Blaney wins on ‘roval’ after Johnson crashes out of playoffs
CONCORD, N.C. — Jimmie Johnson saw an opportunity to snap a 58-race losing streak, and went for it. It cost him a shot at an eighth NASCAR championship and allowed Ryan Blaney to steal a surprise victory in the debut race of the “roval” at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Had Johnson just settled for second, he’d still be in the playoffs. Instead, he wrecked with Martin Truex Jr. and wound up in a three-way tie for the final transfer position into the second round of the playoffs. The seven-time NASCAR champion was eliminated Sunday on a tiebreaker.
“I knew where I was on the math,” Johnson said. “I didn’t think that I was going to crash or spin trying to overtake him like I did. I thought I was making a calculated move and giving myself the chance to win and unfortunately it didn’t turn out that way.”
The roval was a unique combination speedway and infield road course created to improve the racing at Charlotte. The unusual layout and unfamiliarity made it a treacherous circuit for the 16-driver playoff field because it was an elimination race for four of the contenders.
The race was unexpectedly clean until the end, which was marked by two different wrecks among the leaders and a redflag period of almost 15 minutes. The chaotic close made for a suspenseful post-race period in which NASCAR had to review the results and break the tie between Kyle Larson, Aric Almirola and Johnson.