Critical night for many drivers
RICHMOND, Va. — Dale Earnhardt Jr. said he hasn’t imagined a fairy-tale finish to his final NASCAR regular season.
Retiring at the end of the season, the sport’s most popular driver is one of several whose only hope for getting into the 10-race Cup Series playoffs that begin next weekend is by winning tonight at Richmond Raceway.
But even Earnhardt seems to realize the likelihood of his 27th career victory — and fourth on the 0.75-mile oval — isn’t high. It has been 62 races since his most recent win in November 2015 at Phoenix International Raceway. After practice Friday, he said he has what feels like “a sixth- to 12th-place car.”
“If we could come out of here with a win,” he added, “it would be quite the surprise, not only for all you guys but us included.”
Earnhardt’s laid-back attitude contrasts greatly with those of other drivers in similar situations.
Joey Logano won here in April, then became the first driver to have a race “encumbered,” which is NASCAR parlance for being allowed to keep the victory but without the playoff points or the automatic berth in the postseason because of an infraction discovered after the race. He has struggled ever since.
“We are in a do-or-die situation,” said Logano, who was second to Jimmie Johnson in the final standings last season. “Anytime you can win a race in that situation, there is no better feeling than that. Also returning here after our win in the spring and obviously the drama that followed, it would be very nice to be able to get back in victory lane and prove a point. I don’t see any reason why we can’t.”
Other drivers needing to win to qualify for the playoffs include Clint Bowyer and rookies Erik Jones and Daniel Suarez. The three nonwinners ahead of them — and thus most vulnerable to being knocked out of the postseason by a first-time winner — are rookie Chase Elliott, Jamie McMuray and 2003 series champion Matt Kenseth.
“Really I’m still thinking about trying to get that win,” Kenseth said when asked how
much attention he or his team will pay to where Elliott and McMurray are running in the race. “Yeah, I mean, we want to get in, but if you win, you’re in for sure, so I don’t think you’re going to pay much attention. Maybe at the end of the race you pay a little bit of attention who is leading, where those two guys are, but I think we just run our own race.”
Kenseth helped himself later Friday when he ran a fast lap of 122.421 mph to earn the pole position for tonight’s race. It’s the 20th pole of his career and comes with his future uncertain after Joe Gibbs Racing declined to renew his contract for next season. He has not spoken of any other possible offers to drive a Cup Series car.
Denny Hamlin will also be in the front row tonight, with Kurt Busch and Kyle Larson in the second row. Martin Truex Jr., who clinched the regular-season title last weekend, and Kevin Harvick are in the third row, followed by Kyle Busch, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Elliott and Jones.
Among other drivers needing to win the race to ensure a playoff spot, Logano will start 12th, Bowyer 13th, Saurez 16th
and Earnhardt 21st.
Hamlin’s response
Hamlin will likely be without his crew chief for the first race of NASCAR’s playoffs, and the Joe Gibbs Racing driver said he has no problem with the governing body making penalties harsh when cars fail post-race inspection.
Hamlin swept the Xfinity and Cup series races last weekend at Darlington Raceway. But later, Hamlin’s car was found to be in violation of rear suspension rules, and this week Hamlin was docked five playoff points and crew chief Mike Wheeler was suspended for the next two races and fined $50,000.
Hamlin said the penalty “took something that was super positive and turned it into a negative pretty quick,” but he has no problem with the decision.
“Yeah, I think it fits,” he said. “I think we can talk about taking wins away in the future. I think it’s definitely a possibility. As long as it’s the same for everyone, I think that’s key. Make sure that when someone else is in there with the same violation, it gets the same penalty
and treatment even if it’s in the playoffs.”
Wheeler examined the rear suspension this week, Hamlin said, and agreed there was a violation. The team wasn’t intentionally cheating, said Hamlin, who blamed the inspection failure on wear and tear that occurred during the race.
Keselowski wins
Brad Keselowski ran down Kyle Busch with 16 laps to go and drove away to win Friday night’s Xfinity Series race at Richmond Raceway.
Keselowski’s pass came in heavy lapped traffic and marked the third time he’d used a superior car to catch Busch on a long run. Busch had a better short-run machine and had to be wishing for a late caution to give him one last chance for his 92nd career victory in the series.
The final green-flag run lasted 89 laps, giving Keselowski his 36th career series victory and fourth in 17 starts at Richmond.
Busch led five times for 182 laps, while Keselowski led four times, but for just 34 laps.