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RELATED: Live weather updates from Homestead-Miami

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Sunday’s Ford EcoBoost 400, the championship-determining race for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, was delayed by inclement weather at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
 
The 267-lap event (400 miles) was scheduled to get underway at 3:15 p.m. ET (NBC, MRN, SiriusXM). Driver introductions began at 3:30 but other pre-race events were on hold. The green flag finally waved at 4:51.
 
Reigning Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick (Stewart-Haas Racing), Jeff Gordon (Hendrick Motorsports), Kyle Busch (Joe Gibbs Racing) and Martin Truex Jr. (Furniture Row Racing) survived the first three rounds of this year’s Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup to qualify for today’s Championship 4 Round and a shot at the title.
 
It marked the final start for Gordon, a four-time series champion, as a full-time driver in the series. He will join the FOX Sports team next season as an analyst for its coverage of NASCAR.
 
Busch was the highest qualifying driver among the four Chase contenders, and rolled off third in the 43-car field. Gordon started fifth, Truex started 11th and Harvick started 13th.
 
Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin won the Coors Light Pole Award on Friday and Team Penske‘s Joey Logano joined him on the front row.
 
NASCAR Chairman and CEO Brian France noted earlier this weekend that the sanctioning body had “a record number” of Air Titans and other equipment on hand to speed up the track drying process on the 1.5-mile layout in case of rain.
 
“We’re looking at everything,” France said during a state of the sport address on Friday. “Our view now is that like a lot of things that aren’t necessarily perfect … that’s part of the game. That’s part of racing that it’s part of the strategy.”
 
Weather issues have impacted several races this season. Two, the June race at Michigan and last week at Phoenix, were declared official before reaching their scheduled distance. Two other events, at Richmond in April and Charlotte in October, had to be pushed to the following day due to rain.

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RELATED: Starting lineup | Live weather updates | See the 43-car field

And then there were four.

Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr. will be vying for the Sprint Cup Series title in a few hours at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET, NBC). But there’s plenty happening in the garage before then — after all, it is championship weekend.

NASCAR.com will be keeping a live blog covering all the Homestead action. So, check back right here for periodic updates throughout the day.

4:45 p.m. ET: Thanks for tuning into NASCAR.com’s live blog from Homestead. Turn on NBC for the start of the season finale Ford EcoBoost 400.

4:27 p.m. ET: The command has been given. Getting ready!

4:19 p.m. ET: Counting down the minutes until race time.

4:04 p.m. ET: Everyone wants to get a glismpe of Jeff Gordon.

3:55 p.m. ET: One of these four drivers will be hoisting the 2015 Sprint Cup Series trophy above their heads.

3:51 p.m. ET: One last time at driver intros for Jeff Gordon.

3:30 p.m. ET: Driver introductions are now underway on NBC.

3:15 p.m. ET: Getting closer!

3:02 p.m. ET: Just awesome.

2:43 p.m. ET: Stay with us, folks — the radar for the rest of the day looks promising!

2:25 p.m. ET: The real MVPs of NASCAR are gearing up.

2:15 p.m. ET: Driver introductions — which were set to begin at 2:20 p.m. ET — are on hold due to rain. 

2:10 p.m. ET: Rain, rain stay away.

2:03 p.m. ET: Coincidence or premonition?

2 p.m. ET: That’s a sharp-looking group.

1:28 p.m. ET: Man, Jeff Gordon has some cool friends.

1:05 p.m. ET: Rollin’ on out.

12:46 p.m. ET: Danica Patrick pays a classy tribute to Jeff Gordon.

12:33 p.m. ET: One last driver’s meeting for the 2015 season, set to begin at 1 p.m. ET. 

12:27 p.m. ET: Rodney Childers makes sure the No. 4 car is in tip-top shape for today.

11:51 a.m. ET: Guess who’s back at the track?

11:48 a.m. ET: #24ever.

11:45 a.m. ET: Full house behind Jeff Gordon for his FS1 Race Day cameo this morning.

10:56 a.m. ET: Um, Ricky, Texas was two weeks ago. The footwear of choice in Miami is flip-flops.

10:12 a.m. ET: We’re liking the looks of these sunny skies!

10:09 a.m. ET: The No. 48 team got a special visit from country superstar Tim McGraw this morning.

9:49 a.m. ET: Drivers like Dale Jr., media and even former President Clinton took to Twitter to wish Jeff Gordon well-wishes and share their favorite No. 24 memories. Check out all the messages here.

9:22 a.m. ET: A little elbow grease to accompany morning coffee for the four championship contenders’ teams.

Posted on by Holly Cain

IndyCar star James Hinchcliffe was in the NASCAR paddock this weekend in Homestead with three primary goals: telling Jeff Gordon good-bye, wishing sponsor GoDaddy a happy sendoff and, perhaps most importantly to him, talking to teams about a ride in the Watkins Glen, New York, XFINITY Series road course race.

A handful of IndyCar Series drivers roamed the paddock from three-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves to Marco Andretti. But the Canadian Hinchcliffe was there with a distinct and different mission, to secure his first NASCAR start.

“It was really an exploratory trip,” Hinchcliffe said. “I planted some seeds and got the ball rolling.

“I would love to do all the road courses but I need one foot in the door first. Watkins Glen makes sense because it’s closest to Canada.”

The Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver said the car would have to be a Ford because of his Honda commitments. While that tightens the parameters, it also eases the process and focuses on teams that run Fords such as Penske and Roush-Fenway — organizations that fielded the winning car and winning driver in this year’s XFINITY competition.

“It limits my options, but makes it easier too,” Hinchcliffe said with a smile.

A two-time front row starter in the Indy 500 and a four-time IndyCar race winner, Hinchcliffe is recovering from a serious injury he suffered in a crash during practice for this year’s Indy 500.

He said his visit this weekend to the NASCAR garage was, “More of floating idea in paddock.”

And in addition, he conceded, it was a great opportunity to see one of his racing heroes in his final start.

“I’m here for Jeff Gordon, I used to wear a Jeff Gordon hat every day for grade six,” Hinchcliffe said, smiling.

Posted on by Holly Cain

RELATED: Full race results | Gordon’s final race in photos

 

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Jeff Gordon sat in his parked silver No. 24 Chevrolet for an extended time on pit road following Sunday’s season-ending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race; his helmet on, his heart still beating fast.

After several minutes, he exited his race car for the final time in 23 years of amazing, highest-level effort after a sixth-place finish at Homestead-Miami Speedway — good enough for third place in his final Sprint Cup championship run. But instead of getting emotional about the end of his certain Hall-of-Fame career, the four-time champ found himself immediately reassuring others as the sellout crowd cheered loudly.

Gordon’s only team owner, Rick Hendrick, inserted himself between television interviews for an embrace with Gordon, the two speaking privately at length.

“I’m real happy for him,” Hendrick said. “I told him I loved him. And he said he loved me. I thanked him for all the years.”

Hendrick then walked away with Gordon’s final race helmet, a gift the driver had planned for some time.

Moments later Gordon’s wife, Ingrid, arrived at his side on pit road for a kiss and long hug. Then she looked up into the sky, tears in her eyes, as Gordon, 44, bent down and embraced his children, Ella, 8, and Leo, 5.

Gordon was as strong and vibrant in his goodbye as he was throughout a 93-win, high-achieving career that started out mustachioed and celebrated, Dale Earnhardt milquetoasted and, finally, fittingly much-appreciated.

RELATED: Full coverage of Gordon’s final race

All those who booed the kid who won too much, cheered the man who transformed the sport. It was a two-way street this weekend in South Florida.

 

“Well, we all know nothing would have been quite better than the win,” Gordon said. “But I’ve learned a lot in life, and there’s no such thing as a perfect day and a perfect life. Just like there’s no such thing as a perfect race car. They’re really close and good and at times better than the rest, but it doesn’t mean that they’re ever perfect.”

Throughout the weekend Gordon was acknowledged and honored by everyone who knew him from family, to sponsors to his fiercest competitors.

During the rain-delayed driver introduction session, Formula One champ Lewis Hamilton stood with Gordon and took photos with the four-time NASCAR champ, looking far more fan than racing champion himself. Several IndyCar Series drivers made the trip to South Florida to bid Gordon goodbye, including Marco Andretti, James Hinchcliffe and Josef Newgarden.

“Of course,” Mario Andretti said of attending the race to support Gordon. “He’s an icon. Not just the personality he brought to the sport as a racer, but as a person himself. He’s been a big contributor to NASCAR’s personality, no doubt about it. He will be missed, but he won’t be going too far away.

“He’s certainly kept up the time. He’s still a young man and he’s retiring relatively young, which is wonderful. He’s on top of his game and you can’t do any better than that. He’s living a wonderful life and he’s the envy of a lot of people for what he’s done. I just wish him well.”

Gordon conceded he was impressed and endeared by the pair’s presence at his celebrated final race. 

“I do believe he’s the greatest driver of all time,” Gordon said of Andretti. “And Lewis, I met at the Super Bowl a couple years ago. I’m a big fan of that sport. I was already a fan of his and he won the championship and we stayed in touch. I was trying to get him to come to a race and today was the race he could come to.

” … I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m in their league, but I have a ton of respect for them and am so happy they were here today.”

After an emotional driver introduction ceremony, Gordon walked with his daughter Ella down pit road, waving to the sellout crowd that would surprise him at race start with front grandstands fan placards that spelled out, “Thank You Jeff. 24Ever”

 

As Gordon’s car rolled off pit road to start the race, pit crew members from all the teams stood along the pit wall to clap and honor him.

WATCH: Pit crews honor Gordon

 

Earlier, Gordon’s afternoon included a standing ovation at the driver’s meeting and a short clip of Gordon, showing him from his earliest open-wheel days to his NASCAR entree and some of his finest multiple winning moments.

The support was a theme throughout the weekend. Fans crowded around Gordon’s team hauler in the infield, and he had to have security personnel from the South Miami Police guard his No. 24 as it snaked through the garage for final inspection Sunday morning.

About 100 fans stood behind temporary barriers at Gordon’s team transporter in the garage hoping for a glimpse of the real thing. 

Carla Piccarreto and her 24-year-old son James traveled to South Florida from upstate New York and had been standing at Gordon’s team transporter since the garage opened — about three hours. They’d still not seen Gordon by race morning but were intent to wait it out for him.

“Yesterday we saw the crowd swarm him, chanting his name and we were afraid for him,” Carla said, smiling.

Standing next to her, Joe Fiorello, 39, of Delray Beach, Florida, was wearing his best — if faded, and mustard-stained — original Jeff Gordon T-shirt. Jeffrey Jones was in the group, as well, holding a custom-made guitar shaped in a 24. He gave one to Hendrick earlier in the week and left a rainbow-colored version with the team for Gordon.

 

WATCH: Fans salute Gordon with card trick

 

Timothy and Britney Prior were also standing outside Gordon’s team hauler hoping for a photo, autograph or handshake. They drove 14 hours from Danville, Virginia, to attend the event and support their favorite driver.

The couple is so committed that Timothy’s back is completely tattooed with Gordon’s cars and even Gordon’s signature, something they got back in 2011.

While the couple didn’t have a chance to see their favorite driver in the garage, they did after the race — and Gordon had Timothy tag along to his post-race press conference, where he introduced the longtime supporter.

“You want to talk about commitment and a loyal fan and a nice guy, this guy is awesome,” Gordon said. “Now that right there, folks, that’s commitment. That is commitment.

“But I just happened to run into him on the way in here, and I just wanted him to be here and be a part of it because he’s a huge fan, and I appreciate him and all of our fans so much, especially what I saw this weekend.”

 

RELATED: Gordon says, ‘We’re still going to celebrate’

 

As Gordon spoke to the media after the race, he seemed truly at peace, extremely happy and, as we know, as accomplished a modern-day driver as one could be. His final race was fitting and he will leave South Florida — after a big party Sunday night — feeling fulfilled, respected and loved.

“That sendoff at the drivers’ meeting, you know, drivers are so competitive, and they don’t show ‑‑ they might have it inside them, but to show it publicly, their appreciation for other competitors, just doesn’t happen like that very often, and I really, really appreciate it very, very much,” Gordon said. “I’m looking forward to the rest of the evening, as well.

“Talking more about my career and the moments and what it’s all meant to me, this is why me and my mom having this conversation this morning was so important to me. We talked about the television station that filmed my quarter midget race when I was like 6 years old and I never understood why. I found out I was on the cover of a kids magazine with my quarter midget. 

 

“To come from that and have this … it blows my mind. Just being here and part of my day, to wrap up this amazing career it didn’t take a championship for me to feel like I’m on top of the world.”

Posted on by Holly Cain

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Even in the moments Chris Buescher was celebrating his NASCAR XFINITY Series title Saturday night, his team owner Jack Roush was suggesting that the newly-crowned champion might end up in the Sprint Cup Series in 2016. 

The only question seemed to be whether it would be a full-time ride or a part-time gig.

“We’re still not sure what his arrangement is going to be next year,” Roush said. “He will be involved in a Cup car to some extent, but whether it’s a part‑time program or a full program, we’re still in the midst of finalizing the conditions today. 

“We’ve got a number of possibilities, but we’re not ready to announce that today.”

While Roush is still securing details, it was all news to Buescher.

Reporters told Buescher of Roush’s comments — made before the driver came into the deadline media room at Homestead-Miami Speedway — but the newly crowned champ wasn’t ready to confirm a change beyond his intent to run a full XFINITY schedule in 2016.

Buescher made six Cup starts this season in the Front Row Motorsports No. 34 Ford with a best finish of 20th at Fontana.

“So I’ve been clear, I’m not in a rush,” Buescher, 23, said Saturday after celebrating his XFINITY Series title. “If it comes around — and that’s the first I’ve heard of that, by the way — so it’s kind of like the radio interview where Jack said something four months ago and I found out from my dad. 

“But you know, if that’s what it brings, then I’ll do my best to prepare for it and be ready, and if not, we’ll go try and double up on these XFINITY championships.

“Right now we’re living in the moment, and that’s a big weight off our shoulders.  We get to calm down a little bit, get to celebrate, get to enjoy the banquet, going to do some offshore fishing while we’re down here in Florida, and get ready for 2016.”

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Race results | Final standings

SHOP: Busch gear | Gordon gear

 

The season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway saw the ending of a legendary career and the completion of an incredible comeback with Jeff Gordon‘s final start in the No. 24 car and Kyle Busch‘s 2015 championship, respectively. 

 

See what the NASCAR community had to say about the Ford EcoBoost 400.

 

Kyle Busch:

 

 

Jeff Gordon:

 

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: Full race results | Race recap
SHOP: Champion gear

In a season fit for the silver screen, Kyle Busch completed his emotional comeback from a devastating season-opening injury to capture his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series title.


Busch took home the 2015 championship by being the top finisher among the Championship 4 drivers, which also included Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon and Martin Truex Jr., in the Ford EcoBoost 400 on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Busch led 41 laps on the day and the last seven of the 267-lap event for his first career postseason win as a member of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup field. “Rowdy” spent much of the race running in the top two and took the lead from Brad Keselowski for good shortly after the Lap 261 restart. Busch then distanced himself from Harvick, the series’ 2014 champion, who finished as the runner-up in the race and final standings. Gordon finished sixth in his final race, while Truex finished 12th.

“This is just so unbelievable, so amazing and means so much right here, right now and probably will for a long, long time to come,” Busch said on the championship stage at Homestead-Miami Speedway. “The opportunity that the amount of people that have poured their life and soul into everything that Kyle Busch does and is about — from M&M’s to Toyota to Snickers and Twix and Skittles, Joe Gibbs (team owner) and his family and all of Joe Gibbs Racing, everyone that gave me such a fast race car here tonight to drive. It was so much fun.

“This is just a dream come true and my family, my wife, my son — to have him this year and to have everything we’ve gone through this year to be in this moment — I don’t know what else to say, but this is so special.”

The title makes the Busch brothers — Kurt won the 2004 championship — the second pair of brothers in NASCAR to win premier series championships. The Labonte brothers also have accomplished that with Terry winning titles in 1984 and 1996 and Bobby winning in 2000.

RELATED: See all the premier series champions


The 2015 season started off in a frightening fashion for Busch. A crash in the season-opening NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Daytona International Speedway left him with a broken right leg and a broken left foot. Busch missed the first 11 points races of the season before returning in the middle of May for the Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Matt Crafton, David Ragan and Erik Jones each took turns behind the wheel of the No. 18 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing.

NASCAR granted Busch a waiver to make the Chase provided he was able to win a race and crack the top 30 in points before the end of the 26-race regular season at Richmond International Raceway.

It took Busch just over a month to find Victory Lane and he did so at Sonoma Raceway, holding off his brother. That sparked a stretch of four wins in five races for the 30-year-old, including three straight wins at Kentucky Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He nearly pulled off a fourth straight win at Pocono Raceway but ran out of gas on the final lap.

RELATED: See all the 2015 winners


For the second half of the waiver requirement, Busch cracked the top 30 in points after the race at Watkins Glen International in August and secured his spot in the Chase after the Darlington race, which was the second-to-last race of the regular season. 

The Chase provided an early test for Busch as a wreck at New Hampshire and a 37th-place finish left him on the outside looking in of advancing to the Contender Round heading to Dover International Speedway. However, he was able to rally to advance with a runner-up finish at the “Monster Mile.”

Contact with Kyle Larson near the entrance of pit road at Charlotte in the Contender Round opener derailed a promising day for Busch and left him needing strong performances at Kansas Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway to make the Eliminator Round. Busch delivered at both, gaining the spots he needed late at Talladega, which was where he was involved in a wreck the previous year that took him out of the Chase.

Busch was a model of consistency in the Eliminator Round with three top-five finishes to advance on points to the Championship 4. 

The title season was also a big one off the track for Busch as he and wife Samantha welcomed son Brexton in May, just days after Busch’s return to competition. During Championship 4 Media Day, Busch and Joe Gibbs revealed that Busch had inked a contract extension days after the news of Mars extension as sponsor on the No. 18 Toyota was announced.

The Sprint Cup championship is the first for crew chief Adam Stevens, who was in his first year as a pit boss in the Sprint Cup Series, and the fourth (and first since 2005) for Gibbs. It was also the first Sprint Cup championship for manufacturer Toyota.

“We are extremely proud of Kyle Busch and Joe Gibbs Racing on winning the Sprint Cup Series driver’s championship,” said Ed Laukes, vice president of marketing, performance and guest experience for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. “It’s an incredible accomplishment for Kyle, to overcome the adversity he faced this year and come back with the focus and determination he has had to win races, qualify for the Chase and then earn the ultimate prize, his first Sprint Cup Series championship.
 
“Winning this NASCAR championship has been a huge aspiration for Toyota since joining NASCAR in 2004. We are honored to finally be on this stage and join Kyle and Joe Gibbs for our first Sprint Cup Series title.”

Championship weekend was a banner one for the 30-year-old Busch. In addition to his Sprint Cup championship, Kyle Busch Motorsports driver Erik Jones won the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship on Friday night and KBM won the owner’s championship in that series.

Posted on by Staff Report

Clint Bowyer‘s loose No. 15 Toyota started a multi-car wreck during the season finale on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway shortly after a restart on Lap 45, forcing the fourth caution of the day.

 

The other cars invovled were the No. 88 of Dale Earnhardt Jr., the No. 33 of Ty Dillon, the No. 55 of David Ragan and the No. 43 of Aric Almirola, who took his Ford to the garage. (Almirola returned to the race 55 laps down.)

“We wrecked pretty good,” Dale Jr. told his crew after getting clipped by Ragan’s Toyota. 

 

Before the race’s start, the Hendrick Motorsports wheelman was upfront saying he would assist in any way with helping Jeff Gordon attain his fifth title. After a trip down pit road, Earnhardt returned to the race several laps down.

The Ford EcoBoost 400 is the final race for Michael Waltrip Racing which fields teams for both Bowyer and Ragan.

 

Bowyer’s day ended early and he told NBC from the garage, “I don’t know what the hell happened. I was kind of optimistic about the race. We made a pit stop there and the car was just a way big handful there. I don’t know, I was coming off of (Turn) 2 there and Ty (Dillon) kind of got squirrely and I tried to stay off of him and my car got loose and I just couldn’t catch it.

“I don’t know, we just lost the handling on our car big-time there. Unfortunately ended — you hate to end this way. I wanted to end on a strong note for everybody at MWR. Appreciate all of their hard work and efforts all these years but unfortunately it’s over.”

Here’s how those involved ranked on the leaderboard at the race’s end: Dillon (23rd), Ragan (27th), Earnhardt Jr. (40th), Almirola (41st) and Bowyer (43rd).

Posted on by Staff Report

RELATED: See the full weekend schedule | NBC Sports Live Extra


All times ET

Monday, Nov. 23
6 a.m., NASCAR Victory Lap (re-air), NBCSN
7 a.m., NASCAR Victory Lap (re-air), NBCSN
8 a.m., NASCAR Victory Lap (re-air), NBCSN
Noon, NASCAR 120, NBCSN
5:30 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
5:30 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
3 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS2

Tuesday, Nov. 24
6 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air), NBCSN
7 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air), NBCSN
5 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
2 a.m., NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS2

Wednesday, Nov. 25
6 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air), NBCSN
7 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air), NBCSN
5 p.m., NASCAR America Live, NBCSN
5:30 p.m., Uncompromising: Kevin Harvick (re-air), FS1
6 p.m., NASCAR Race Hub, FS1
3 a.m., Best of NASCAR Race Hub (re-air), FS2

Thursday, Nov. 26
6 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air), NBCSN
7 a.m., NASCAR America (re-air), NBCSN

Sunday, Nov. 29
7 p.m., NASCAR XFINITY Series Award Show (tape), NBCSN

 

Posted on by Zack Albert

RELATED: Race results | Final standings | Race recap

HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Martin Truex Jr. and his Furniture Row Racing bunch didn’t mind the perception as the clear underdogs among the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship contenders. It didn’t mean they were content just to be among the elite final four.
 
Despite his team trying alternate strategies and working to find finesse on a finicky track, Truex’s bid for his first premier-series crown fell short Sunday with a 12th-place finish in the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, leaving him fourth in the final Sprint Cup standings.
 
“The odds were against us, for sure,” said Truex, who led just three of the 267 laps. “You know, obviously really proud of everybody, like I said, and you know, we didn’t come here saying we were going to be OK finishing fourth. We came here and really tried everything in our power, everything we knew how to do, to put together our best performance. It just wasn’t in the cards for us.”
 
Truex’s best season in NASCAR’s top division came to an unsatisfying end, fraught with handling woes as the race transferred from daytime to nightfall. “This is frustrating, man. We’re terrible,” Truex told crew chief Cole Pearn after the No. 78 Chevrolet failed to break back into the top 10 after the team’s next-to-last pit stop.
 
It was the theme of the night for several teams battling their car’s temperament, but few had as much at stake as the Colorado-based single-car team.
 
“For whatever reason, we just didn’t have a good handle on it from the time we started race practice yesterday,” Pearn said. “I don’t know. Something about this car or what for this track, I don’t know. Mile-and-a-halfs have definitely been our strong suit and for whatever reason, we could not move the needle all weekend.
 
“The race was what it was. We tried to make the best of it and threw everything we could at it, but it just wasn’t our weekend by any means.”
 
An omen might’ve come during a Lap 137 pit stop, when a fluke spark from a lug nut on the left-rear tire change triggered a flash fire, keeping the fueler from filling the tank. The team recovered, thanks to a quick yellow flag that followed, but the handling issues persisted.

WATCH: Truex’s car catches on fire during pit stop
 
With the team struggling to gain ground, Pearn gambled on a two-tire stop during the next-to-last yellow flag when the rest of the title contenders took four. The call for track position vaulted the No. 78 to the lead on Lap 169, but the strategy backfired as Truex dropped through the running order on the ensuing long green-flag stretch.
 
“We were just trying — we had to try something,” Truex said. “We weren’t getting anywhere. We made just about every adjustment we could possibly make on our race car and never really seemed like we could find that speed, so we were just taking some gambles. We did two early and it worked out for us pretty well. We did two later on and the race went green longer than we had hoped and we probably lost two spots because of it.
 
“But I think all in all at the end of the day, net‑net, we kind of ended up where we should have. We just didn’t have the speed, so we were trying to gamble on some things and trying to get some track position any way we could, just couldn’t hang onto it.”
 
Despite any possible letdown in the finale, the team celebrated plenty of firsts. Truex and Furniture Row each savored their highest season-long finish in NASCAR’s premier series, with Truex setting career-bests in top-five finishes, top-10 finishes and laps led — all under the guidance of a rookie crew chief.
 
“I’m extremely proud,” Pearn said. “I mean, we won a race, had 22 top 10s, we finished fourth in points. If you’d told me that at the start of the year, I would’ve been very, very, very pleased. The good thing is, I’m really excited about our future. We’re heading into a really good place with some good partners down the road and put this team in a spot that they’ve never been in before. Tremendous amount of things to be pleased for and really looking forward to the future.”
 
The future for the Barney Visser-owned team may keep the upward trend going. The team will likely return all key personnel and will shift from longtime manufacturer Chevrolet to Toyota in the offseason, aligning itself with Joe Gibbs Racing, this year’s title-winning organization with driver Kyle Busch.
 
Momentum from this season may also help as the team tries to do one better in 2016.

RELATED: Furniture Row’s Toyota move among several changes in Cup for ’16
 
“I think this is great motivation for us for next year,” Truex said. “I think that with the things we have coming and going to Toyota and teaming up with JGR and all that stuff, I think the future is bright for this team, and we’re keeping all our guys together, and hopefully this is our first season battling for a championship but not our last. I really feel strong that this is a special group of guys, and if we can keep that together for hopefully the rest of my career, I’d love to drive for them.
 
“We’ll just have to wait and see what happens. You never know what the future holds, but excited already about next year, and I think we’ll be back here in mid‑December testing already for next year. Not a whole lot of rest, and (I’m) looking forward to spending a week or so down here relaxing and having a few beers, catching a few fish and really just let it all soak in what we’ve been able to accomplish, and really proud of everybody on our team.”