Drivers look ahead to Cup Series finale

Kyle Busch isn’t a big fan of Phoenix Raceway.

Last year’s NASCAR Cup Champion, Busch has struggled in 2020. Within the field of 16 postseason racers, he sits in 14th despite a strong history of success – Busch has won two Cup Series titles.

It’s been a challenging season for the No. 18 car, but despite his problems on the track this year, Busch wasn’t shy in expressing that he was surprised Phoenix Raceway was selected as the site for this season’s Cup Series championship race on Nov. 8.

“It was a bit shocking to me just because (Homestead Miami Speedway) is such a racy friendly place and you can kind of run all over that track,” Busch said. “There’s really good racing on restarts (at Homestead).”

Homestead had been home to NASCAR’s racing finale since 2002 – when Tony Stewart won the first of his three Cup Series championships.

But with the race now in Phoenix, drivers have displayed a variety of feelings regarding the change. Several met with the media via video media calls this past week.

For Martin Truex Jr. – currently sixth place in the playoff standings – the track in Avondale presents a new kind of challenge.

“Phoenix is pretty unique,” Truex said. “You’re going to think about how you ran there in the spring more than with most other tracks.”

The man he is tasked to catch at the top of the standings, Kevin Harvick, tends to agree.

“It’s been at the same racetrack every season since we’ve gone about it this way,” Harvick said. “Moving the race tracks and changing the venues has made it very intriguing for the fans and very difficult from a competitors standpoint.”

The last race held in Phoenix was on March 8, coincidentally it was the final NASCAR race of 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic shut down the sport until May 17.

And although a limited number of fans will be allowed to attend the Cup Series championship, the virus has still impacted the fan friendly environment at Phoenix Raceway.

“I like Phoenix Raceway in particular because they really invested in that racetrack for the fans and their experience,” Denny Hamlin said. “A lot of money has gotten put into there, from the fan-zone inside the racetrack around victory lane.

“The fans have always come out to that racetrack in full force even when it’s just a regular season race. It’s very deserving to be the championship race.”

Winning the race that afternoon in March was Joey Logano, who now sits in fourth place in the Cup Series standings. But despite his solid position among the top five, Logano hasn’t won a race since his victory in Phoenix nearly six months ago.

“It feels like a long time ago, way too long,” Logano said. “We’re ready to win again. But I do feel like we’re getting close to getting back to that same point as we were.”

Drivers familiar with Phoenix

Five of the 16 racers that have qualified for the postseason this year have previously won in Phoenix, including Harvick, Hamlin, Logano, Kyle Busch and his brother Kurt, who currently sits 15th in the standings.

It’s unlikely either Busch brother will climb up into the top four spots of the standings to even have a shot at the Cup Series crown, although Kyle’s pedigree as driver makes it possible. Harvick, Hamlin and Logano occupy three of the top four spots on the leader board, with Harvick and Hamlin sitting at first and second place, respectively.

Heading into the postseason, Harvick holds a slight 10-point edge over Hamlin. But although Harvick has a rich history in Phoenix – winning nine times – and has won a Cup Series championship already (2014), Hamlin is hungry for his first career Cup Series title.

“I just know that we’re performing well at the tracks that statistically haven’t normally been strong suits for us, but each and every week we’re contending for the race win,” Hamlin said. “I don’t know why that is, but it’s just happening.”

Despite never having won the Cup Series, Hamlin is far from an underdog.

“The right scenario is that we are at Phoenix, together, battling it out for the championship,” Hamlin said. “There’s a lot of work that needs to get done to get to that point, but that’s probably the right thing when you think about how a championship should be crowned.”

NASCAR’s postseason format breeds unpredictable results. Now in the seventh season of its elimination style playoff bracket, the sport has yet to see a back-to back champion since the implementation of the new system.

In 2014, Harvick won his Cup Series title despite taking fewer checkered flags than Brad Keselowski that season. Four years later, Logano won the Cup Series championship winning just three races, despite Harvick and Busch both winning eight.

While Harvick and Hamlin seem to be the favorites heading into the 2020 finale in Phoenix, a lot can change between now and November.

“The way the format is set up, it’s intentionally designed to not allow somebody to just coast through it. No matter how good your regular season is,” Keselowski said.

“I suspect at least one of those two guys will find themselves in a spot at some point in time where they didn’t want to be.”