Championship 4 set following Round of 8 finale at Phoenix

Posted on November 12, 2017November 13, 2017 by Staff Report

The field is set.

With one playoff spot up for grabs in the Round of 8 finale at Phoenix Raceway, Brad Keselowski drove his way to the final spot in the Championship 4 at Miami. He will join the three drivers who already had clinched — Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick — in a first-to-the-line championship battle on Nov. 19 at Homestead-Miami Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

Busch, the 2015 series champion, earned his spot in the Championship 4 by winning the Round of 8 opener at Martinsville Speedway. Harvick followed suit the next week, winning at Texas — Truex Jr. clinched a spot at Texas, too, on points.

Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott and seven-time Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson were eliminated after Phoenix. Keselowski entered the race 19 points ahead of Hamlin and 22 points ahead of Blaney. Ellliott and Johnson faced virtual must-win scenarios.

Hamlin erased all of Keselowski’s points lead following the second stage. Finishing second in Stage 1 and winning Stage 2 netted Hamlin 19 points, while Keselowski didn’t earn any stage points. That put the Joe Gibbs Racing driver in primo position to earn his way to Miami, but late contact with Chase Elliott ended his day early.

Elliott, meanwhile, led late before Matt Kenseth made the race-winning pass with 10 laps to go.

MORE: Top photos from the track

The four drivers advancing are:
Martin Truex Jr., No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota
Kyle Busch, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Kevin Harvick, No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Team Penske Ford

The four drivers not advancing are:
Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Blaney, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Chase Elliott, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet

Posted on November 12, 2017November 13, 2017 by Pat DeCola

RELATED: Full race results | Updated series standings
MORE: VIP ticket packages

The Chase Elliott-Denny Hamlin rivalry continued Sunday at Phoenix Raceway, and it had massive playoff implications.

With just under 45 laps remaining in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Round of 8 cutoff race, the pair of drivers — who confronted each other after a heated Martinsville race earlier this round — battled aggressively for position inside the top three.

The beating and banging wound up in the Hendrick Motorsports driver’s favor at the time, with the contact endured by Hamlin’s Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11 Toyota proving to be too much. Hamlin’s car began to smoke with a tire rub and hit the wall hard to bring out the caution shortly after.

Elliott would go on to take the lead late in the race, before giving way to eventual winner Matt Kenseth — a wild chain of events that ultimately saw Brad Keselowski claim the final spot in the Championship 4.

RELATED: Championship 4 field set

After smacking the wall, Hamlin drove his limped car to the garage and climbed out, ending his race and his title hopes.

“We had a fast car all day. … We put ourselves in good position, things just didn’t work out there at the end,” Hamlin told NBC Sports after being evaluated and released from the infield care center.

The fracas immediately brought to mind Hamlin moving Elliott for the lead just two weeks ago — a move that resulted in heavy criticism of the veteran driver.

“Each person has their own opinion of how they do things. It just proves to the people that thought I was a bad guy that he would do the exact same thing in the same circumstances,” said Hamlin, who will have to wait another year for a chance at his first career title. “It’s just part of racing. I got into him and he chose to retaliate. I’m in the garage and that’s the way it is.”

Elliott logged yet another runner-up finish, and gave his own view of what happened between the two.

MORE: Elliott’s place among drivers with most runner-ups before first win

“I’m going to race guys how they race me and keep a smile on my face, regardless,” Elliott said. “I’m happy to race guys how they choose to race me, and that’s the way I see it.”

One race remains this season in Miami, but the only thing left on the line for both drivers now will be the race trophy. Elliott came up just short of his bid to reach the Championship 4 after he was unable to regain his lead from Kenseth.

Coming within one spot of advancing to a veteran-laced title picture paired with his tension with Hamlin throughout the Round of 8 leaves the 21-year-old Elliott a more experienced, determined and focused driver, he said.

“I would like to think (I grew as a race car driver today) … ,” Elliott said. “I hope I grow as a person every week and grow as a racer every week. That is something I think everybody tries to do and I try to do better and do my job and came up short again and that is frustrating and I get it.

“We just have to keep our morale high and go to Homestead next week and get ready to close out the season strong and bring everything we’ve got come next season.”

MORE: Denny on the way Chase raced him

Posted on November 12, 2017June 22, 2021 by Pat DeCola

Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of four stories examining why each driver could win the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series championship.

RECAP: Martin Truex Jr. | Kevin Harvick | Brad Keselowski

• • •

Kyle Busch will win the 2017 championship because …

He’s been the best driver the second half of the season, and momentum counts.

Joe Gibbs Racing struggled to find its footing in the early going of 2017, being held out of Victory Lane until Denny Hamlin broke through at Loudon in mid-July. Busch has won 31 percent of the races since then, leading laps in every single one of them until this past weekend at Phoenix when he had already clinched and had nothing on the line.

These weren’t even off-cycle, circumstantial circuits in front of the field — he piled up double-digit laps led in all but three of those. His 1,980 laps led in 2017? They’re already 307 more than he’s accumulated in any season of his career, with one race left to pile up more.

Whatever performance change JGR went through over the summer has clearly given Busch’s No. 18 Toyota the speed to get it done. His eight poles this season — five of which have come since Hamlin’s Loudon win — are more than double that of any other driver, so he’ll likely have a tremendous starting position, to boot.

The 2015 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series champion showed us how much grit he has behind the wheel after coming back from devastating leg injuries earlier that season to win his first title.

With a full season behind him and that notorious 2017 Toyota speed, Busch has an excellent shot to pick up his second championship.

The added incentive he has to deny rival Brad Keselowski from his second title probably doesn’t hurt Busch any, either.

MORE: Breaking down the Championship 4

Posted on November 12, 2017June 17, 2021 by Staff Report

The race for eight will have to wait.

Jimmie Johnson’s plans for a second consecutive and record-breaking eighth overall championship came to an end shortly before the end of Stage 2 in Sunday’s Round of 8 cutoff race in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs at Phoenix Raceway.

The Hendrick Motorsports driver’s No. 48 Chevrolet cut a tire and hit the wall, and he took it to the garage.

“With a few laps to go to the end of the stage, as soon as I got in the corner and touched the brakes the right front just blew,” Johnson said after being evaluated and released from the infield care center. “I hate it for this team. They’ve worked so hard all year long and I’m very proud of their efforts.”

Johnson missed the cut to make it to the Championship 4 next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Even without the accident, Johnson would have faced an uphill battle. He entered Phoenix eighth in the Playoff standings, needing a win to advance. Johnson finished 10th in the first stage and was running 11th on Lap 150 when he hit the wall.

“Unfortunately we won’t have a chance to make eight this year but we’ll come back next year and try a little harder,” said Johnson, a three-time winner in 2017.

“Disappointed for sure. The last couple months, you can’t just stay alive. You have to be running on all cylinders and we just haven’t been there, unfortunately. I’m very thankful for all the hard work that’s gone into this and from Chad and the team but we just can’t get there right now.”

PHOTOS: Jimmie Johnson’s all-time wins

Posted on November 12, 2017November 12, 2017 by Staff Report

Denny Hamlin continued to pad his playoff point cushion as he grabbed the Stage 2 win in the Can-Am 500 at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday.

Hamlin remained fourth among Round of 8 playoff drivers in “points as they run” and is in position to advance to the Championship 4 next week at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Stage 2 ended under caution as Jimmie Johnson brought out the yellow flag on Lap 149, one lap before the scheduled end of the stage.

It was Hamlin’s fourth stage win of the season.

Johnson, who was running just outside the top 10, brought out the caution one lap before the scheduled end of Stage 2 on Lap 149, with a blown right tire that forced the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet into the wall. He sustained significant damage to the right side of the car, and headed straight to the garage.

Keselowski, who held the fourth playoff spot heading into the Phoenix race, was the lowest-finishing playoff driver in the stage after Johnson, at 13th place.

Kyle Larson exited the race from second place on Lap 104 with an engine problem. This is his fourth consecutive race that he has not finished this season.

The race is scheduled to end on Lap 312.

Finish	Driver	Team	Race points
1.	Denny Hamlin	Joe Gibbs Racing	10
2.	Matt Kenseth	Joe Gibbs Racing	9
3.	Erik Jones	Furniture Row Racing	8
4.	Martin Truex Jr.	Furniture Row Racing	7
5.	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing	6
6.	Kevin Harvick	Stewart-Haas Racing	5
7.	Jamie McMurray	Chip Ganassi Racing	4
8.	Ryan Newman	Richard Childress Racing	3
9.	Chase Elliott	Hendrick Motorsports	2
10.	Clint Bowyer	Stewart-Haas Racing	1

STAGE 1

Kyle Larson took the lead on Lap 68 of the Can-Am 500 at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, holding on to win his sixth stage of the season when Stage 1 concluded on Lap 75.

Larson led a charge of four non-playoff drivers finishing in the top 10 of Stage 1.

Denny Hamlin, who held the lead for 41 laps from Lap 28 to 67, finished second in the stage. With his finish in Stage 1, he jumped to just above the cutoff line to advance to the Championship 4 next week in Homestead-Miami Speedway in “points as they run.” Hamlin entered the race 19 points behind Keselowski for the final spot in the Championship 4. He earned nine points in Stage 1, while Keselowski earned zero.

Chase Elliott finished third in Stage 1, followed by non-playoff driver Matt Kenseth and Kevin Harvick.

Ryan Blaney, who began on the pole, dropped back to 14th by the end of Stage 1.

Jimmie Johnson, the seven-time champion, currently is eighth among the Round of 8 drivers, and finished 10th in Stage 1.

Stage 2 ends on Lap 170 of the 312-lap race at the 1-mile track.

Finish	Driver	Team	Race points
1.	Kyle Larson	Chip Ganassi Racing	10
2.	Denny Hamlin	Joe Gibbs Racing	9
3.	Chase Elliott	Hendrick Motorsports	8
4.	Matt Kenseth	Joe Gibbs Racing	7
5.	Kevin Harvick	Stewart-Haas Racing	6
6.	Kyle Busch	Joe Gibbs Racing	5
7.	Erik Jones	Furniture Row Racing	4
8.	Martin Truex Jr.	Furniture Row Racing	3
9.	Ryan Newman	Richard Childress Racing	2
10.	Jimmie Johnson	Hendrick Motorsports	1

Posted on November 12, 2017November 17, 2017 by Staff Report

What channel is NASCAR programming on this week? We answer that and provide all the weekly NASCAR television listings here in the NASCAR TV schedule.

All Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and XFINITY Series events are also live streamed online on the NBC Sports App, which can be accessed here. Events that are only available on NBC Sports App are noted below.

Note: All times are ET.

Monday, Nov. 13
12 p.m., NASCAR Scan All 43, NBCSN
2:30 p.m., NASCAR 120: Phoenix, NBCSN
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Tuesday, Nov. 14
2 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
6 p.m., NASCAR Scan All 43, NBCSN
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Scan All 43, NBCSN

Wednesday, Nov. 15
1:30 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS1
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1

Thursday, Nov. 16
5 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Scan All 43, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
6:30 p.m., NASCAR Scan All 43, NBCSN

Friday, Nov. 17
2:30 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS1
8:30 a.m., Camping World Truck Series practice at Miami, FS1
10 a.m., Camping World Truck Series final practice at Miami, FS1
12:30 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Miami, NBCSN (Canada: TSN 2)
2 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
2:30 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series practice at Miami, NBCSN (Canada: TSN GO)
3:30 p.m., Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying at Miami, FS1
5 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series final practice at Miami, NBCSN (Canada: TSN GO)
6 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying at Miami, NBCSN (Canada: TSN 2)
7:30 p.m., Camping World Truck Series SetUp, FS1
8 p.m., Camping World Truck Series Ford EcoBoost 200 at Miami, FS1
10 p.m., Camping World Truck Series Post-Race Show, FS1

Saturday, Nov. 18
6 a.m., Camping World Truck Series Ford EcoBoost 200 at Miami (re-air), FS1
10 a.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice at Miami, CNBC (Canada: TSN GO)
11 a.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying at Miami, CNBC (Canada: TSN GO)
12:30 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
1 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice at Miami, NBCSN (Canada: TSN 4)
2 p.m., NASCAR America, NBCSN
3 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Countdown to Green: Miami, NBCSN
3:30 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Ford EcoBoost 300 at Miami, NBCSN (Canada: TSN 1, 4)
6:30 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Post-Race Show at Miami, NBCSN

Sunday, Nov. 19
11:30 a.m., NASCAR RaceDay: Miami, FS1
1:30 p.m., NASCAR America Sunday, NBC
2 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Countdown to Green, NBC (Canada: TSN GO)
2:45 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 at Miami, NBC (Canada: TSN 2)
3 p.m., NASCAR Hot Pass, NBCSN
7 p.m., Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Post-Race Show at Miami, NBCSN
8 p.m., NASCAR Victory Lap, NBCSN
9:30 p.m., NASCAR Victory Lane, FS1

Posted on November 12, 2017November 19, 2017 by Staff Report

RELATED: Buy tickets for Miami

All three NASCAR national series are in action this weekend as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, XFINITY Series and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series determine their 2017 champions at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Monster Energy Series and XFINITY Series on-track events are also live streamed online on the NBC Sports App, which can be accessed here. Check out the full on-track weekend schedule below.

All times are ET

SUNDAY, NOV. 19
Pre-race schedule
2:05:00: Monster Energy Series Driver Introductions
2:42:30: Intro God Bless America
2:42:45: “God Bless America” by Dave Bray
2:43:45: Intro Pledge of Allegiance
2:44:00: Pledge of Allegiance by Col. Garfield
2:45:00: Intro Presentation of Colors: 482 Security Forces Color Guard
2:45:15: Invocation by Pastor Sammy Flores, Christ Fellowship
2:45:45: Intro National Anthem
2:46:00: National Anthem by Ryan Carson
2:47:45: Fly-By TOT: 4 F-16’s from the 93rd Fighter Squadron
2:52:45: “Drivers, Start Your Engines” by Chris Froome

3:07 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400 (267 laps, 400.5 miles), NBC (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
11 a.m.: NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France and NASCAR President Brent Dewar
6:15 p.m. (approx.): Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race/champion

THURSDAY, NOV. 16
3-3:30 p.m.: Championship 4 Media Day live stream (Follow live)

FRIDAY, NOV. 17
8:30-9:25 a.m.: Camping World Truck Series practice, FS1 (Results)
10-10:55 a.m.: Camping World Truck Series final practice, FS1 (Results)
12:30-1:55 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, NBCSN (Results)
2:30-3:25 p.m.: XFINITY Series practice, NBCSN (Results)
3:30 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Keystone Light Pole Qualifying, FS1 (Results)
5-5:55 p.m.: XFINITY Series final practice, NBCSN (Results)
6:15 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, NBCSN (Results)
8 p.m.: Camping World Truck Series Ford EcoBoost 200 (134 laps, 201 miles), FS1 (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
10:20 a.m.: Dale Earnhardt Jr.
11:30 a.m.: Joe Gibbs (Owner, Joe Gibbs Racing), Joe Garone (President, Furniture Row Racing), Tony Stewart (Owner, Stewart-Haas Racing) and Walt Czarnecki (Executive Vice President, Penske Corporation)
3 p.m.: Danica Patrick
4:30 p.m.: Ron Hornaday Jr.
7:15 p.m. (approx.): Post-Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying, Martin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski
10:15 p.m. (approx.): Post-Camping World Truck Series race/champion

GARAGECAM (Watch live)
Noon: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (360)
2 p.m.: XFINITY Series

SATURDAY, NOV. 18
10-10:55 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series practice, CNBC (Results)
11:15 a.m.: XFINITY Series Coors Light Pole Qualifying, CNBC (Results)
1-1:50 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, NBCSN (Results)
3:30 p.m.: XFINITY Series Ford EcoBoost 300 (200 laps, 300 miles), NBCSN (Results)

PRESS PASS (Watch live)
9:15 a.m.: NASCAR partnership announcement
12:20 p.m.: Jim Campbell (Chevrolet U.S. Vice President of Performance Vehicles and Motorsports), Dave Pericak (Global Director of Ford Performance) and Ed Laukes (Group Vice President, Marketing for Toyota Motor North America)
6 p.m. (approx.): Post-XFINITY Series race/champion

Posted on November 11, 2017November 11, 2017 by Staff Report

Justin Allgaier will likely be without the services of his crew chief in next weekend’s NASCAR XFINITY Series season finale after NASCAR officials discovered a technical infraction in post-race inspection Saturday at Phoenix Raceway.

The JR Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet, which Allgaier drove to a 10th-place finish in Saturday’s Ticket Galaxy 200, was found with an unattached brake cooling hose in inspection.

A NASCAR spokesperson said that the violation would likely result in an L1-level penalty, which would mean a one-race suspension for crew chief Jason Burdett, a 10-point deduction in the driver and owner standings, and a $10,000 fine. Any potential appeal would be expedited, according to the spokesperson.

The same spokesperson said that the penalty would not affect Allgaier’s position among the Championship 4 contenders vying for a series title next weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Allgaier qualified for the berth in the final by a 30-point margin.

Two teams were also found with one unsecured lug nut in a post-race check — the Team Penske No. 22 Ford of runner-up Ryan Blaney and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 18 Toyota of fourth-place finisher Christopher Bell. The guidelines for both infractions are fines for the respective crew chiefs.

Posted on November 11, 2017November 11, 2017 by Reid Spencer

RELATED: Results | Standings | Detailed breakdown

AVONDALE, Ariz. – With a pickup pit crew, at the track that cost him a shot at the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series title last year, William Byron won Saturday’s Ticket Galaxy 200 to advance to the Championship 4 race in the NASCAR XFINITY Series.

Behind him, JR Motorsports teammates Justin Allgaier and Elliott Sadler also qualified for the title race with finishes of 10th and 18th respectively. The JRM trio will join Daniel Hemric in an all-Chevrolet finale, after Hemric ran fifth and held off a valiant bid from Cole Custer after a restart with 13 laps left.

Byron took the lead off pit road after taking right-side tires only during a stop under caution on Lap 183 of 200. As Hemric, Erik Jones, Ryan Blaney, Christopher Bell and Custer battled behind him, Byron pulled away to beat Blaney to the finish line by .960 seconds.

“The second-to-last run of the race it took off on the long run,” said Byron, who was knocked out of the Truck Series Playoff last year when his engine blew at Phoenix. “I got up to third, and we got the two tires on it, and we were able to stay up there.

“I felt like clean air was pretty important. The 20 (Jones), the 22 (Blaney) and us were really similar. Whoever was in third would lose distance to the front two after probably 20 or 30 laps. We just had to adjust on it and make sure we got it right for the last pit stop.”

Jones ran third, followed by Bell and Hemric, who passed Custer on the final lap to claim the final spot in the Championship 4 by four points. Blake Koch also got past Custer on the way to the stripe to grab sixth place, and Custer rolled home seventh.

The JRM teams found out Saturday morning that their pit crews wouldn’t make it to Phoenix in time for the race because their plane had been diverted to Little Rock, Arkansas, with a mechanical problem. That led to a scramble for crew members pieced together from Hendrick Motorsports development crews.

In Byron’s case, the put-together crew proved up to the task. They got his No. 9 Chevrolet off pit road first after the final pit stop, though crew chief Dave Elenz said the two-tire call was dictated by the team’s inability to jack the left side of car, a problem that had recurred throughout the race.

“The guys on the pit crew did an awesome job, to step in cold-turkey like that, not knowing that you’re going to do it this morning,” Byron said. “And then showing up and pitting the car in the Playoffs—that’s pretty insane.”

If Byron was relatively unconcerned with a makeshift crew, team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. was more than mildly surprised.

“I freaked out when I heard it,” Earnhardt said. “I was real surprised by that news, but I was assured that we had people here who could get in there and do the job, and to be honest with you, they did. Give those guys a lot of credit…

“I’m equally glad that our guys who had to land in Arkansas are safe, and we’ll see them next weekend.”

The major casualty of the race was Brennan Poole, who came to Phoenix fourth in the standings with a good chance to make the Championship 4. But Poole wrecked on Lap 22 while trying to drive to the inside of the lapped car of Caesar Bacarella, who was making his first XFINITY start.

“I saw (Bacarella) go in (to Turn 1), and we were going to kind of go to the top to go around him, and he slid up so I tried to go to the bottom,” Poole said. “Bad luck, bad circumstances.

“I guess I could have been a little more cautious there, but just trying to get up there to get some stage points and keep moving forward.”

None of the four drivers competing for the title next Saturday drives a car eligible for the owners’ championship. The four cars running for the latter title are the No. 22 Ford of Team Penske, the Nos. 18 and 20 Toyotas of Joe Gibbs Racing and No. 42 Chevrolet of Chip Ganassi Racing.

All four cars have been driven by multiple drivers this season.

Note: The No. 7 Chevrolet of Allgaier was found to have an unattached brake cooling hose in post-race inspection, resulting in an L1 penalty. The infraction did not affect the composition of the Championship 4, but Allgaier will lose the services of crew chief Jason Burdett for the season finale.

Posted on November 11, 2017November 11, 2017 by Staff Report

Saturday’s Ticket Galaxy 400 at Phoenix Raceway set the XFINITY Series Championship 4 with William Byron, Elliott Sadler, Justin Allgaier and Daniel Hemric. The four drivers will compete for the championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 18 (3:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN/NBC Sports App, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

With non-regular XFINITY drivers winning the last two races in the XFINITY Series, Saturday’s 400-miler presented four spots up for grabs for the eight XFINITY Playoff contenders. Byron clinched late in the race via points and also got the Phoenix win, while Allgaier and Sadler transferred via their point total at the end of the race. Hemric and Cole Custer swapped between the fourth and fifth spots throughout the afternoon, including a particularly spirited battle in the final laps. Hemric came up with the final transfer spot by four points with his fifth-place finish.

Ryan Reed, Brennan Poole, Matt Tifft and Custer were eliminated after Phoenix. Poole, who entered Saturday’s race fourth in the Playoff standings, hit the wall hard within the first 30 laps, ending his day early. He was scored 38th. Reed, Tifft, Custer failed to make it with their point totals.

The four drivers advancing are:
Elliott Sadler, No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
William Byron, No. 9 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
Justin Allgaier, No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet
Daniel Hemric, No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet

The four drivers not advancing are:
Cole Custer, No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford
Matt Tifft, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Brennan Poole, No. 48 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet
Ryan Reed, No. 16 Roush Fenway Racing Ford