Could Chevy Miss Out on the Championship 4?

In a season that saw Kyle Larson and company dominate many NASCAR Cup Series races both inside and out of his element, a stark reality could be setting in on the field.

As it sits, there is a very real possibility that Larson may not even be Chevrolet’s best chance at cracking the Championship 4. Also, Chevy may miss out on the Championship 4 entirely after a more than solid 2024 campaign.

Just look at the numbers.

The bowtie boys are in a tight spot, to put it lightly. Larson and Chase Elliott sit below the cut line entering Martinsville Speedway, with Larson seven points outside the bubble after Homestead-Miami Speedway and Elliott a staggering 43 points back. For the latter, winning may be his last chance to find his way in. For the former, he can’t afford a repeat performance.

The only Chevrolet driver inside the cut line at the moment, if just barely, is William Byron, who has that aforementioned seven-point lead on Larson. Tyler Reddick and Joey Logano are already locked in to the final round, and another winner will be crowned this weekend at Martinsville Speedway before heading to the penultimate race at Phoenix.

That leaves only one spot left for a driver to point their way in, and if a new winner is crowned, which it most likely will be, Chevy’s chances are severely impacted if that winner has any sort of oval on the hood of their car. Who or what, then, is Chevy’s best chance to scrape its way into the final showdown out in the desert?

Earlier this season at Martinsville, Chevy — more specifically Hendrick Motorsports — completely obliterated the competition. Byron actually won the race, while Larson was second and Elliott finished third. However, who else finished inside the top 10 alongside them? Ryan Blaney, who also sits well within the hunt for that third winner’s slot, and Logano.

In short, that’s too close to call. Three drivers who are still well within the hunt finishing inside the top 10 just earlier this season means that any of them could take home the win. In that case, what kind of help will these drivers get?

That plays into Ford’s hands more than it does Chevrolet’s.

Logano is racing for a championship no matter what, and his running mate and last year’s champion, Blaney, is still vying for that opportunity. It behooves any manufacturer to have as many drivers in the hunt as possible when the final round comes, and with his teammate just on the verge of getting in,…