Just win, baby ... to make postseason

Bell, McDowell force strategic shift

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — NASCAR’s postseason landscape has been altered after just two Cup Series races.

With Michael McDowell and Christopher Bell winning at Daytona International Speedway, the first in the Daytona 500 and the second on the road course, two playoff spots were locked up by guys who weren’t generally considered locks.

The fallout? Other teams are feeling the pinch in late February — six months before the 16-driver playoff field is set — and with 24 races remaining.

“Probably not for the teams that we all expect to win, but for some of those fringe cars it will,” said Bell’s crew chief, Adam Stevens. “The number of unique winners is really going to change how many cars get in on points, right? It’s pretty obvious.”

The simplest way to look at it: If the series heavyweights perform as expected the rest of the way, there won’t be many playoff spots left for anyone else. It’s a somewhat bleak outlook for several teams already and could force them to adjust their approach beginning Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

“Some of that next batch of cars is really needing to be thinking about if they’re swinging for the fence or if they’re racing for points,” Stevens said. “Maybe one more winner that somebody didn’t expect pretty early in the season could really changethe complexion.”

Every year since NASCAR’s current playoff system began in 2014, at least three postseason berths have been awarded to drivers based on points. The past three years, as a half-dozen or so drivers have won a bigger share of races, more have made the playoffs on points.

“The dynamic has changed dramatically right now,” 2012 Cup champion Brad Keselowski said. “We’re very early in the season, and it’s now turned into a points race for those last few spots. Hopefully it doesn’t matter for us.

“But if you don’t win, you’re in a lot of trouble right now because it’s not looking like you’re going to be able to get in the playoffs right now without a win.”

The Daytona 500 has a tendency to be a crapshoot, often delivering an odd top 10 and occasionally ending up with a long-shot winner like McDowell. Although Bell drives for powerhouse Joe Gibbs Racing, he was a rookie for that team and in his second full season in the Cup series.

“Two of the tracks we’ve went to are definitely tracks that create opportunities for guys that you wouldn’t necessarily just give them a spot or think that they’re going to point themselves in,” said Austin Dillon, who has made the playoffs four times in the last five years.

Snyder wins Xfinity race

Myatt Snider won the Xfinity Series race at Home steadMiami, taking the checkered flag in overtime after Noah Grags on slammed into a lapped car with two laps remaining. The 26-year-old Snider won his first race in 36 starts.