Tidings of a merry offseason were handed out prematurely by now four-time Most Popular Driver, Chase Elliott, in October. Still, it’s been everything aside from that, with teams already hard at work for NASCAR’s Next Gen car. While preparing and fantasizing about the future is great, it’s also important to reflect on a tremendous 2021 season across the industry.
Coming off one of the most trying years in the sporting world, NASCAR delivered some of the most historic and memorable moments in decades between all three national series. Whether it was the dominance of Kyle Larson, the storybook ending for Daniel Hemric, or all the madness that occurred in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, there are lots to take away from this previous season.
It’s easy to get caught up in specific moments (and those will be touched upon in future columns), but something often overlooked are races in their entirety. Typically the quality of an event is measured by a last lap pass, a fan favorite ending up in victory lane, or something of that nature, but shouldn’t every lap be taken into consideration?
Here are the best races of 2021 for each national series.
NASCAR Cup Series: Bank of America Roval 400 from the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course
Part of NASCAR’s aggressive schedule changes for the Cup Series in 2021 included the addition of seven points paying road course events. The best race of the season for the sport’s premier level would culminate the winding track types with the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval.
It’s pretty insane to think the Bank of America Roval 400 from Charlotte would get the nod as the best Cup Series race of 2021, considering how much backlash the sanctioning body received from fans when the road course layout was introduced to the 1.5-mile track in 2018. Since the inaugural event, the Roval has become must-watch television as one of the most entertaining destinations on the circuit.
Serving as the playoff elimination race for the Round of 12, the Charlotte Roval proved to be a 109-lap gridiron and testament to the difficulties of competing in motorsports. Each lap around the 2.28-mile road course left drivers physically and mentally taxed, as well as the crew members working along pit road.
There were many defining moments of this race, but none other than the championship defining performance by the No. 5 team. Typically, drivers serve as the face of the sport claim all the glory (or heat) in big moments, but the teamwork on display from the Hendrick Motorsports crew exposed why motorsports is a team sport.
Entering the race as the championship favorite, Larson’s quest for the title was put in jeopardy when electrical issues began plaguing his No. 5 at the end of Stage 2. Under command from Cliff Daniels, the team maintained their composure and not only remained on the lead lap, but changed the alternator belt and a battery en route to the team’s seventh victory.
Although executed so routinely, the path to victory was all but that for Larson and the No. 5 team. Early in the race, Elliott seemed to be the car to beat until he became the recipient of the fall-out from his run-in with Kevin Harvick at Bristol Motor Speedway three weeks earlier.
Harvick dumped Elliott in retaliation shortly after the second stage went green, albeit unsuccessfully. The 2020 champion continued the race with his damaged No. 9 on a mission to take out the Stewart-Haas Racing driver.
Elliott’s road rage and widespread anticipation hit its peak on Lap 100 when he was nearing the rear bumper of the No. 4. Unintentionally showcasing his best “Intimidator” impression, Harvick felt the pressure from the No. 9 and totaled his Ford Mustang into the Turn 1 wall without contact from the then reigning champion.
This race would showcase the height and conclusion of Elliott vs. Harvick. It ended with Elliott advancing to the Round of 8 and bidding Harvick a “merry offseason and happy Christmas.”
Then, of course, there was the battle between William Byron and Tyler Reddick for the win in the race’s closing laps. Byron was in a must-win situation to advance to the next round, while Reddick was still searching for his first win.
Both youngsters seemed to have the edge over Larson in the closing 20 laps, but after Reddick forced Byron to commit a corner cutting violation, he used up his tires. He allowed the eventual champion to close in for the dramatic victory.
Byron ended up leading a race-high 30 laps, but there was never really a dominant car. This was indeed an even-keeled race, and it took team-wide execution to end up in victory lane. Each lap was a gift of non-stop intensity, and it just felt like a gritty, three-hour slugfest.
NASCAR Xfinity Series: Dead on Tools 250 from Martinsville Speedway
Given the highly competitive nature of the Xfinity Series, it wasn’t as easy to pick the best race of 2021, but there is one that stood out pretty glaringly. NASCAR struck gold when implementing Martinsville Speedway as the Round of 8 elimination race, and this was confirmed tenfold between all three national series.
As is often the case with short tracks like Bristol Motor Speedway and Martinsville, the action on display for all 257 laps of the Dead on Tools 250 was unmatched. Noah Gragson led a race-high 153 laps and won the race, but this was anything but a cakewalk.
Aside from the accustomed continuous bumper-to-bumper action throughout the entire race, varying strategies made for a compelling event at “The Paperclip.” After a series of pit stops, Hemric earned the lead, which forced Gragson to opt for the unpreferred outside lane on an overtime restart.
This prompted a few hypothetical scenarios; would Hemric finally get that elusive NASCAR sanctioned victory, or would we see the assumed aggression from Gragson to either secure the win or hand it to someone else?
Instead, what we saw was a championship caliber performance that resulted in a statement victory by Gragson. The disreputable aggressor masterfully executed a clean pass on the No. 18 from the outside lane and held off reigning champion Austin Cindric by .064 seconds at the line — the closest finish in Xfinity Series history at Martinsville.
What wasn’t there to love about the race? Side-by-side action each lap, an overtime restart, a photo finish, and a statement victory. On top of that, it felt like a turning point in Gragson’s career with the newfound maturity displayed.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series: UNOH 200 from Bristol Motor Speedway
Admittedly, it was pretty challenging to pick the best race of the 2021 season for the Truck Series due to the weekly sloppiness across the series all season. Entertaining? Sure. But there was hardly ever a rhythm in any race this season.
The UNOH 200 from Bristol was the most catastrophic race of the season. By now, you’re probably noticing a trend: this was also a playoff elimination race.
Much like Martinsville, side-by-side action was a pleasure to see, but you could hardly call it “racing” when 15-of-40 trucks didn’t finish the event. At any rate, the calamity made for wild playoff implications.
Austin Hill, who won two races and was one of the most consistent drivers of the season, was one of the many casualties from the 11 cautions at Bristol and was eliminated from the playoffs. Heartbreak ensued for Todd Gilliland after he missed the Round of 8 by one point in what was the best season of his Truck Series career.
The conclusion of the 200-lap event was wild, as Chandler Smith powered his way from the second row to overtake Sheldon Creed for the win while holding off his teammate, John Hunter Nemechek.
Creed had to settle for 19th after leading all but 11 laps at Bristol that night. Restarting from the front row with five to go, Smith made contact with his left-rear tire, which went down and relegated the reigning champion to a poor finish.
Truthfully, there weren’t any quality races in 2021 for the Truck Series due to the inconsistency and catastrophe, but there were many entertaining ones. The UNOH 200 took the top spot thanks to drastic playoff implications and a wild finish with a first-time winner.
Stay tuned to The Circuit Journal for more “Best Of” columns, and be sure to weigh in on your favorite races from the 2021 season.
