Posted on by Staff Report

Kyle Larson swiped the Stage 2 win at Homestead-Miami Speedway, using his speed on the high line to pass Kevin Harvick on the final corner of the last lap of the stage Sunday.

It marked Larson’s fifth stage win of the season when he led at the conclusion of Lap 160 in the Monster Energy Series championship race. In all, Larson led 41 laps in the second stage.

RELATED: Stage 2 results

Harvick finished second, but does not officially receive points toward his season total for the stage win because Championship 4 drivers do not receive stage points for this season finale race.

Among Championship 4 drivers, Joey Logano finished third in the stage, Martin Truex Jr. finished fourth and Kyle Busch finished sixth.

Aric Almirola broke up the Championship 4-plus-Larson domination of the leaderboard, finishing fifth.

The first caution of the weekend — in all three series at Homestead-Miami — for something other than a stage break came on Lap 138 for debris.

The race is scheduled to end on Lap 267.

Finish Driver Team Race Points
1  Kyle Larson  Chip Ganassi Racing 10
2  Kevin Harvick  Stewart-Haas Racing —
3  Joey Logano  Team Penske —
4  Martin Truex Jr.  Furniture Row Racing —
5  Aric Almirola  Stewart-Haas Racing 6
6  Kyle Busch  Joe Gibbs Racing —
7  Kurt Busch  Stewart-Haas Racing 4
8  Denny Hamlin  Joe Gibbs Racing 3
9  Jimmie Johnson  Hendrick Motorsports 2
10  Clint Bowyer  Stewart-Haas Racing 1

STAGE 1 RESULTS

Kevin Harvick took the lead from Busch Pole winner Denny Hamlin on Lap 43, and the Championship 4 driver held on to cruise to the Stage 1 win on Lap 80 at the Ford EcoBoost 400 on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Harvick recorded a series-leading 19th stage win, but does not officially receive points for the season tally because Championship 4 drivers do not receive stage points for this race.

Kyle Larson was second in the stage in the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet after a late surge buoyed by his ability to drive the high line close to the outside wall in Miami.

The remaining Championship 4 drivers followed Larson in the stage: Kyle Busch in the No. 18 Toyota, Joey Logano in the No. 22 Ford and Martin Truex Jr. in the No. 78 Toyota.

Harvick started the race in 12th in his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford after struggling through qualifying and practices throughout the weekend, but by the time cars made their first pit stops around Lap 37, he had worked his way up to second — thanks, in part, to a speedy pit stop that had him exiting ahead of fellow championship contender Busch.

Larson, who started the race in 11th, claimed second from Busch by Lap 69.

Finish Driver Team Race Points
1  Kevin Harvick  Stewart-Haas Racing —
2  Kyle Larson  Chip Ganassi Racing 9
3  Kyle Busch  Joe Gibbs Racing —
4  Joey Logano  Team Penske —
5  Martin Truex Jr.  Furniture Row Racing —
6  Denny Hamlin  Joe Gibbs Racing 5
7  Aric Almirola  Stewart-Haas Racing 4
8  Erik Jones  Joe Gibbs Racing 3
9  Brad Keselowski  Team Penske 2
10  Kurt Busch  Stewart-Haas Racing 1
Posted on by Staff Report

Ever wonder what goes on in a driver meeting? We’re here to help.

This year, we’ll publish the actual rules video your favorite Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers will watch before climbing into their stock cars. Above is the video for the Ford EcoBoost 400 (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

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HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Cole Custer qualified on the pole, led 95 laps and swept the opening stages of Saturday’s Xfinity Series season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. His team, Stewart-Haas Racing, took home the owners championship.

But it wasn’t enough for the No. 00 driver to clinch the championship title he wanted most of all: the Xfinity Series driver championship.

“We were really close, it just sucks to be second,” Custer said on pit road after his runner-up result, as race-winner Tyler Reddick celebrated his Xfinity Series championship on the frontstretch.

“We’ve come a long ways and everybody has worked really hard. It means a lot, but it’s still bittersweet when you finish second.”

MORE: Reddick wins Xfinity title | Full race results

His No. 00 Ford carrying plenty of speed, Custer remained ahead of the field for the opening 93 laps. John Hunter Nemechek passed him for the lead at Lap 94, but Custer remained ahead of Championship 4 drivers Reddick, Christopher Bell and Daniel Hemric. The other three title contenders and leader Nemechek pitted under green with less than 100 laps remaining, leaving Custer to inherit the lead again until he also pitted under green two laps later.

At that point, Custer was running behind the rest of the Championship 4 drivers in the field and became frustrated on the radio, as he tried to race back to the front.

“We might have made a mistake on the strategy, on pitting too late,” co-owner Tony Stewart said. “But like Cole said, he got to his bumper there, and I thought we were going to be in good shape there, and then just the balance shifted on him.”

Reddick passed Bell for the lead at Lap 164, and Custer soon followed into second. He attempted to chase down Reddick’s No. 9 Chevrolet in the waning laps, but couldn’t follow Reddick’s high-line run as well to catch him.

“I felt like we had to kind of make up that time, which we obviously had newer tires, so it was somewhat easy to make up the time, but you kind of get to a point on tires where everything starts to equal out, and I felt like that kind of happened, and also I mean, Tyler just ran the top better than I could,” Custer said. “I couldn’t get up there and do it like he could.  He kind of practiced that all weekend, and I just wasn’t good enough at it …

“I guess that’s something to practice for next year, but we … I feel like we almost … pretty much (did) everything right this race.”

Several people approached Custer as he stood on pit road after the race, including team owners Stewart and Gene Haas, his father and Stewart-Haas Racing President Joe Custer, and his crew chief Jeff Meendering.

Having served as crew chief during his rookie season last year, Meendering – who has also guided Jeff Gordon and Bobby Labonte atop the pit box in his career – has seen the 20-year-old driver mature in their short time together.

“He gets more and more solid every week,” Meendering told NASCAR.com in the garage. “He doesn’t do anything that surprises you anymore. It’s kind of the sign of a veteran driver. Just solid every week. I feel like every track we’ve gone to this year, we’ve had really good speed and we’ve had a good shot of winning. Little tough to swallow, this one. …

“We’ll just take the positive out of this. We still won the owners championship, so that’s pretty good, big achievement. We’ll go back, we’ll regroup … We’ve got a lot to look forward to.”

Stewart also noted his driver’s increasing confidence, as he spoke to Custer’s progress as a driver. Custer “definitely” will be back with Stewart-Haas Racing next year, he said.

“I mean, you can see it in his driving. You especially can see it when he gets in traffic, how much confidence he has this year in traffic versus last year.  It’s just part of the building process.

“You know, I think we’ll get through this winter and get started next year, I think you’ll see him at another level that’s a stop above this.”

Posted on by Zack Albert

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — What Elliott Sadler lacked on the results sheet Saturday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, he and his JR Motorsports No. 1 team made up for with a heck of a retirement party.

Sadler raised an ice-cold can to his 24 years in NASCAR’s highest divisions, sharing a toast and warm embrace with his crew on pit road after Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series finale. The scene was reminiscent of last year’s Homestead send-off for his team owner, Dale Earnhardt Jr., who transitioned to NBC Sports after his full-time career ended.

RELATED: Reddick lands Xfinity title | Race results

“I’ve got a great race team,” Sadler said. “JR Motorsports has been so good to me and I just wanted to have a toast with my guys and tell them how much I love ’em, how much they’ve meant to me and how much really they’ve changed my life these last couple of years. … I wanted to make sure they knew my appreciation.”

The race rundown will show a 14th-place finish in Sadler’s final event as a full-time competitor in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. He lost a lap with a late-race pit stop for a vibration, opting to play it safe rather than risk an incident that might cost Tyler Reddick, his JRM teammate, in the final run to his first series championship.

RELATED: Sadler’s career stats | Sadler reflects on legacy and what’s next

Sadler’s transition to retirement is complete, and his to-do list is now filled with recreational sports with his children and potentially some recreational racing for himself. Immediately next on his schedule: Taking his kids hunting Sunday, with plans to be in a tree stand before dawn.

“It’s tough. It is. It didn’t really end the way we wanted to for our team,” Sadler said. “I’m sure it’ll hit me tomorrow, but it’s cool to see the laughter and we’ve got such a good group of guys. I didn’t know how my emotions would be, but actually I’m OK, which makes me feel good about my decision. I feel good right now. It feels right. I gave it my all.

“We came up short, but I don’t have any regrets in my career and the opportunities I had, I’ve tried to make the most of them. I’ve had long enough to pursue my dreams and what I want to do and now it’s time for me to help my kids pursue theirs.”

Posted on by Staff Report

NASCAR will crown a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET, NBC/NBCSN, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) when the best field in Championship 4 history battles it out for the prestigious Monster Energy NASCAR Cup.

Who’s your pick: Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick or Martin Truex Jr.?

Members of the NASCAR.com staff make their own predictions.

Zack Albert
Kevin Harvick. Sure, the No. 4 team hasn’t quite shown the speed this weekend in practice or qualifying, but it’s difficult to sway a prediction from the team that’s been a cut above for the bulk of the season. There are no weak links in this Championship 4. Expect Harvick & Co. to find their way to a second crown after 400 miles.

Pat DeCola
Martin Truex Jr. I think MTJ and Furniture Row Racing repeat on Sunday and ride off into the sunset with another championship. And based on how the No. 78 has looked leading into Sunday’s race, Truex might just have the car under him to do it.

RELATED: Key story lines for Miami

RJ Kraft
Joey Logano. The non-Big 3 driver is playing with house money. He has the best pit crew, and I believe this is going to come down to a late pit stop under caution and who gets off pit road the fastest. Three of the four Championship 4 races so far have seen cautions come with 15 laps (or less) to go, and Logano and his team are in a prime spot to atone for their 2014 mistake on pit road.

Jonathan Merryman
Martin Truex Jr. Adversity is the name of MTJ’s game, and driver, crew chief and team alike will be on their respective games for the final race of the year. He also has the best crew chief in the sport in Cole Pearn when it comes to starting the race during the day and ending during the night.

Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch talk in the garage at Talladega.
Getty Images

Brad Norman
Kyle Busch. Let’s not miss the forest for the trees. Here’s the big-picture view: Kyle Busch is, arguably, the most talented driver in the garage. His No. 18 Toyota has been a bullet on 1.5-mile tracks this year, and the overall combination of crew chief Adam Stevens and the guys who go over the wall is best among the other Championship 4 drivers on Sunday. “Rowdy” wins his second Monster Energy Series title.

Jessica Ruffin
Martin Truex Jr. The reigning Monster Energy Series champion came into Championship 4 weekend with a fast car, pacing opening practice and qualifying third Friday. Truex is one of the best at prevailing under pressure — he said that Kyle Busch was better than him on long runs in last year’s season finale, yet the No. 78 held off the No. 18 in the closing laps for the title — and the emotion of running a final race for Furniture Row Racing will be motivation, too.

Chase Wilhelm
Martin Truex Jr. Although the dominance on 1.5-mile tracks hasn’t been there this season for Truex and the No. 78 team, you can throw all the stats out the window for this Championship 4 finale. In what will be Furniture Row Racing’s swan song, Truex Jr. and the gang will dig deep and defend their title.

George Winkler
Kevin Harvick. He’s been the most dominant car all season and he has the best stats of the Championship 4 contenders at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Plus, he’s motivated to prove he can do this even without crew chief Rodney Childers and in spite of the recent penalty post-Texas.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Tyler Reddick was the only driver of the Championship 4 who really liked it on top, and his willingness to run the wall paid off with a race win and a NASCAR Xfinity Series title.

Charging forward in the top lane, even though it meant an occasional brush with the outside wall, Reddick pulled away from pole winner Cole Custer during a long green-flag run to the finish to win Saturday’s Ford EcoBoost 300 by 6.902 seconds.

“I picked a really good time to get my life together and decide to win a race,” and elated Reddick said in Victory Lane.

RELATED: Race results | Stage 1 results | Stage 2 results

In fact, Saturday’s win was the third in Reddick’s career and his second of the season. Reddick won the 2018 opener at Daytona International Speedway by .0004 seconds over JR Motorsports teammate Elliott Sadler, who finished 14th on Saturday in his final start as a full-time driver.

At Daytona, Reddick’s margin of victory translated to roughly three inches. At Homestead, it was a no-doubter. Once he passed fellow Championship 4 competitor Christopher Bell for the lead on Lap 164 of 200 and stayed within inches with the wall lap after lap, he quickly pulled away for the win, the championship and the Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors. 

“I just knew we had to execute,” Reddick said. “I thought we had a chance if we just made it to Homestead. I like this track—it rewards my aggression. Tonight, we hit the wall a lot, but the car kept in one piece, enough for me to get to the end.”

Pit strategy also played out in Reddick’s favor. Bell came to pit road under green on Lap 141, and Reddick followed a lap later. Custer didn’t bring his No. 00 Ford to pit road from the lead until Lap 147, after losing roughly two seconds per lap, and exited 8.006 seconds behind Reddick.

Bell passed Reddick for the lead on Lap 154 but within 10 laps the seven-time winner had used up his short-run speed and surrendered the top spot back to Reddick. 

“He went out and attacked, attacked, attacked all night, and it paid off for him,” Bell said of Reddick’s effort. “I was good on the bottom, and I had glimpses of hope, but we just weren’t fast enough.”

Custer took second from Bell on Lap 165 and closed to within 2.7 seconds with 30 laps left, but Custer couldn’t find speed at the top of the track and quickly lost ground.

“I think if we could have run the top better, we could have won,” said Custer, who led the first 93 laps before losing two positions on pit road during stops under caution after the second stage. “We got so far behind (after the exchange of pit stops), and once I caught him, our tires got equaled out, and then he started running the top, and I just couldn’t keep up with him.

“Congrats to Tyler. I’m happy for him, but it’s frustrating.”

Trying to run the top lane, Bell smacked the wall on Lap 181 and had to pit with a flat right-rear tire on Lap 190. He finished 11th, one lap down. Championship 4 driver Daniel Hemric ran a distant fourth behind Reddick, Custer and John Hunter Nemechek. Hemric was 17.836 seconds behind Reddick at the finish.

Austin Cindric finished fifth, followed by Ryan Preece and Justin Allgaier, the last driver on the lead lap.

Reddick is the third JR Motorsports driver in five years to win the Xfinity championship as a rookie, following Chase Elliott (2014) and William Byron (2017), both of whom now drive for Hendrick Motorsports in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. All three rookie champions have driven the No. 9 Chevrolet for JRM.

“(Crew chief) Dave (Elenz) had a great strategy tonight that cycled Tyler into the lead,” said team co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. “And Tyler had the speed and the nerve to run the laps he needed to keep the lead.

“I’m telling you, to run on that fence like he did at the end of that race, that takes some precision. He did such an amazing job doing that, and he earned the victory tonight and the championship.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Tyler Reddick’s growth and maturation as a driver were on full display Saturday night at Homestead-Miami Speedway. And now, he’s a champion.

Reddick won the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship for JR Motorsports by winning the Ford EcoBoost 300, book-ending his year after his season-opening win in his first full-time campaign in the series. The 22-year-old Reddick beat out Championship 4 contenders Christopher Bell, Cole Custer and Daniel Hemric to reach the series pinnacle.

“We had to overcome a lot,” Reddick said after exiting his car. “This year was all about learning. It was an up-and-down year and with everything we had to do, we had to do it in the playoffs, and it rewarded us with a championship. We can hang our hat on that.

“I know people will say we weren’t consistent, but we got it done when it counted most.”

RELATED: Race results

Reddick opened the 2018 season with a bang, winning his second career Xfinity Series race in the season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway to seal the first spot in the Xfinity Series Playoffs. The official margin of victory — 0.000 seconds — was the closest in NASCAR national series history.

But the driver struggled to find his way following that win. It took until deep in the playoffs for the No. 9 team to be running for the win late as growing pains were evident during Reddick’s first year with the team.

On Saturday under the lights, everything came together. Reddick led 44 laps, third-highest in the race, but soared to the lead on the strength of some pit strategy that saw him pit early in the final run.

He passed Bell for P1 on Lap 164, then held off a hard-charging Custer — who led the opening 93 laps — by riding the rim at a track known for rewarding those who can run the top successfully.

RELATED: Custer laments late stop

“I knew coming in here if we just made it to Homestead, this is a great track for me, it rewards my aggression,” Reddick said. “We hit the wall a lot, but the car kept in one piece long enough for me to get to the end.”

The JR Motorsports driver was quiet on the radio after taking the checkered flag, soaking the win in and letting crew chief Dave Elenz and others holler out celebrations.

It was a moment of reflection for the driver, who would later say multiple times that he made too many mistakes this year.

A seven-race summer stretch resulted in just one top-1o finish and four finishes of 25th or worse and took his name out of the championship discussion, but driver and team both righted the ship in time for the title push.

RELATED: Junior praises Reddick

“It’s just a great moment,” Reddick said in Victory Lane as the title win began to sink in. “This isn’t going to be the year where the best car all year won. We had to fight really, really hard. I made a lot of mistakes. I had a lot of growing pains. These guys didn’t give up on me.”

It’s the second consecutive championship for team co-owner Dale Earnhardt Jr., who runs JR Motorsports with his sister, Kelley. William Byron won the 2017 series title in the same No. 9 Chevrolet. Chase Elliott earned the organization’s first title in 2014, also in the No. 9.

Reddick scored three career victories in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series with now-defunct Brad Keselowski Racing from 2014-16, finishing second in the standings in 2015 before making the jump to the Xfinity Series. He will make the switch from JR Motorsports to Richard Childress Racing’s Xfinity Series program in 2019.

“We dug down deep when it mattered most, and we got it done,” Reddick said. “We had to run well and we were consistent and got to Homestead. I knew if we got here, we had a good shot at getting this championship done.”

Posted on by RJ Kraft

Denny Hamlin earned his third Busch Pole Award in four years at Homestead-Miami Speedway and will lead the field to green for Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET on NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Does his favorable history at the season-finale track make him a lock for my lineup? And what of the Championship 4? After three practice sessions and qualifying determining the starting order, we’ve dissected the numbers to offer a suggested lineup worthy of your Fantasy Live consideration as you make roster decisions.

PLAY NOW: Set your lineup | How the playoff game works

Remember that the garage locks at the end of Stage 2. Also, your garage play can only be swapped for a driver of similar classification. (A playoff garage driver can only be swapped for a playoff driver in your lineup; a non-playoff garage driver can only be swapped for a non-playoff driver in your lineup.)

Also, all drivers will be scored for stage points in the Fantasy Live game. In real life, the Championship 4 do not receive stage points, but in the Fantasy Live game they will receive stage points as they have all year.

RJ Kraft’s Fantasy Live lineup for race day at Miami:
Playoff driver 1: Joey Logano
Playoff driver 2: Martin Truex Jr.
Non-playoff driver 1: Denny Hamlin
Non-playoff driver 2: Brad Keselowski
Garage: Kyle Larson

MORE: Fantasy analysis for Miami | Driver stats | 10-lap averages | Lineup

Analysis: This is it! The last week of the the season and the last week in Fantasy Live. I am going against the popular plays to try and gain ground in this last weekend. As of this writing, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch are each owned by 70 percent of Fantasy Live players. Martin Truex Jr. and Joey Logano are owned by significantly less and that is just part of the reason I am changing course from my pre-weekend lineup and going with BOTH Truex and Logano in my lineup. The main reason I am going with both the 78 and 22 is they have just looked faster than their Championship 4 competitors. Logano led both Saturday practices and was best on the 10-lap board in both sessions. Truex was top five on the 10-lap board in both practices on Saturday. Both Logano and Truex were 1-2 on the 15-lap board as well, according to NBCSN. Busch is a solid pick and has had a good weekend, but not as good as Logano and Truex. On the other hand, Harvick seems a little off. The 4 is a car built for long runs, but I expected to see a little more speed from the 2014 champion so far.

I am sticking with my initial non-playoff plays across the board of Hamlin, Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson — meaning I will go with a roster alignment of three non-playoff drivers to two playoff drivers. I realize there is a lot of risk in not having Busch or Harvick even in the garage, but that is a gamble I am willing to take in an effort to differentiate my roster to try and gain ground. There are bonus picks I could use on one of those drivers if I so choose — more below on that.

Hamlin won the pole and has five straight top 10s at Miami. Keselowski will start fourth, has four top 10s in his last five Miami starts and appears to be the best of the non-playoff cars based on 10- and 15-lap runs. The 2012 champ has also been solid on 1.5-milers (earning the sixth-most points on that track length) and a great source of stage points — earning the fourth-most in the series. Larson gets the garage nod for his Homestead history with three straight top fives there and his propensity to run the high line to make time is especially intriguing. He was also sixth on the 15-lap board, per NBCSN.


I am taking Truex to win Stage 1 and Logano to take Stage 2 with Kyle Busch as the race winner pick. Like I said earlier, I want to differentiate my lineup a bit from the masses, but I need to have the 18 represented somewhere. If you remember back to last year, his car was the best when the night time rolled around.

Thanks for playing and following all year long. Best of luck to everyone in their leagues for the final race of 2018.

Posted on by Staff Report

Joey Logano continued to show the most speed of all Championship 4 drivers as he topped the leaderboard for Saturday’s final practice session at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Logano, who drove his No. 22 Team Penske Ford to a fast lap of 171.701 mph, also led the earlier practice Saturday.

RELATED: Final practice results | Best 10-lap averages

Fellow championship contender Martin Truex Jr. was just behind Logano in the final practice, however, as he drove his No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota 170.584 mph.

Non-playoff drivers Brad Keselowski, Erik Jones and Aric Almirola rounded out the top five.

The remaining Championship 4 drivers did not crack the top 10 in practice: Kyle Busch drove his No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to the 12th-fastest lap, 168.587 mph; Kevin Harvick was 14th in the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford at 167.931 mph. Busch kissed the wall late in final practice and picked up a little right rear damage to his car.

This was the last time the Monster Energy Series saw the track until Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), which will determine the 2018 champion.

EARLY PRACTICE RESULTS

Championship contender Joey Logano led Saturday’s early Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Homestead-Miami Speedway when he wheeled his No. 22 Team Penske Ford around the track at 169.609 mph.

No other Championship 4 driver was among the top five drivers in the 50-minute practice session.

Aric Almirola was second-fastest in the No. 10 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford at 169.194 mph. Pole winner Denny Hamlin was third after he pushed the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota to 168.492 mph. Ryan Newman (167.999 mph) and Erik Jones (167.411 mph) rounded out the top five.

The remaining three Championship 4 drivers were scattered throughout the leaderboard, with Martin Truex Jr. ninth in the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota (166.718 mph), Kyle Busch 23rd in the  No. 18 JGR Toyota (164.489 mph) and Kevin Harvick 28th in the No. 4 SHR Ford (163.552 mph).

The No. 1 of Jamie McMurray and No. 15 of Ross Chastain both served 15-minute penalties for failing pre-qualifying inspection twice.

 

Posted on by Zack Albert

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Kyle Busch will have the first pit stall for Sunday’s season-ending Monster Energy Series finale after the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 team for pole-winner Denny Hamlin selected a stall farther back on pit road.

RELATED: Starting order| Pit stall assignments

Busch’s JGR No. 18 team earned the second starting spot in Friday qualifying at Homestead-Miami Speedway and picked second in the pit-stall selection process Saturday morning. Busch is competing for a series championship in Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400 (3 p.m. ET, NBC, MRN, SiriusXM). Hamlin’s team was eliminated from title contention in the first round of the 2018 playoffs.

Hamlin won the Busch Pole on Friday, edging Busch by .043 seconds. He’ll try for his third Homestead-Miami win from the fourth pit stall, which is strategically behind an opening in the pit wall for an easier egress. But the No. 1 stall is typically the most advantageous, with an unimpeded exit from the pit road.

In his post-qualifying news conference Friday, Hamlin said he discussions would take place within Joe Gibbs Racing about pit stall selection. He said that team affiliate Furniture Row Racing asked for the same concession last year for eventual champion Martin Truex Jr. The No. 11 team declined.

“I think everything is earned. Nothing is given,” Hamlin said Friday. “With us having the No. 1 pit stall, nobody else — none of the other competitors will have it. I don’t know. It’s a discussion.”

Team owner Joe Gibbs explained the reasons for the decision, saying in a Saturday morning interview with NBCSN that he continually has to balance what’s best for all four of his Monster Energy Series teams.

“So we all kind of got together as a team and so what came out of those meetings was this: What we want for Denny is to win this race, OK? So that’s important for him. That’s a big deal for us and our sponsor,” Gibbs said. “And then of course the other side of that for our team, we all want to win a championship.

“So we all kind of … we meet, we talk all that over and it’s everybody making a team decision and so we felt like the best thing for us, we want Denny focused on winning this race. He thinks he can do it, and we think he can do it from that pit box, and at the same time, we want to make a team decision, we’d like to win a championship for Joe Gibbs Racing and so that’s part of the complication, the intriguing part of this, but it’s a part of our sport.”

Pit-stall selection hasn’t necessarily been a determining factor in the race outcome. The pole winner hasn’t won the season finale since 2002.

Among the rest of the championship contenders in Sunday’s race: Martin Truex Jr. qualified third and will pit in stall No. 7; Joey Logano qualified fifth and his team chose pit stall No. 3; Kevin Harvick qualified 12th and will pit in stall No. 39.