It all comes down to Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday. Eight drivers fought tooth-and-nail all season long throughout the eNASCAR Heat Pro League’s second tour to reach the tripleheader championship event – Michigan, Phoenix, and Bristol. Here’s how the contenders stack up before they race with $70,000 on the line.
8. Brian Tedeschi, Team Penske eSports
Team Penske eSports driver Brian Tedeschi made it to the championship – but it took until the wildcard last-chance race at Daytona to reach that point. He’s the lone championship contender who didn’t win a race in 2020, but maybe he’s just saving what he’s got for the finale. You never know.
7. Maxwell Castro, Chip Ganassi Gaming
Not only did 15th-overall draft pick Maxwell Castro pick up a victory this year, he did it at the Watkins Glen road course – not the easiest track to master compared to many of the oval tracks. Furthermore, he put himself in position to contend for a championship, scoring seven top-five finishes throughout the 2020 tour. Not too shabby for a rookie!
6. Josh Harbin, Leavine Family Gaming
Well, that was close! Josh Harbin had to transfer to the finale via the Daytona wildcard race, but hey, a win’s a win. It’s worth noting Harbin’s other 2020 victory came at New Hampshire, a flat mile-long track not too unlike Phoenix. If he can survive Michigan and repeat his New Hampshire performance at Phoenix, we might just be looking at a Harbin championship. Don’t sleep on him.
5. Josh Parker, Gibbs Gaming
One of Parker’s two wins this season came at Fontana, a track with many similarities to Michigan. As for Phoenix, he’s won there in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series – though that was back in 2010. Parker should be a contender to make the final four, perhaps by experience alone. At the very least, he’ll be competing against fellow PS4 driver Josh Harbin for top-Josh honors.
4. Slade Gravitt, Wood Brothers Gaming
Slade Gravitt’s got one distinct advantage heading into Wednesday night’s tripleheader, and that’s his consistency. Remarkably, he’s put his Wood Brothers Gaming Ford in the top 10 in all 13 regular-season races. When the name of the game is survival, Gravitt’s knack to not, well, Spin (sorry, it’s such an easy sponsor plug) will come in handy.
3. Brandyn Gritton, Stewart-Haas eSports
He’s got what no other championship contender has: a title. Half of the inaugural Heat Pro League championship-winning team, Brandyn Gritton knows what it’s like to face the pressure of a nerve-wracking finale. Oh, and those two wins and 11 top 10s show he can still get the job done in 2020. Perhaps Gritton will add a second championship trophy to his shelf.
2. Daniel Buttafuoco, Germain Gaming
Nobody scored more top-five finishes in the 2020 season than Daniel Buttafuoco; he did it 10 times in 13 races. Combined with his tendency to find Victory Lane – he won three races this season – Buttafuoco’s easily a favorite to win the title and pick up the $30,000 first-place prize.. It’s hardly a wonder Germain Gaming has such an impressive lead in team points with this guy in their corner.
1. Justin Brooks, JTG Daugherty Throttlers
Winning more than half the season – seven races, to be exact – has made the Justin Brooks 2020 season the gold standard in Heat Pro League competition. We could rattle off all the tracks at which he’s won this year, but it would sound an awful lot like a verse in Johnny Cash’s “I’ve Been Everywhere.” To put it simply, Brooks is the guy everybody’s chasing Wednesday, though we’ve learned this season that just about anything can happen.
Catch the eNASCAR Heat Pro League Season 2 finale Wed., Aug. 19 at 8 p.m. ET at eNASCAR.com/live.