Sizing up the 4 NASCAR drivers who matter on championship weekend at Homestead
There is nothing subtle about the way NASCAR will decide its 2019 Cup champion this weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Whoever finishes ahead among the group of the four finalists Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. wins the title. Simple as that.
After nine playoff races, during which 12 other drivers were eliminated every third week, it comes down to this basic method of determining the champ.
Joe Gibbs Racing has three drivers involved — Busch, Hamlin and Truex. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Harvick is the fourth. Three drivers are former champions looking for a second title — Busch, Truex and Harvick. Hamlin is chasing his first cup.
Who’s got the edge Sunday in the Ford EcoBoost 400? All we really know is that there won’t be a repeat winner from 2018: Joey Logano, last season’s champ, was eliminated after last week’s race at Phoenix.
Busch, one of Toyota’s JGR drivers, hasn’t been himself during the playoffs — his second-place finish at Phoenix notwithstanding. Although he won four times in the regular season (most recently at Pocono in June), he has been winless in the playoffs and is the only driver of the final four who hasn’t prevailed in the postseason. And although Phoenix was one of five top-10 finishes for Busch in the playoffs, his other finishes were pretty dreary, including a 37th at Charlotte’s Roval.
Busch is a constant in the final four. He’s been in contention at Homestead every year since 2015, when he won his first and only title.
Harvick’s victory at Texas two weeks ago ensured his spot in the final four. Nothing if not his usual consistent self, Harvick is also a regular in the final four (winning in 2014). Harvick will likely be right there at Homestead: He’s only been outside the top 10 once in the playoffs (17th at Talladega), but his average finish of 6.6 at Homestead shows he’s not often in contention.
Hamlin and Truex have been the two most consistent winners in the playoffs, with Hamlin winning last week at Phoenix and at Kansas in the final race of the second round. He has six wins for the season.
Could this be the year for Hamlin? His No. 11 Toyota has arguably been the strongest car on the circuit this season. He came close to winning championships in 2010 and ’14 and certainly qualifies as the “best driver to have never won a title.”
Hamlin’s main obstacle Sunday, however, might be Truex. In his first season as a full-time JGR driver, Truex has won a circuit-high seven races, including back-to-back victories in the first round at Las Vegas and Richmond, then again in the third round at Martinsville.
Truex won the championship in 2017, driving for Denver-based Furniture Row Racing, which has since disbanded. Can Truex do it again, this time for JGR?
THIS WEEK’S NASCAR RACE AT HOMESTEAD: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW.
Race: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Ford EcoBoost 400.
Distance: 267 laps, or 400 miles.
Where: Homestead-Miami, a 1.5-mile asphalt oval in Homestead, Fla.
When: 3 p.m. Sunday.
TV: NBC.
Radio: MRN.
Last year’s winner: Joey Logano.
Also this week: Ford EcoBoost 200, Truck Series, Homestead-Miami Speedway, 8 p.m. Friday, FS1; Ford EcoBoost 300, Xfinity Series, Homestead-Miami Speedway, 3:30 p.m. Saturday, NBCSN.
Worth mentioning: The Truck Series and Xfinity Series also will crown champions this weekend: Justin Algaier, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick and Cole Custer are in the Xfinity final four; Stewart Freesen, Ross Chastain, Brett Moffitt and Matt Crafton are the Trucks contenders.
WHO’S HOT/WHO’S NOT
HOT
Denny Hamlin: Winning at Phoenix gives him significant momentum heading to Homestead.
Kyle Busch: So-so playoffs for him, but second at Phoenix indicates he’s ready for Sunday’s title run.
NOT
Joey Logano: Ninth-place finish at Phoenix not enough for him to “point” his way into final four, so he’s not going to repeat.
Chase Elliott: Lasted 165 laps at Phoenix before a wreck ended his day.
David Scott: @davidscott14
This story was originally published November 15, 2019 at 10:51 AM.