NASCAR playoff race at Martinsville updates: Chase Elliott wins, advances to Final 4

The final elimination race in the Cup Series playoffs is today at Martinsville Speedway. The Xfinity 500 starts at 2 p.m. on NBC.

Joey Logano is the only driver locked into the NASCAR championship race with a win at Kansas. Today’s 263-mile event at the Virginia short track will determine which three drivers will join Logano in competing for a title next weekend at Phoenix.

The race is 500 laps. Click here for a live NASCAR leaderboard.

Follow along here for lap-by-lap updates for the Xfinity 500 at The Paperclip. Refresh this page for the latest updates and follow NASCAR reporter Alex Andrejev on Twitter at @AndrejevAlex.

Chase Elliott wins at Martinsville; Kevin Harvick out

Chase Elliott needed to win Sunday to advance to the Championship Four. He did just that. “Holy Sh--. We made it.” - Hamlin’s radio. It’s Elliott, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin advancing. Kevin Harvick wrecked trying to pass Kyle Busch at the finish line. That means Harvick, the sport’s regular season champion, does not advance.

NASCAR Martinsville race results

5:37 p.m., Lap 449: Truex leads after caution

After a caution (12th of the day) for William Byron, the leaders after the restart are Martin Truex Jr., Chase Elliott, Joey Logan, Alex Bowman. Corey LaJoie was in the lead at the restart but was sent to the back because of a penalty.

5:18 p.m., Lap 409: Keselowski speeding penalty

Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney first off pit road. Slow stop for Elliott sends him back. Brad Keselowski gets a speeding penalty coming off pit road. Kevin Harvick is 21st, Keselowski 22nd.

5:12 p.m., Lap 400: Caution; Ryan Blaney leads with 100 to go

Here’s the front of the pack with 100 laps to go at Martinsville: Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr.

4:51 p.m., Lap 352: Logano leads after caution

The 10th caution of the day, this one for Timmy Hill. Race leaders are Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Kurt Busch and Brad Keselowksi.

4:41, Lap 321: Jimmie Johnson with flat tire

Jimmie Johnson to pit road with a flat rear tire. Chase Elliott leads Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Blaney.

4:30 p.m., Lap 298: Elliott lapping cars keeps Harvick down

Elliott passes Hill, then Yeley, which keeps Harvick out of free pass position. He is in 30th.

4:22 p.m., Lap 269: Issues for Hamlin, too

Hamlin loses five spots on pit road, stalling for his pit team, but he needs to return to pit road to tighten loose lug nuts. That sends Hamlin below the top-20. This could also massively shake up the playoff picture, but Hamlin’s radio tells him, “Be smart. We control our own destiny here.”

4:16 p.m., Lap 260: Elliott wins Stage 2, Harvick still down

The order to close the stage is Elliott, Trux, Hamlin, Blaney, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Keselowski, Logano, Bowman, Newman. Harvick finishes the stage in 31st.

“Nothing’s helped,” Harvick tells his team. “Haven’t done anything to make it better, just have made it tighter.”

NASCAR champions by year

2010: Jimmy Johnson

2011: Tony Stewart

2012: Brad Keselowski

2013: Jimmy Johnson

2014: Kevin Harvick

2015: Kyle Busch

2016: Jimmie Johnson

2017: Martin Truex Jr.

2018: Joey Logano

2019: Kyle Busch

4:08 p.m., Lap 239: Elliott fast on new tires

Elliott pitted for new tires at the caution and it appears to be paying off. He works his way through the top-10 after the race goes green, then makes a move past Hamlin drving low rounding Turns 1 and 2 to take the lead.

3:59 p.m., Lap 215: Harvick stuck a lap down

Just before the caution flag comes out, Elliott passes the No. 66 car of Hill, so he gets the free pass instead of Harvick, who stays a lap down. The running order is Elliott, Truex, Hamlin, Logano and Blaney in the top-five heading into pit stops, but Hamlin stays out when the race goes green on Lap 221. The Penske crew of Logano, Blaney and Keselowski also stay out.

He chooses the inside lane. Logano, in second, takes the outside.

There is still a lot of racing left and Harvick’s team tells him to “Stay focused here. We’ll be okay.”

3:43 p.m., Lap 184: Big blow for Harvick, then caution

Harvick goes two laps down after he pits under green for a blown left rear tire. The NBC broadcast shows contact between Kenseth and Harvick before he pits. The yellow flag comes out for Poole just after Harvick leaves pit road. Harvick does not get the free pass, but takes the wavearound to put him one laps down when the race goes green again.

“We’ll do the best we can,” Childers radios to Harvick. “Hopefully get another caution. You are the first car one lap down.”

3:33 p.m. Lap 163: Elliott retakes the top spot

Hamlin follows Elliott in a pass for Kurt Busch for first place. There are fewer than 100 laps left in the stage. Harvick is running in the bottom-20. A few laps later, Truex passes Kyle Busch for fourth place. The order is Elliott, Hamlin, Kurt Busch, Truex.

3:26 p.m., Lap 151: Caution out for fluid

The Busch brothers battle for the lead after the Stage 2 restart, but Kurt Busch gets ahead of Kyle Busch before the caution flag comes out for fluid on the track cause by Buescher. His car is damaged and he is done for the day. The yellow flag comes out for the fluid. Elliott’s team notes it’s “a mess.” This will takes some time to clean up, and vacuum trucks come out for cleanup.

3:12 p.m., Lap 130: Hamlin wins Stage 1 at Martinsville

Hamlin wins the first stage, his 11th stage win of the season, for 10 stage points. The order is Bowman, Keselowski, Elliott, Logano, Truex, Ky. Busch, Byron, KuBusch and Johnson in the top-10. Harvick finished in 14th and doesn’t gain any stage points. He was up +42 points before the start of the race. The Busch brothers emerge first off of pit road for the second stage restart.

3:05 p.m., Lap 113: Another caution, Hamlin to the lead

Gase is spun into the Turn 4 wall just as Hamlin passes both Truex and Elliott driving low for first place just before the restart. He chooses the inside lane on the restart, and jumps out to a major lead of over 1.5 seconds as the stage winds down to the final 10 laps. Bowman gets up to second place, passing teammate Elliott. Both Hendrick drivers are sitting -25 points below the cutoff.

3 p.m., Lap 105: Yellow flag, Harvick struggling

After a caution comes out for Smithley in the wall, race leaders Elliott and Truex stay out, and Hamlin wins the race off pit road to emerge in third after the restart. Wallace gets a penalty for removing pit equipment and Blaney restarts at the rear for speeding on pit road. Harvick is reporting issues from 11th place. Anything is possible at this point.

“Absolutely killed it through the center of the corner,” Harvick says. Won’t take off. Won’t turn. No grip on exit,” Harvick says on the radio, according to RACER.

2:52 p.m., Lap 88: Elliott to the lead

Elliott drives inside Truex for the top spot on Lap 88, making his pass coming into Turn 1. On the latest restart, Truex again took the inside lap, Elliott took the outside. Hamlin is holding off Logano behind him for P3, but Logano’s been pressing low behind Hamlin to make a move, with teammate Blaney directly behind him. Blaney is one of two non-playoff drivers in the top-10. Kyle Busch is in ninth ahead of Harvick.

2:45 p.m., Lap 73: Caution for Bowyer

Bower takes a hit by teammate Almirola that sends his No. 14 sliding sideways to a stop in Turn 3, and Austin Dillon’s No. 3 car gets caught behind him as part of approaching traffic. The caution flag comes out. The running order is still Truex, Elliott, Logano in the top-three. “I didn’t spin because I was loose,” Bowyer says on his radio, according to Fronstretch.com. “I spun out because my f------ teammate hit me in the left rear quarter panel. 74 laps into a 500 lap race. Real nice.”

2:39 p.m., Lap 60: Truex, Elliott came to play

At the competition caution, the order is Truex, Elliott and Hamlin in the top-three. Off pit road, Truex holds onto his place, followed by Elliott, Logano, Keselowski, Bowman, Hamlin, Harvick, Ky. Busch and Blaney. Speeding penalties are issued to LaJoie and Preece.

“It’s probably beneficial to be up top,” Harvick’s radio says when choosing.

Elliott takes the outside lane in second and Truex takes the inside on the restart and holds his lead early. Logano challenges Elliott for second place from the inside lane.

2:32 p.m., Lap 53: Elliott keeps rolling

Elliott’s been the biggest playoff mover so far. He’s makes passes of both Kurt Busch and Hamlin to get to second place before Lap 50. Truex still leads, but Elliott gets to his tail a few laps later, challenging for first.

2:24 p.m., Lap 30: Elliott moves up

By Lap 20, leader Truex is passing lapped cars, and a few laps later the top-five are making a lot of passes. The order stays the same up front until Elliott gets ahead of Keselowski just before Lap 30. McDowell earlier pitted under green for a blown tire, then received a commitment line violation.

2:16 p.m., Lap 5: Truex to P1

Truex Jr. drives under Keselowski for the lead coming down the frontstretch. Keselowski drops to fourth behind Truex, Hamlin and Kurt Busch. Harvick is the lowest-running playoff driver in 10th.

2:00 p.m.: Pre-race ceremonies, engines fired.

The track drying team departs as pre-race ceremonies get underway with the invocation delivered. The national anthem is then performed live in front of limited fans in the frontstretch grandstands. The NBC broadcast reports Hamlin’s team has elected not to remove a travel packer on the right rear shocks of its No. 11 Toyota, which they earlier asked NASCAR if they could take off. NASCAR said if the team removed it, Hamlin would start at the rear. Hamlin is starting fourth.

Engines are fired and cars start rolling off the grid at 2:07 p.m.

1:50 p.m.: Cars on the grid

The race is getting ready to start with cars and crews on the grid. Fierce battles are expected at Martinsville. Three playoff drivers, Brad Keselowski, Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman, are tied in points (+25/-25). Denny Hamlin is sitting just two points above them (+27) and Martin Truex Jr. is 11 points behind the group of three (-36). The green flag waves at 2:15 p.m.

“We need to go win and that’s really kinda the bottom line,” Elliott said. “I’m not even going to look at the points because it really just doesn’t matter.”

1:15 p.m.: Bright skies in Southern Virginia

A gloomy morning has given way to bright blue skies, with some clouds overhead. There is a slight chance of rain (20 percent chance) this afternoon, according to the National Weather Service, but the the forecast is mostly clear and cool with a high of 61 degrees. Four cars from NASCAR’s track drying team are working on drying “weepers” (wet spots) an hour before the race start.

11:40 a.m.: Ty Dillon has a baby boy

No. 13 Germain Racing driver Ty Dillon posts an announcement on Twitter about the birth of his son, Kapton Reed Dillon, born on Thursday. This is Dillon’s second child with wife Haley Dillon. The couple also has a two-year-old daughter named Oakley.

11:35 a.m.: Pre-race inspection complete

NASCAR finds no multiple failures before the Cup race at Martinsville. Only non-playoff driver Garrett Smithley will drop to the rear at the start for a driver change in the No. 77.

NASCAR playoff standings

How to watch the NASCAR race at Martinsville

• Race: Xfinity 500
• Distance: 263 miles, 500 laps (stages end on Laps 130, 260, 500. The track is 0.526 miles.
• When: Sunday 2 p.m.
• TV: NBC (broadcast starts at 1:30 p.m.)
• Radio: MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio

Who’s on the pole for the NASCAR race?

*Playoff driver

This story was originally published November 1, 2020 at 1:00 PM.

Alexandra Andrejev

The Charlotte Observer

NASCAR and Charlotte FC beat reporter Alex Andrejev joined The Observer in January 2020 following an internship at The Washington Post. She is a two-time APSE award winner for her NASCAR beat coverage and National Motorsports Press Association award winner. She is the host of McClatchy’s podcast “Payback” about women’s soccer. Support my work with a digital subscription