Groovy Hollow Recap
It has all come down to this. We are just one week away from crowning our 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. Heading into today’s race at the Paperclip, only two drivers were safe. Those two drivers, the ones who clinched their Championship 4 berths by securing wins were Denny Hamlin (Las Vegas) and Chase Briscoe (Talladega). They could rest easy today, if they chose to do so, knowing that they already have a shot to win their first career Cup titles next week at Phoenix.
As far as the points situation heading into today, two drivers had a bit of a cushion. For starters, Christopher Bell entered with a +37 point cushion while Kyle Larson came in at +36. It was possible that either of these two drivers (or even both) could point their way in today, so long as they stayed out of trouble and one of the other four drivers didn’t score a Hail Mary victory.
Speaking the other four drivers, here’s who was on the outside looking in today: William Byron (-36), Joey Logano (-38), Ryan Blaney (-47), and Chase Elliott (-62). Most likely, these four drivers would need to win today in order to make the final four. If either of the Penske cars failed to do so, it means that Penske’s three-year reign of terror in Phoenix would finally be over.
So, how’d these drivers do? Who made it in and who was sent home packing, their championship dreams done? Let’s break it down. Here’s everything that happened in the NASCAR Cup Series Cutoff Race at Martinsville Speedway.
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Stage 1 ran relatively cleanly and through to the end without much issue. We did get one brief caution when Bubba Wallace and Daniel Suarez got together, resulting in the No. 99 going around. But the continued contact between the No. 23 and the No. 99 allowed for Suarez to straighten back out and continue. Perhaps it was something that didn’t warrant a caution. Judge for yourself. Check it out.
The rest of the stage was clean. William Byron, from the pole, led 125 of the 130-lap stage. He was relatively uncontested and managed to lap all the way up to the 17th position of Alex Bowman. Byron’s Hendrick teammates, Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott, also showed speed in the stage, running much of the stage in the top 3. They ultimately finished the stage in 3rd and 4th, respectively. Other Playoff drivers who finished in the top 10 in the stage were Joey Logano (2nd), Denny Hamlin (6th), Ryan Blaney (7th), and Christopher Bell (8th).
The stage win didn’t do much in terms of points for Byron as he likely needs to nab the victory in order to advance. But surely it gave him a confidence boost heading into the second stage.
*GREEN–Clinched Championship 4 berth
**Yellow–Playoffs
There were a couple of minor incidents that occurred during the second stage, allowing for pit stops and a shift in strategy. Neither involved Playoff drivers. In one incident, Carson Hocevar spun, triggering a yellow. Then, just inside 30 laps to go in the stage, a stack-up on the inside resulted in Alex Bowman getting into the free pass car of Josh Berry, who then got into the No. 41 Haas Factory Team Ford of Cole Custer. Custer went around, causing yet another caution. And, shortly there after, Cody Ware spun after his right-rear tire came off the car. All of these minor incidents happened in quick succession.
While all of that was going on, William Byron continued to dominate up front. By the end of the stage, he had led 255 of the 260 laps run up to that point. Byron continued to lead all the way through to the stage’s end, sweeping them both. Unfortunately, he was still virtually in must-win territory. Nevertheless, he was in the catbird seat heading into the final 240-lap stretch of the race.
Byron wasn’t the only Playoff driver up front, though. In fact, the entire top 4 was made up of Playoff drivers. Larson (2nd), Bell (3rd), and Chase Elliott (4th) were all showing race-winning speed. Despite Byron’s dominance, it was still very much so anyone’s race to win. As stage points started to become a factor, Bell and Larson found themselves in an intense points battle. Meanwhile, William Byron and his teammate Chase Elliott still needed to win in order to advance.
Chase Briscoe, who clinched his Championship 4 berth last week at Talladega, finished 6th in the stage. Disrupting things out front was Todd Gilliland and his No. 34 Front Row Motorsports team. That car has been fast all day and it was great to see him running so strongly. Other impressive showings in stage 2 were Sane van Gisbergen (8th) and Erik Jones (10th).
*GREEN–Clinched Championship 4 berth
**YELLOW–Playoffs
You-know-what started hitting the fan for the Toyotas fairly early on in the final stage. It started with Chase Briscoe, who came down pit road abruptly, stating that he was having an engine issue over the radio. They dropped like flies from there. As Briscoe retired from the race, so did Riley Herbst in the Monster Energy No. 35. Then, Briscoe’s teammate, Denny Hamlin, also had an engine failure. This made for a big concern for Christopher Bell as he continued his quest to make the Championship 4. It also raised some eyebrows as both Hamlin and Briscoe are both set to fight for a title next week. Hopefully these engine woes won’t following them into the Valley of the Sun next week.
After pit stops during the stage break, Ryan Blaney assumed the race lead for the first time today. Without the track position, William Byron lost his mojo. The changing track and the sun coming out might have also affected the handling in that No. 24 Chevy in the latter stages of the race. This shook up the points situation. It expelled Byron, who needed to win in order to advance. But Blaney also had to win to advance, making for a spicy situation in front of the pack. Meanwhile, behind them with 50 laps to go, we had a slew of non-playoff drivers hungry for a win. Ross Chastain, Josh Berry, Ryan Preece, Todd Gilliland, Kyle Busch, they were all in contention.
But the primary focus was on Blaney and the cutline situation. With Blaney in the lead, that put Larson +10 above the cutline with Christopher Bell lagging behind. With just more than 40 laps to go, the dominant driver all day, William Byron, made his move. He knocked Ryan Blaney up the track for the race lead. But the No. 12 wasn’t going to take that lightly. He battled back hard. As the two leaders raced, lapped traffic gave them some grace by parting the waters and letting them duke it out for themselves.
A wrench was thrown into the mix when Michael McDowell got into his teammate, Carson Hocevar, spinning him around. This triggered a caution, leading to yet another round of pit stops. Byron, with 4 tires, still managed to beat out Ryan Blaney with 2 on the race off pit road. This is where champions are made, what separates the pretenders from the contenders. The race was on with a late-race restart.
The race restarted with 11 laps to go. Both Byron and Blaney got great restarts, but Byron was able to beat the No. 12 off of Turn 2. It appeared that he was going to cruise on to victory. Meanwhile, Chase Elliott moved the No. 1 of Chastain out of the way. In the event that Blaney and Byron had an issue, he wanted to be the next in line to take advantage. But it didn’t matter. William Byron dominates and advances to Phoenix to race for his first Championship title.
The following are the unofficial results following the conclusion of the 500-lap NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race at Martinsville Speedway. This list will be updated once tech inspection is completed and the results become official.
*UPDATE* Post-race inspection has been completed. There were no issues. The results are now official. William Byron wins and punches his ticket to the Championship 4.
*YELLOW–Playoffs
The checkered flag has flown and it is official: we have our Championship 4. Three of the 4 made the title round by simply winning when it mattered most. Denny Hamlin won two weeks ago at Las Vegas. It was his 60th career win and it punched his ticket to the Championship 4. His teammate, Chase Briscoe, won last week at Talladega, clinching his berth. Both JGR drivers will be going for their first titles. Also seeking his first championship is today’s winner. With a dominant performance, which saw him lead 304 of 500 laps, William Byron secured his spot in the Championship 4. Meanwhile, his HMS teammate, Kyle Larson secured his spot in a points battle with Christopher Bell.
The story of the Championship next week is Gibbs vs. Hendrick. Here is who will enter next week’s winner-take-all showdown.
The other side of triumph is heartbreak. The driver who is perhaps the most heartbroken, the closest who came to advance, was Ryan Blaney. He led 117 laps in the final stage but it just wasn’t enough. Team Penske will not go for four-in-a-row at Phoenix as both Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano have been eliminated. Christopher Bell lost his points battle with Kyle Larson to be eliminated. And, Chase Elliott, who was up front all day, just didn’t have the same speed as his teammate William Byron. He needed a win and the No. 24 team denied him.
What did you think of this race? How did your favorite driver do in the Round of 8? Did they advance to the Championship 4 or are they out? How’s your playoff bracket? Let us know! Join the discussion on Discord or X, and remember to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for more updates. Be sure to tune back in here next weekend at DailyDownforce.com for our weekly coverage!
