Elliott, Smith, Crafton weigh in on Cup finale

Smith: ‘I wish they had something like (the Chase) for our series’

DORAL, Fla. — Regan Smith said he and friends were huddled around a cabana, watching the action unfold.

Matt Crafton was busy with post-championship duties of his own, but found time to tune in for the second half.

Chase Elliott soaked it all in, calling it an incredible finish to the season for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway exceeded expectations, delivering a furious battle between four competitors for the 2014 Sprint Cup Series championship.

Two of the four contenders, eventual race winner and champion Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin, led laps but Ryan Newman and Joey Logano were often near the front as well. As late as Lap 250 of the 267-lap race, the four were running nose-to-tail and inside the top five.

“I watched the last half, the last third of it; they had me doing stuff here and there so I didn’t get to watch it all,” said Crafton, driver of the Thorsport Racing No. 88 Toyota and the only competitor to win back-to-back titles in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series history.

“It was exciting as hell, you couldn’t have written a better script the way it played out for all the race teams and fans. It was amazing, really.”

Crafton, 38, had secured his title two days earlier with a ninth-place finish in the Ford EcoBoost 200 at HMS, enough for a 21-point advantage on second-place points finisher Ryan Blaney.

Smith finished second to Elliott in the battle for the NASCAR Nationwide Series title. Saturday’s Ford EcoBoost 300 was a mere formality — Elliott had clinched the title, a first for the 18-year-old, a week earlier in Phoenix, Arizona.

“Amazing,” said Smith. “I wish they had something like (the Chase) for our series. Those elimination races (at Dover, Talladega and Phoenix) were just incredible to watch.”

Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports, said the race capped what had been a great season for all three of NASCAR’s national series.

“There have been some great finishes, some great passes for the win throughout the Chase certainly,” he said. “Really, all across the board there’s been some great Truck races I think and some great Nationwide races this season.”

Nationwide and Camping World Truck Series champions and other top finishing teams will be recognized tonight during the season-ending awards ceremonies scheduled for the Trump National Doral.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards ceremony will be held Friday, Dec. 5 in Las Vegas.

“I’m excited to see all the videos that everybody’s come up with — you always have the highlights and I’m excited to see that,” Elliott said.

“I’m sure they’ll have some tonight at the banquet and you’ll see them throughout the offseason. Very, very cool to look back on and to be a part of on the Nationwide side and really just to be a fan, first and foremost.”

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