Final playoff spots up for grabs at Darlington

 

[August 27, 2024]  Twenty-five races and tens of thousands of miles have all led back to NASCAR's first superspeedway.

NASCAR's oldest crown jewel race, the Southern 500 in Darlington, S.C., is set to be the backdrop for the Cup Series regular-season finale on Sunday.

The 1.33-mile, egg-shaped oval has long been the setting for some of NASCAR's greatest moments, and another could be in store Sunday evening.

Harrison Burton's unlikely triumph at Daytona flipped the playoff bubble upside down, kicking Bubba Wallace and Ross Chastain out of the provisional field and putting Chris Buescher on the bubble.

Ahead of Buescher lies the Joe Gibbs Racing duo of Martin Truex Jr. (+58) and Ty Gibbs (+39). Mitigation will be the name of the game for both drivers, as only a catastrophic turn of events could see them fall out of the postseason.

Buescher's road back to the playoffs will be a little tougher, however. A 21-point advantage over Wallace for the 16th bid is a decent margin but by no means safe at a track notorious for attrition. In May, Buescher battled with Brad Keselowski and Tyler Reddick for the race win at Darlington before a cut tire relegated him to the back of the finishing order.

Wallace (-21) and Chastain (-27) are the victims of Burton's ground-shaking Daytona win. Despite finishes of sixth and 12th, respectively, they now face an uphill battle rivaling that of Sisyphus.

Out of the drivers currently on the outside looking in, Wallace may have the best chance to force his way in. The No. 23 team, which has clicked off five top-10 finishes over the last seven races, looks to be hitting its stride at the right time.

On the opposite side is Chastain, who admirably fought back from crash damage at Daytona to bring home a battered Camaro in 12th place. Unlike Wallace, however, the No. 1 team has been in a freefall. A rash of overtimes in 2024 certainly hasn't been kind to the Alva, Fla., native, but a lack of speed at Trackhouse Racing has been the deciding factor in a lackluster season.

Below Chastain are a host of drivers who must find a way to win if they want to partake in the playoffs.

The favorite among those drivers may be the venerable Kyle Busch (19th), who has found speed over the last two races despite having the worst season of his career. A fourth-place effort at Michigan and a heartbreaking runner-up finish at Daytona prove that the No. 8 team hasn't given up on the season. Busch has finally captured back-to-back top 5s for the first time in 2024, and if he can manage to charm the "Lady in Black," he'd win a Cup Series race for the 20th season in a row.

The season has been one of the wackiest in recent memory. From surprise winners in Burton and Daniel Suarez, to fuel mileage victories for Joey Logano and Austin Cindric, to broken winless streaks for Keselowski, Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott, there's been no shortage of storylines.

On Sunday, the grind of 25 weeks will culminate in one more in 2024 -- the playoff field.

--By Samuel Stubbs, Field Level Media

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