sunday’s Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway (3 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

The 1.25-mile asphalt oval across the Mississippi River from St. Louis hasn’t been a stronghold for Hendrick drivers, but it hasn’t been a disaster for Larson either. In the three events at WWT Raceway, the driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet has finished 12th, fourth and 10th and has led laps in the last two races.

Perhaps more important was Larson’s participation in a Goodyear tire test at Gateway in June. With Brad Keselowski representing Ford and Erik Jones testing for Toyota, Larson is the only Playoff driver to have turned laps at the track this year.

After the test, tire maker Goodyear settled on the same left- and right-side tire combination introduced at Iowa Speedway in early August. This will be the first time the combination has been raced at Gateway, and Larson is optimistic about his chances at the track.

“We had a great test at Gateway earlier this year that led us down a different path with our short-track program,” Larson said. “We feel we have learned some things that have made that program a little bit better since then.

“We should be more competitive and at least start the weekend better than we have. If we can be good at Gateway, that will give us some confidence going to Phoenix.”

Obvious from that statement is that Larson doesn’t expect an early exit from the Playoffs and plans to advance to the Championship 4 Race with a chance to add to the title he won in 2021.

The expectation, however, is that the Hendrick drivers will have to go through Team Penske to reach Victory Lane at WWT Raceway. Three-time series champion Joey Logano won the inaugural Cup event at the track in 2022, and teammate Austin Cindric triumphed last year.

“It certainly sounds cool,” said Cindric when reminded of his status as the defending winner. “We’ve got to go out and do it. It’s obviously been a good track for us as a team, and we’ve got to make sure we capitalize.”

This weekend marks Gateway’s first appearance in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, which suits Logano just fine.

“It just seems like for us right now most of the time our cars are pretty fast at the flat one-mile type racetracks, whether that’s Phoenix, Gateway, Loudon…” said Logano, three points below the current elimination line after a 20th-place run at Darlington.

“It seems like we have a pretty good handle on that type of thing and that type of track, so hopefully that’s the case again.”

It would not be wise, however, to overlook Joe Gibbs Racing. Denny Hamlin finished second in each of the last two Gateway races, and Christopher Bell led a race-high 80 laps and swept the first two stages last year before finishing seventh.

Bell, Alex Bowman, Shane van Gisbergen and Josh Berry all finished outside the top 25 in the Playoff opener at Darlington. No driver has ever finished outside the top 25 in two Round of 16 races and advanced to the Round of 12.

The largest deficit ever overcome after one race to make the Round of 12 is 21 points (Clint Bowyer in 2019 and Chase Briscoe last year). Bowman and Berry are 19 points below the elimination line after the Cook Out Southern 500.

While the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs are in full swing at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, the 2025 NASCAR Xfinity Series Playoff field won’t be solidified until after Saturday night’s Nu Way 200 Sauced by Blues Hog at the 1.25-mile track (7:30 p.m. on CW, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

There are three Playoff spots still available to the Xfinity Series drivers, who will race at Gateway for the first time since 2010. If there’s a repeat winner on Saturday—or a win by a driver who can’t advance to the Playoffs—both Sheldon Creed and Taylor Gray would advance to the postseason on points.

That would leave cousins Harrison Burton and Jeb Burton to battle for the last Playoff berth. Harrison Burton currently enjoys a 31-point cushion over Jeb Burton and would need to score 27 points at Gateway to lock his cousin out of the postseason.

Harrison Burton has three NASCAR Cup Series starts at Gateway, with a best finish of 23rd in 2023.

“I’ve been fortunate to get a few Cup starts at the track, and while the results don’t necessarily show everything we had, I learned a lot about the rhythm of the place and how important track position and execution are over a long run,” he said.

“That experience should definitely help as we go back with our AM Racing team. We know how critical this race is for our Playoff hopes, and I believe if we can put together a smart, solid night, we’ll be in good shape to accomplish our goal.”

At the top of the standings, the Regular Season Champion won’t be crowned until Saturday night. Connor Zilisch, winner of six of the last seven Xfinity Series races, leads JR Motorsports teammate and defending series champion Justin Allgaier by 20 points entering the regular-season finale.

At 50 points back, Haas Factory Team’s Sam Mayer is still mathematically alive for the title, but he would need disastrous results from both Zilisch and Allgaier to prevail.

There is no former Xfinity winner at Gateway in the field for Saturday’s race, but Riverton, Illinois, native Allgaier did claim the pole for the most recent event there in 2010, won by Brad Keselowski.

“Hopefully we can go out and have a great day, run up front and gain points on our teammate to get this Regular Season Championship,” Allgaier said. “Either way, our goal remains the same, and that is to win the race.”

Zilisch will try for a fourth straight victory for the second time this season. Only Sam Ard in 1983 and Noah Gragson in 2022 have been winners of four consecutive Xfinity Series races.

“I’m looking forward to going to World Wide for the first time this weekend,” said Zilisch, who has posted 13 straight top-five finishes, including seven victories, since returning from an injury sustained at Talladega in the 11th race of the season.

“Since our win at Portland (last Saturday), that left World Wide as the only track on the current schedule that JRM has not won at, so I’m hoping we can keep the momentum going and cross that off, too. It’s been fun to win a lot of races lately, but we still have to go out and execute and do our job every week.”

DARLINGTON, S.C. — It was a race that didn’t follow form—not anywhere close.

The presumptive favorites for the NASCAR Cup Series championship didn’t perform like favorites in Sunday night’s Cook Out Southern 500, the opening race in the 2025 Playoffs.

Defending series champion Joey Logano, whose Fords typically spring to life in the postseason, drove a lethargic No. 22 Mustang at to a lackluster 20th-place finish at Darlington Raceway.

“Yeah, it was surprising,” conceded Logano, who heads for next Sunday’s Playoff race at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway three points below the current elimination line for the Round of 12.

“I thought we would be able to run in the top 10, just because off of history and because we’ve been there in the past, but when everyone got better, we didn’t.”

If there was a positive side to Logano’s performance in the first Playoff race, at least he kept his car out of harm’s way for most of the evening.

“We just had no grip,” Logano said. “There isn’t much to say outside of that. It wasn’t good enough. This has been a good track for us in the past, but I don’t know. Some of our cars were decent at times, but not like we have been here.

“It’s a bit of a head scratcher to try to understand. I don’t know where we are in points, but it’s obviously not the day we wanted. We just did a good job of not making a bad day worse.”

Clearly, it was an inauspicious start to Logano’s title defense and to Team Penske’s hopes of winning a fourth straight championship for the organization.

The night was perhaps even more disappointing to Hendrick Motorsports, which entered the postseason with the top two seeds on the Playoff grid—2021 champion Kyle Larson and Regular Season Champion William Byron.

It was Chase Elliott, however, who led the Hendrick contingent with a 17th-place finish. Byron never recovered from a slow pit stop, and Larson faded in the final 48-lap green-flag run. Larson finished 19th and Byron 21st. Neither performed like a champion.

“It was a good thing we were able to get those stage points early” said Larson, who finished sixth in Stage 1 and fourth in Stage 2. “I felt pretty average all night. We had a lot of stack-ups on the restarts. I’m not sure why, but we had a big one there in the final stage and we just struggled after that.

“I’m not sure if the splitter got bent up or what happened, but it just took all my problems and made it all worse. We also had radio issues and all sorts of other problems, so to have a bad race and still gain on the cutline is rewarding…

“It’s typically a good track for us, so I’m not sure, but we’ll regroup and hopefully rebound in the next two races.”

Larson did gain 12 points on the elimination line and is now 38 points to the good. But neither he nor Byron nor Elliott turned in a performance that suggests a championship may be in the offing.

Their efforts stood in sharp contrast to those of race winner Chase Briscoe, who led 309 of 367 laps and swept the first two stages. Thanks to the victory, Briscoe knows he’ll be racing in the Round of 12. There are no other guarantees issuing from Sunday night’s race.

There was a silver lining to the relative disappearance of a handful of favorites. It allowed others to shine, notably Bubba Wallace, who overcame one slow pit stop to finish sixth.

Fifth in the first stage and seventh in the second, Wallace climbed to fifth on the Playoff grid, tied with Byron at 25 points above the cut line.

Then again, it was a night for Toyotas to excel at the expense of the Chevrolets and Fords. Behind Briscoe and runner-up Tyler Reddick, non-Playoff drivers Erik Jones and John Hunter Nemechek of LEGACY Motor Club were third and fourth, as Toyota drivers occupied six of the top seven finishing positions for the first time in Cup Series history.

Byron summed up the outlook for the teams that didn’t perform up to potential.

“As good as we normally are (at Darlington), it’s definitely a bummer,” he said. “…We’ve definitely got some work to do. We’ll go to Gateway and try to be better there.”