Most of the 16-driver playoff field will be limping into Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday for the Round of 16 elimination race as only two drivers scored top 10s at Watkins Glen International on Sunday. It wasn’t who you would expect either, as Chase Briscoe and Austin Cindric kept their Fords clean through a chaotic 92-lap affair in the Finger Lakes to finish sixth and 10th, respectively.
WINNER
He had his heart broken multiple times in the regular season and ultimately came up short, unable to return to the postseason. Still, Chris Buescher shedded some of that misfortune at Watkins Glen as he moved Shane van Gisbergen in the carousel on the final lap to snag his first victory of 2024 and first of his career on a road course. It marks the fourth win in a row for Ford in the Cup Series.
RELATED: Race results | At-track photos: Watkins Glen
WHO’S HOT?
Chase Briscoe. The driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford was easily the big winner of the day among the playoff field as Briscoe’s sixth-place finish was highest of the championship-eligible 16 drivers. Sunday was the first time dating back to the postseason’s introduction in 2004 that zero playoff drivers grabbed a top-five result. Briscoe capitalized on 12 stage points by the halfway point and kept his car out of the trouble in the final stage to bring home his second top 10 in the last three races. Going from minus-21 to the elimination line to plus-6, Briscoe will have a lot of momentum heading to Bristol where he can advance to the Round of 12.
Austin Cindric. A big day last weekend at Atlanta was doubled at Watkins Glen as Cindric’s 10th-place finish put him in third in the playoff standings and a whopping 43 points above the elimination line. Much like Briscoe, Cindric stayed out for the Stage 1 finish and snagged six points. The driver of the No. 2 Ford also stayed out of harm’s way throughout the final stage. Barring a bad outcome early at Bristol, Cindric is in exceptional position to advance to the Round of 12 and will just need to stay out of trouble, which is easier said than done at Bristol.
WHO’S NOT?
Everyone else. It’s hard to pinpoint just a handful of playoff drivers who aren’t hot because the remaining 14 drivers all struggled or were caught up in incidents at Watkins Glen.
Kyle Larson was the best of those to finish outside the top 10 with a 12th-place result. It was a good recovery for the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team after a vehicle interference penalty sent Larson to the rear of the field during the final stage. He also grabbed three points in Stage 1 that salvaged an otherwise so-so day for the 2021 Cup champion. Daniel Suárez and Christopher Bell also recovered for top-15 results after both spun in Sunday’s race. The No. 99 Trackhouse Racing driver could not capitalize on everyone’s misfortunes but scored seven key points in Stage 1 and leaves The Glen 36 points above the elimination line despite his Stage 2 spin. Bell is the highest in the playoff standings without a win at plus-46.
Joey Logano (15th), Alex Bowman (18th), Chase Elliott (19th) and Martin Truex Jr. (20th) rounded out the top 20 for playoff drivers. Elliott and Truex were caught up in late-race incidents that caused heavy damage to the likes of Brad Keselowski (26th) and William Byron (34th).
Ty Gibbs (22nd) and Tyler Reddick (27th) could not find their way to the front of the field after poor qualifying efforts Saturday and Reddick was spun in the closing laps, leading the race into NASCAR Overtime. Harrison Burton, who finished 24th, blew a tire with 11 laps to go and is now 20 points below the elimination line entering Bristol and last of the 16-driver standings.
The playoff-driver woes Sunday began with Denny Hamlin and Ryan Blaney from the get-go on Lap 1 as Corey LaJoie spun Kyle Busch in the Bus Stop, culminating in a chain-reaction wreck. Hamlin hit Busch and had another setback later in the race as Keselowski spun Hamlin as the No. 11, Keselowski and Larson tried going three-wide through the esses.
Blaney’s day ended after left-rear contact with Keselowski brought the No. 12 Ford to a halt on the track and Blaney couldn’t drive his vehicle back to pit road.
HAMLIN INCIDENTS: Lap 1 wreck | Final stage spin
Despite two separate incidents, Hamlin recovered for a 23rd-place result and sits just six points below the elimination race heading to Bristol where he’s won the last two concrete races.
BUBBLE WATCH
| RANK | DRIVER | CUTOFF |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Kyle Larson | 26 |
| 10 | William Byron | 25 |
| 11 | Chase Briscoe | 6 |
| 12 | Ty Gibbs | 6 |
| ELIMINATION LINE | ||
| 13 | Denny Hamlin | -6 |
| 14 | Brad Keselowski | -12 |
| 15 | Martin Truex Jr. | -14 |
| 16 | Harrison Burton | -20 |