In a typically dramatic push to the Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway checkered flag, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Chase Briscoe made a last lap pass on the frantic field to claim victory in Sunday’s YellaWood 500 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race and earn his first ever career shot at the season title.
The 29-year old Indiana-native Briscoe will join his JGR teammate Denny Hamlin, who won last week at Las Vegas, leaving the final two positions in the Championship 4 to be decided in next week’s regular season finale at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
Briscoe thanked another JGR teammate – 23-year old Ty Gibbs – for the push forward on the final lap Sunday that resulted in his first ever superspeedway win – 0.145s over Front Row Motorsports’ driver Todd Gilliland and Gibbs, neither of whom are among the current eight-driver Playoff field.
The runner-up showing was a career best for Gilliland. 23XI Racing’s Bubba Wallace and Haas Factory Team’s Cole Custer rounded out the top five.
“Ty Gibbs, just an incredible teammate there,’’ said an emotional Briscoe, who stood on his No. 19 JGR Toyota waving his arms to the cheering crowd “I honestly would not have won that race without Ty. It was an amazing team effort. I can’t believe I won a superspeedway race. I’ve never done it at any level.”
“It’s not hit me; we’re going to Phoenix,’’ a grinning Briscoe said of the championship opportunity he now has after leading only 16 laps Sunday, but the most important final one.
“Absolutely [a dream come true]. So thankful that the Lord’s blessed me, opening doors and closing doors at times, but certainly opening an incredible door for me here at Joe Gibbs Racing. … Even today I just had [such peace], and normally I’m scared to death, nervous around this place, but today just had such peace.’’
Another JGR driver, Christopher Bell, joined Briscoe as the only other Playoff competitor to finish among the top 10 Sunday, crossing the line eighth in the frantic three-wide, four-rows-deep finish that has long characterized the 2.66-mile Talladega high-banks – NASCAR’s largest track. With Hamlin and Briscoe in the title race thanks to victories, Bell now holds the top points position, 37 points above the cutoff line.
As good of a day as it was for the Gibbs team to be able to claim half the championship race eligibility and position Bell atop the points standings, it was a disappointing afternoon for the other two organizations also racing for a shot at the title – Hendrick Motorsports and Team Penske.
Hendrick had two cars running among the top five for the overtime restart only to have Kyle Larson drop back from the lead after running out of fuel. William Byron got spun out only yards from the finish line while running top 10. They finished 25th (Byron) and 26th (Larson).
Larson is ranked fourth, a point below Bell in the standings – 36 points above the cutoff line. Byron – the regular season champion – is now fifth, 36 points below the line.
Penske’s two Playoff drivers, reigning series champion Joey Logano and 2023 series champ Ryan Blaney, also experienced similar late-race frustration after positioning themselves up front in the waning laps. Logano’s No. 22 Ford actually led the most laps (35) on the day and turned in the longest single stint out front (16 laps) in a race that featured an incredible 77 lead changes among 27 drivers.
Ultimately, neither could move forward in the closing pair of laps. Logano finished 16th and Blaney was 23rd, after both had to pit during the overtime caution period to top off fuel.
“Really, really frustrating because you’re so close and you see in front of you what you’ve got to do and you can’t do anything about it,’’ said reigning series champion, Logano. “It’s frustrating, but we know what we’ve got to do now; it’s pretty simple.’’
Sunday’s results leave Logano ranked sixth among the eight Playoff drivers, 38 points below the cutoff line. Blaney is seventh, 47 points back. Both now need a victory at Martinsville to return to the championship race. Blaney has won the last two Playoff races at the half-mile Martinsville track and Logano won it in 2018.
NASCAR’s perennial “Most Popular Driver” and huge Talladega crowd favorite Chase Elliott was the first Playoff driver to have trouble Sunday, collected in an eight-car accident near the front of the field only 51 laps into the 193-lap race, resulting in a last place finish in the 40-car field.
