The Bank of America ROVAL 400 on Sunday (2 p.m. ET on NBC, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio) is the last chance for the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contenders to secure their spot in the Round of 8. After races at Kansas Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, only one driver has locked himself into the Round of 8 — William Byron (clinched on points) — heading into this weekend, leaving 11 playoff contenders vying for just seven positions.
The following driver has clinched a spot in the eight-driver field of the next round: William Byron.
Can Clinch Via Points
If there is a repeat winner or a win by a driver who cannot advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being ahead of the ninth winless driver in the standings. The same point requirements listed below would hold true if a new win comes from among William Byron, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Alex Bowman, Ryan Blaney, Tyler Reddick or Chase Elliott.
Christopher Bell: Would clinch regardless of finish
Kyle Larson: Would clinch with 4 points
Denny Hamlin: Would clinch with 26 points
Alex Bowman: Would clinch with 30 points
Ryan Blaney: Would clinch with 31 points
Tyler Reddick: Would clinch with 42 points
Chase Elliott: Would clinch with 43 points
Joey Logano: Could only clinch with help
Daniel Suárez: Could only clinch with help
Austin Cindric: Could only clinch with help
Chase Briscoe: Could only clinch with help
If there is a new winner from Joey Logano or another winless driver lower in the standings but still eligible to advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being ahead of the eighth winless driver in the standings.
Christopher Bell: Would clinch with 11 points
Kyle Larson: Would clinch with 16 points
Denny Hamlin: Would clinch with 38 points
Alex Bowman: Would clinch with 42 points
Ryan Blaney: Would clinch with 43 points
Tyler Reddick: Would clinch with 54 points
Chase Elliott: Would clinch with 55 points
Joey Logano: Could only clinch with help
Daniel Suárez: Could only clinch with help
Austin Cindric: Could only clinch with help
Chase Briscoe: Could only clinch with help
Can Clinch Via Win
The following drivers would clinch on their win alone:
Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Alex Bowman, Ryan Blaney, Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, Daniel Suaáez, Austin Cindric, Chase Briscoe.
The National Motorsports Appeals Panel upheld penalties assessed to the No. 1 JR Motorsports team after Saturday’s Xfinity Series race at Talladega Superspeedway.
JRM driver Sam Mayer had taken the checkered flag in 16th place in Saturday’s United Rentals 250, but his No. 1 Chevrolet failed the post-race height requirement in post-race technical inspection, measuring too low at the rear of the car. Mayer was disqualified and credited with a last-place result and points in the 38-car field.
The three-member appeals panel determined after Wednesday’s hearing that the penalty would stand, stating: “The panel found that NASCAR used standard inspection procedures at Talladega Superspeedway on October 5, 2024, on the No. 1 NXS car and found Rule 14.17.3.2.2.2 in violation.” According to the NASCAR Rule Book, since the appeal concerned a race disqualification, the penalty cannot be appealed further.
The ruling keeps Mayer in 11th place out of the 12 drivers remaining in the Xfinity Series Playoffs, and he faces a 13-point deficit relative to the provisional elimination line. His original finishing position had initially slotted Mayer in eighth place in the postseason standings with a 10-point cushion above elimination.
The Xfinity Series resumes Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN, SiriusXM) at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course, where the playoff field will be trimmed from 12 title-eligible drivers to eight remaining championship hopefuls.
When Denny Hamlin emerged from the clutches of potential Round of 16 elimination to advance in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs, his crew chief, Chris Gabehart, offered a preview of what the three races in the Round of 12 might hold — featuring Kansas, Talladega and “whatever the Smith family has dreamed up for the Roval next.”
The Smith family’s Speedway Motorsports group has indeed put a new spin on the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course, with revisions that could potentially be a dream or a nightmare that shift the complexion of Sunday’s Bank of America ROVAL 400 (2 p.m. ET, NBC, NBC Sports App, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The final road-course race of the season will determine which eight among the 12 remaining playoff-eligible drivers will keep their championship hope intact.
The reconfiguration might seem subtle, and the 17-turn track’s length of 2.28 miles remains unchanged on the teams’ entry-blank forms for this year’s edition. Chase Elliott is a two-time conqueror of previous versions of Charlotte’s road-and-oval hybrid, which joined the NASCAR circuit in 2018, but his approach to this season’s revamped layout is mostly new, relying on racing-simulator seat time for his pre-race prep.
“To me, I kind of look at it like it’s a new race track, truthfully,” said Elliott, the 2020 Cup champion. “That section of the track is going to change the entire flow of the lap there, so I’ve been kind of approaching it as a new track with my preparation. I’ve spent some time in the simulator, just trying to really memorize the track and where the little bumps are. Typically, those track scans are pretty good. I think that’s probably one of the best things about the simulator is that a driver can go and get familiar with the track layout, surface content, roughness, so on and so forth. It’s really about all I feel like I can do until we get some time on track. Obviously, we have extra practice next week, so hopefully that’s enough to find a good rhythm and get a good flow for qualifying and then obviously for the race.”
Cup Series and Xfinity Series teams competing at the Charlotte Roval are scheduled for extended practice time Saturday, with Cup teams splitting up into two groups with two 20-minute sessions each. What they’ll find are two altered areas — one in the Turns 6 and 7 complex that leads from the infield section back onto the oval, and another revision that sharpens the Turn 16 frontstretch chicane before the start/finish line.
Charlotte Motor Speedway
The infield reconfiguration stands to be the most dramatic. A longer straightaway now connects Turn 5 to Turn 6, where an elevation drop into the right-hand bend promises to compromise drivers’ visibility. That sets up a significantly tighter Turn 7, a slow left-hander that may open the door for bold passing opportunities — an area that former Roval winner Ryan Blaney termed as a “dive-bomb central” type of curve.
“I have not been to the track physically; I’ve just run it at the sim, but yeah, Turn 6 is like 100% blind,” said Alex Bowman, fifth in the Cup Series standings and plus-26 relative to the playoff-elimination line. “You can’t see it until you’re there, which is pretty interesting. At least in the sim, your lift mark is before you can see the corner, so that’s definitely different. And Turn 7 is like making a U-turn on a one-way street, so it’s going to be chaos, for sure.”
Said 2022 Roval winner Christopher Bell: “It’s going to be big. We’re going to have a new calamity corner, that’s for sure.”
The modifications to the frontstretch chicane are more slight, but the arcing entry to that portion of the course now sways more to the left, closer to the outer pit-road barrier. That change is designed to create a sharper angle on the right-hand Turn 16, another alteration that could promote passing on the last set of bends before the flagstand.
“Honestly, I think the frontstretch chicane is going to be a slower corner, so I feel like you might have some more outbraking potential there, so I think it’s good,” said Blaney, who won the first Charlotte Roval event in 2018. “I think it’s good they changed it up. Whenever you add passing zones, that’s good for a race. It’s the same for everybody. It’s going to be different for everyone and just who can adapt to it the quickest. I’ve done some sim work. I’ve got another session this week and we’ll see where it goes.”
Sunday’s 400-kilometer, 109-lap Roval event will wrap up what’s already been a treacherous round for a solid chunk of the postseason field. Kansas Speedway opened the Round of 12 and produced a non-playoff spoiler with Ross Chastain’s first victory of the season. That theme continued at Talladega Superspeedway last weekend with another new winner outside the playoff grid in Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who threaded through one of the biggest crashes in Cup Series history to prevail.
The Charlotte road-course layout has undergone a handful of tweaks and tucks in its brief NASCAR history, but one feature has been constant — all six Roval races thus far have been playoff elimination events. Some drivers are welcoming that challenge along with the track’s newfangled look.
“It’s going to be interesting,” said Daniel Suárez, 10th in the standings and facing a 20-point deficit to the elimination line. “I’m happy that SMI (Speedway Motorsports) and everyone in NASCAR is allowing these kind of changes, because if you think about it, we’ve been racing already at the Roval for a handful of years, and it’s been amazing. We all have enjoyed it so much, but a little change like this always, in my mind, will spice things a little bit. So I’m happy. I’m happy that we are always continuing to think outside the box a little bit. I think this makes the sport exciting.”
Daytona Beach, Fla. (Oct. 9, 2024) – NASCAR and LegacyHistoryPride — a provider of authentic fashion and apparel that celebrates and supports America’s historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) — announced today the launch of a new fashion collaboration blending the spirit, culture and legacy of HBCUs with the fast-paced world of America’s No. 1 motorsport.
“NASCAR fashion is surging right now and we’re excited to leverage that momentum to continue driving support of the African American community and HBCUs through this new collaboration with LegacyHistoryPride,” said Brandon Thompson, NASCAR’s vice president of diversity and inclusion. “We hope students and alumni are equally excited to sport the collection.”
The officially licensed collection features a custom-designed, co-branded “pit crew jersey” for twelve different HBCUs, including Claflin University, Clark Atlanta University, Grambling University, Howard University, Morehouse College, Morgan St. University, N.C Central University, Norfolk State University, Prairie View A&M University, VA State University and Winston-Salem State University.
LegacyHistoryPride™ designed the unique racing-inspired jerseys, each including a number that represents the year the institution was founded. The jerseys retail for $90 and are now available online at shoplhp.com/collections/nascar and on campus at select university bookstores.
“This collaboration goes beyond products—it’s about amplifying, celebrating, and honoring the schools that have profoundly impacted countless lives,” said Tahir Murray, CEO & Founder of LegacyHistoryPride. “We view this partnership as a chance to share our commitment to creating opportunities and building stronger communities through the lens of fashion.”
This partnership continues NASCAR’s commitment to the HBCU community, following initiatives like the NASCAR Campus Lab Program – a groundbreaking program that offers HBCU students real-world experience in the sports industry, which was launched in 2023 by NASCAR’s Senior Director of Diversity and Inclusion and Howard University graduate, Caryn Grant.
This collaboration also celebrates the achievements of trailblazing HBCU students and alumni in NASCAR, such as Winston-Salem State University senior Rajah Caruth, who won his first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race in 2024; John Cohen, a Grambling State University alum and owner of the New York Racing Team; Brehanna Daniels, a Norfolk State University standout and the first Black woman to compete as a pit crew member; and Thompson himself, a Clark Atlanta University alum.
The next chapter of the intense, three-way battle for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour title will take place at one of the series’ most iconic venues: Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
Since the facility opened to the public in 1940, Thompson has served as a hub for Modified competition in the northeastern United States. During the early days of the Modified Tour, Thompson hosted many as five races in one year alone.
Many notable names have claimed checkered flags at Thompson. NASCAR Hall of Famer Richie Evans won the series’ first four races at Thompson in 1985, with names like Jimmy Spencer, Mike Stefanik, Jeff Fuller, Steve Park, Ted Christopher and Justin Bonsignore later embarking on winning streaks of their own at the track.
As has been the case throughout most of its lifespan on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour schedule, Thompson serves as a crucial, late-season tilt for the championship. A strong race at Thompson will be essential for the three championship contenders before they close out 2024 with two straight events in the south.
Below is everything you need to know ahead of Sunday’s World Series 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
Patrick Emerling enters Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park with momentum, having won three of the last four NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races. (Photo: Jaiden Tripi/NASCAR)
World Series 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park
No one in the 27-car field could match the blistering pace set by Emerling in Rich Gautreau’s No. 1, which led all 150 laps from the pole. That victory was the first of three Emerling has accumulated over the last four events, with the consistency putting him just 16 points back from the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour points lead.
Despite this, Emerling still has work to do if he wishes to overtake Ron Silk in the championship hunt. Not only does Silk lead all drivers in the Modified Tour this season with four victories, but the defending champion has enjoyed plenty of success at Thompson while driving for Haydt Yannone Racing, having won two of the last three events there.
Nestled in between Silk and Emerling in the championship battle is Justin Bonsignore, who won six consecutive races at Thompson from 2018-19. Bonsignore is chasing redemption to go along with a 13th Thompson victory, as a missed shift in last year’s fall race on the final restart directly cost him a shot at the title.
The three championship contenders will still have to deal with plenty more talented drivers in Sunday’s World Series 150 at Thompson. Matt Hirschman is among those names, as he is searching for his first visit to Thompson’s Victory Lane after his father Tony earned eight NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour wins at the facility between 1989-2005.
Other drivers set to compete at Thompson on Sunday include Jon McKennedy, Woody Pitkat, Chase Dowling, Matt Swanson, Anthony Nocella and Tim Connolly.
The complete entry list for the World Series 150 can be viewed here.
Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park could serve as a crucial turning point in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship on Sunday. (Photo: Nick Grace/NASCAR)
Schedule: Sunday, October 13 … Final practice from 12:20 to 12:40 p.m. ET … World Series 150 pres. by FloSports at 1 p.m. ET.
Qualifying: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the World Series 150 pres. by FloSports.com is limited to 30 starters, including Provisional Positions.
Tire allotment: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is eleven (11) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR Officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event. The tire change rule is two (2) tires per caution.
CONCORD, N.C. — AJ Allmendinger carries a perfect four-for-four record in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval into this weekend’s Round of 12 finale.
And yet the driver of the No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet is not sporting the same bravado about the road-course-oval hybrid as he has in past years.
“I go into this weekend probably with the least amount of confidence that I ever been going into the Roval,” Allmendinger said Tuesday during a media availability. “You know, I looked at Talladega as a race I was like, I’ve probably got more of a chance to win there than I do at the Roval.”
His candor offers a stark contrast from what’s become the expectation from Allmendinger, whose 14 road-race victories in the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity series are most all-time across the sport’s three national series, including a weekend sweep of last year’s Roval races.
Entering Saturday’s Drive for the Cure 250 (4 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio), Allmendinger sits eighth in the Xfinity Series Playoffs standings, the final car above the elimination line by a mere seven points, with teammate and fellow road ace Shane van Gisbergen lurking 10 points beneath that provisional divider. Eleven times, Allmendinger has gone to Victory Lane after an Xfinity road-course race. None of those have come in 2024 after five attempts, his best finish a third-place effort on Sept. 14 at Watkins Glen International. SVG, on the other hand, has won three times.
“I’ve struggled with being loose in the Xfinity car. That is at every road course that I’ve went to,” Allmendinger said.
Van Gisbergen’s advantage at the Xfinity level, Allmendinger noted, is his ability to use the heal-toe method of shifting, using his right heal to brake and toes to blip the throttle while downshifting and utilizing his left foot on the clutch. That clutch usage also allows SVG to skip gears if he so chooses, matching RPMs with the gas pedal. That experience stems from his days becoming a three-time champion in Australian Supercars, where another one of Allmendinger’s former teammates — two-time Cup winner Marcos Ambrose — laid the foundation for stock-car success on road courses.
“The thing is, Shane and I, when we talk about the cars, I think we feel them fairly close to the same of what we fight. He’s just worked through it better and obviously he’s had really good success,” Allmendinger said. “[…] So we feel the car the same. But some of these race tracks, he’s figured out what to do. He’s really good at rolling corner speed, and that’s what I’ve noticed. So like Sonoma was a place that, following him, I tried to drive exactly like he was doing, and I just didn’t have lateral grip, and he makes it work. …
“I haven’t figured out what that is, what I struggle with. You know, I can pinpoint it; just haven’t figured out what that is and how to make it better.”
Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images
Having a teammate like van Gisbergen has been helpful for Allmendinger, though, if not for anything but motivation knowing SVG can still win despite similar struggles.
“I’m a fan of motorsports, so you get a three-time champion of the elite series of where you’re coming from,” Allmendinger said. “I mean, we all see what he can do. We saw what he did in Chicago. So on the road course side of it, it’s good for me to see, like, hey, like he’s still getting the speed out of the car, so I just got to figure that out. […] I guess you could always look at it (like) there’s rivalry a little bit with your teammate, but it’s not — I don’t look at us as a rivalry, right? Like, I just see what he’s doing. It’s like, yeah, I need to be better. Like, on the road courses, I’d like to get there. So he’s definitely pushing me and I enjoy that part of it.”
What lies ahead this weekend is a reconfigured Roval, changed this year to feature a longer straightaway between Turns 5 and 6 to set up a sweeping right-handed Turn 6 into an extremely tight left-handed hairpin at Turn 7 leading back to the banked turns of the oval. Additionally, the frontstretch chicane gets a new look as its Turn 15 entry dives further left to set up a sharper, near-90-degree right Turn 16 before a 90-degree left back to the start/finish line. The anticipated outcome, Allmendinger believes, is more excitement, which he sees ahead for some ambitious passing opportunities. Highest alert on Allmendinger’s radar, though, is the hairpin.
“It’ll be interesting to feel in real life, the hump that they got going over into the first right-hander there in the new part of the section of the race track,” he said, “because on sim, the hump is pretty extreme. So it’s kind of where you get on the brakes. It kind of reminds me a little bit — not maybe as extreme downhill — but like Chicago, down right by the the city section there by all the hotels and stuff. So it’ll open it up, especially in Xfinity, I think, for wheel-hopping over that rise. But yeah, I can definitely see using the bumper in the right-hand section. But the problem is, if you do that, you’ve got the next hairpin left-hander. So I think desperation and stuff, there’s gonna be a lot of dive-bombs at the hairpin. I think that’s kind of where we’re gonna see a lot of the action.”
And while his confidence may have lowered slightly in the Xfinity car at the Roval, he fully intends on defending his victory in the NASCAR Cup Series race Sunday (2 p.m. ET, NBC, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, NBC Sports App). In four Cup road races this season, Allmendinger has finished sixth twice (Circuit of The Americas and Sonoma Raceway) and failed to finish twice, crashing out at Chicago and losing a transmission at Watkins Glen.
“I’m showing up to win the race, but I only put the expectations on me to go run well,” Allmendinger said. “Look, it’s hard to win Cup races. It’s hard to run top five in Cup races. Like, the ultimate goal to me, still, is to show up. If we can run top five, top six, that’s a great day. And if we get it right, I know we can win. But on the Xfinity side of it, for sure, it’s just — because if you take SVG out, I don’t win any of the races this year. It’d be different if SVG was winning and I’m running second and I’m like, ‘yeah, just got to figure out a way to beat my teammate.’ But like, literally, if he’s not in the race, I still don’t win any of those races.”
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 8, 2024) – JR Motorsports announced today that Virginia native Connor Hall will be the new driver behind the wheel of the No. 88 Chevrolet for the organization’s championship-winning Late Model program in 2025. Additionally, as previously announced by JRM, Bass Pro Shops will be back on board as the primary partner for 20 Late Model events throughout the upcoming season.
“We are very happy to be able to have someone of Connor’s caliber and experience join us in our Late Model program,” said JRM’s Senior Vice President of Motorsports L.W. Miller. “Seeing his many successes over the past several seasons makes us very excited to watch him continue that success in a JR Motorsports Late Model in 2025. Everyone at JRM is looking forward to seeing what he and Bryan (Shaffer) can do together in the Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet.”
Hall, the current points leader in the zMAX CARS Tour Late Model Stock Car division and the 2023 NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series National Champion, succeeds Carson Kvapil in the seat as Kvapil moves full-time to the NASCAR Xfinity Series next season with JRM.
“To me, JR Motorsports has the No. 1 Late Model program in the country, and it’s a dream come true to be able to wake up every day and work toward the common goal everyone at JRM has, which is to win more races and championships and carry on the legacy of this team,” Hall said.
“The opportunity to represent JR Motorsports, Johnny Morris and Bass Pro Shops, Dale, Kelley and L.W. means a lot to me. I am super-excited to work with Bryan, Slim and the rest of the team as well. I respect them a ton and am very eager to establish that working relationship.”
The 27-year-old Virginian will get behind the wheel of the No. 88 Bass Pro Shops/TRACKER Boats & ATVs Chevrolet for the first time early in 2025.
TALLADEGA, Ala. — The No. 1 JR Motorsports Chevrolet driven by Sam Mayer was disqualified Saturday evening in post-race inspection after the NASCAR Xfinity Series event at Talladega Superspeedway.
Mayer’s No. 1 Chevy failed the post-race height requirement, measuring too low in the rear following the conclusion of the United Rentals 250. Mayer, who started the race in 12th, took the checkered flag in 16th before the violation. JR Motorsports will appeal the ruling, the team announced in a Monday statement on its social platforms.
Mayer, one of 12 Xfinity Series Playoffs drivers fighting for Round of 8 positioning, was fourth in the playoff standings entering Talladega. Ahead of Saturday’s elimination race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course, Mayer currently sits 11th in the standings, 13 points beneath the elimination line. Eight drivers will advance to the Round of 8 after Saturday’s event to inch close toward the Xfinity Series championship.
Additionally, one lug nut was found unsecured on Chandler Smith’s No. 81 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, which will result in a monetary fine.
The Xfinity Series will conclude the Round of 12 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway road course on Saturday (4 p.m. ET, The CW, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
This NASCAR Cup Series season has been doted by dazzling endings all year long, and Sunday’s Round of 12 playoff race at Talladega Superspeedway also delivered.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. surged to the win in a three-wide photo finish by just 0.006 seconds over Brad Keselowski, with William Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet third, just 0.027 seconds shy of Stenhouse. The dramatic visual of 13 cars flashing across the finish line within half a second of the leader was thrilling and exhilarating, just how any Talladega charge to the checkers should.
And yet that wasn’t even the closest finish this season. It wasn’t the first photo finish of the year. Heck, it wasn’t even the first three-wide photo finish this year. Sunday’s Stenhouse storm to Victory Lane marked the third-closest finish of 2024, behind Kyle Larson’s 0.001-second shocker over Chris Buescher at Kansas Speedway (the closest finish in Cup Series history) and Daniel Suárez’s triple-barrel thriller at Atlanta, besting Ryan Blaney by 0.003 seconds and Kyle Busch by 0.007 seconds.
Those three margins of victory are within the eight closest finishes in Cup history, all within a span of 30 races. How lucky we are to bear witness to some of the most exciting dashes to the stripe in the sport’s 76-year history.
On Sunday evening, that exhilaration was all over the face of Stenhouse, who grew up in Olive Branch, Mississippi, some 300 miles northwest of Talladega.
“Obviously like with the Atlanta race earlier in the year (and) the first Kansas, you know, my spotter Tab (Boyd) was pumped as soon as we crossed the line,” Stenhouse said. “I’m just sitting there waiting to celebrate and make sure. It was way too close for me to call from the seat.
“When the 24 jumped out to the outside, it was like a parachute hit my car. I was just hoping that we would get to the start/finish line before them. It was a drag race at that point. When I got probably to the backstretch, they were pretty confident that we had won, and a big sigh of relief for sure.”
On the other side of it was the No. 6 RFK Racing Ford of Keselowski, whose push from Chevrolet driver Kyle Larson was ultimately not enough to fend off Stenhouse’s No. 47 JTG-Daugherty Chevy.
“He gave me a good push down the frontstretch,” Keselowski said of Larson. “But the 24 was able to really stick with the 47 there and just needed a tiny bit. It’s a good finish for us. We’ve been knocking on the door of these plate tracks. I hate that we didn’t bust through with a win, but I’m happy to be right there in contention.”
There was a moment exiting Turn 4 where Keselowski was clear high and could have blocked Stenhouse’s lane, but he ultimately decided the bottom lane provided his best shot at the win.
“I knew they were gonna have a really big run and that the 24 was really tight to him and I was just gonna get split,” Keselowski explained. “So I felt like I made the right move, but there’s only so much you can do when you’re outnumbered.
“I just needed a half a foot, I guess. I got a really good push from the 5 down the frontstretch, but just wasn’t quite enough.”
