Texas’ unusually dramatic race sees Kyle Larson advance in Playoffs while other title hopefuls struggle

Texas Motor Speedway hasn’t exactly been the site of thrilling finishes and drama for NASCAR lately. It’s been among the dullest venues for a race since its repave and flattened reconfiguration of Turns 1 and 2 before the 2017 season.

The combination of single-file racing and the 550-horsepower package for the Cup Series cars was sure to create a three-hour high-speed parade that would have fans from home changing their TV channels to NFL games, right?

Not so fast.

Except for the multi-car crash that occurred early when Bubba Wallace spun out of Turn 2 on a restart, Sunday’s race started tame. As has been the case many times throughout 2021, it was the Kyle Larson show upfront. And it stayed that way most of the day. But there was no shortage of Playoff theatrics before the checkered flag waved.

Joey Logano suffered an engine failure with 35 laps to go in the 500-mile race. He finished 30th and worst among the eight remaining championship-eligible drivers. About 15 laps later, there was a battle for position between Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, and Kevin Harvick. Blaney was caught between them coming out of Turn 4 and made contact with Hamlin’s No. 11, which led to a flat tire and spin by the Joe Gibbs Racing driver.

A few laps later, Martin Truex Jr. slammed the wall after unintentional contact with Daniel Suárez. The hit ended his race early, and he was scored P25. And again, shortly after this incident, Hamlin was involved in another caution when he T-boned the spinning Chris Buescher on the backstretch. The No. 11 suffered heavy damage this time, yet Hamlin salvaged an 11th-place result.

“It’s just a crazy day,” he said. “The way these cars race where we are packed up for a couple of laps, you just never know.”

Larson led the field for seven restarts in the final stage and was flawless on each occasion. He won for the eighth time and clinched a spot in the Championship 4 race that will take place at Phoenix Raceway in three weeks. It will be his first time vying for a Cup title, and he now has an advantage over his competition in focusing on preparing his car for the finale.

“I don’t think we’re going to lose focus on Kansas or Martinsville, but I definitely think we can shift a little bit more to our Phoenix car, and I really look forward to that,” Larson said. “We’ve always been fast there. At least I was really fast earlier this year in the No. 5 and made a lot of mistakes. But I think we should have a good shot. Our team has been so strong all year long, and we might as well close it all out.”

As it stands, Blaney, Hamlin, and Kyle Busch are above the cutline, with Chase Elliott, Logano, Truex, and Brad Keselowski looking in. Elliott, the defending series champion, might be slightly favored over the other three drivers on the outside to advance to Phoenix because he is the one Hendrick Motorsports driver who still has something to race for over the next two weeks. With William Byron and Alex Bowman already eliminated and Larson locked in, much of the focus at HMS should go toward the No. 9 to ensure he’ll be going for a repeat in Phoenix.

On Saturday, John Hunter Nemechek won the Xfinity Series race by holding off Daniel Hemric. In the JGR No. 54 Toyota, Nemechek clinched the car’s berth into the owner’s title. While he is racing for the Truck Series driver’s championship with Kyle Busch Motorsports, he’ll also be aiming to win at Phoenix to give Coach Gibbs another owner’s trophy.

Meanwhile, Hemric finishes runner-up for the 10th time in his Xfinity career. He is yet to win a NASCAR race in the top three series, and one must feel frustration for him as he’s been oh so close over the years. With his luck, he’ll be competing in the driver’s title at Phoenix and win the championship by finishing second once again to Nemechek, who would take the checkered flag and owner’s title. It feels like that would be the most Daniel Hemric thing ever to happen — winning a national championship before winning a race.

Cup and Xfinity race at Kansas Speedway next weekend. It is the middle race for the Round of 8 for both series. Kyle Busch won the spring Truck and Cup races there. He’s been relatively quiet throughout the 2021 season, but a win would allow him to compete for title No. 3 and tie Tony Stewart, Lee Petty, David Pearson, Cale Yarborough, and Darrell Waltrip in the record books.