Did you notice? … The movement of Daytona International Speedway to the regular season finale slot has certainly delivered in more ways than one?
Three years into the move, this may be the most intriguing one yet. The parity of the Next Gen car has led to 15 winners in the NASCAR Cup Series’ regular season, leaving just one playoff spot open entering the regular-season finale.
This Saturday’s (Aug. 27) Coke Zero Sugar 400 will give fans the best opportunity thus far to see 16 winners in the regular season for the first time since the playoff system was implemented in 2014. It could also come at the expense of two of the sport’s superstars, 2017 Cup champion Martin Truex Jr. and Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney, the latter of whom owns a 25-point cushion over Truex for the final playoff spot. However, points may not matter when the dust settles after 160 laps on Saturday night.
Among the 15 drivers still eligible for the final spot, nine have won Cup races on superspeedways and eight have won in Cup at Daytona. That includes six drivers who have won the summer race at the World Center of Racing. Let’s rank who the favorite is to claim the final spot all the way to the longest shot.
Ryan Blaney: Blaney isn’t just one of the best superspeedway racers among winless drivers, he’s one of the best in the series. Of his seven career Cup wins, three of them have come on superspeedways.
The most recent one?
It was this race a year ago when Blaney won his second race in a row and third of 2021. When asked by FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass if he felt he was in control of his own destiny after Watkins Glen International, Blaney replied, “Not at Daytona.”
He is certainly motivated after his Penske teammate Austin Cindric ran him up the track for the Daytona 500 win in February. If there is anyone you want in a crucial position at Daytona, it’s Blaney. In 14 starts, he has a win, four top fives, six top 10s and 191 laps led. Throw in his two wins at Talladega Superspeedway, and Blaney has a solid shot of holding onto the final playoff spot.
Martin Truex Jr.: Going off of wins, this spot is probably too high for Truex. After all, he’s never won a superspeedway race in Cup in his 17th full-time season. However, never say never, especially at Daytona. Truex nearly won this race in 2018, losing the lead to Erik Jones in the closing laps. Don’t forget his near-win in the Daytona 500 in 2016 either. What if we don’t get a new winner?
Outpointing…
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