Since NASCAR went to the Championship Four format to determine the NASCAR Cup Series Champion, the winner of the final race of the season has also been the champion.
Ryan Blaney was poised to end that streak as he battled with Team Penske teammate and Championship Four contender Joey Logano for much of Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix Raceway.
But nobody was going to beat Logano on this day as he left the field in his exhaust fumes to claim his second NASCAR Cup Series Championship.
For the three other Championship Four contenders, it was a disappointing end to a season that came very close to claiming the Cup title.
Ross Chastain finished third in the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet to finish second in the championship standings.
It’s the end of an incredible season for the driver who will forever be remembered for his wall-riding, video game move in the final two turns of the last lap at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway to make the Championship Four.
“I think we did everything right there at the end,” Chastain said after climbing out of his car. “That was a heck of a drive by us.
“Who had the No. 1 car second in points on their bingo card on February 1? This is pretty wild.”
Chastain was certainly one of the major stories of the season. He scored two of the three race victories for Trackhouse. His teammate, Daniel Suarez, had the other victory.
“This is a continuation of a lot of people believing in me. To build everything together to come drive this car, there are so many team owners and so many crew members that have put in the work,” Chastain said. “It’s pretty wild to fight for a Cup Series championship and to have a car fast enough to chase them down to the end.
“It’s also a testament to everyone at Chevy and GM to make me a better racecar driver. And my family… they have stuck with me and pushed me from the farm to NASCAR.
“I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to do at the track and on the farm. A lot of people probably weren’t sure how I’d be getting out the car. But I’m so proud of the effort and so proud of the execution on pit road of our pit crew. This is only our first shot with Trackhouse. For Justin Marks, Ty (Norris) and Pitbull to believe in me to drive this 1 car, it’s incredible.”
Chastain had one incident in the race that involved another Championship Four contender, Chase Elliott.
It came on the start of the final stage on lap 200. Chastain had a position on the flat, track apron and Elliott dropped down to make a move. But the rear of Elliott’s car clipped the front of Chastain’s Chevrolet, sending Elliott on a wild spin.
His crew attempted to fix the Chevrolet, but Elliott’s day was over. He finished 28th.
“I think I got a better start,” Chastain explained. “I got to his left-rear and he tried to cover it late and I was already there. I feel like it was just hard racing and I had position. We could have raced down in the corner side-by-side if he had just kept going the way we were going.
“I had a really good run. It looked like William (Byron) didn’t get going quite as well as he wanted to. I got to the left of (Elliott) and saw an erratic move that he made to turn left to cover it, but I was already there.
“It’s not how I want to race them or those guys. For everyone at GM, I needed other Chevys up there to fight those other guys. It’s not what I want to do, but I feel like I had position on him, and he tried to cover it late.
“Hats off to Penske and everyone on Joey’s team. I’m happy for them and I’m genuinely happy right now for our team. I wish we had another go at it.”
Elliott could reflect on an outstanding season where he won the NASCAR Regular Season Championship after 26 races and had five wins.
“I’m not sure what happened (with Ross Chastain),” Elliott said. “Unfortunately, it ruined our day.
“Congratulations to Joey (Logano) and their team. They did a really good job all weekend. He’s a very deserving champion so that’s a positive at least. If you’re going to lose to one, lose to a deserving one.
“I’m proud of my team for the effort they put in this weekend. I felt like we had gotten our car a lot better throughout the race. For that I think we should be very proud. It’s very nice to make the (final) round. It’s a very difficult thing to do. Obviously, I’m not content with that but certainly it’s not to come out here with a shot. Hopefully we can come back stronger next year and give ourselves another chance and make it go our way next time.
“I don’t really care about 2023 right now. We had five wins on the season, and we had — you tell me what the stats are. That’s how you would assess it, right? I know we won five races. That’s more than we did last year.
“But do not tell me what the countdown clock is because I don’t want to know.”
Bell finished 10th and had fought his way to second place, battling Logano for the lead before his Toyota eventually lost the grip of the race track.
But it was an extremely emotional day for the driver of the No. 20 DeWalt Tools Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. As race day dawned, Bell learned the sad news that Joe Gibbs’ 49-year-old son Coy, Vice Chairman of Joe Gibbs Racing, had died in his sleep overnight.
“You wake up first thing this morning and super excited and thrilled with life and where you’re at and the opportunity given to you,” Bell explained. “To receive news like that a couple hours before you get in the car is extremely tough.
“It just really puts it in perspective that what we’re doing here is not the big picture for sure.
“I’m just thinking of Joe. I just can’t imagine what Joe is going through and the entire Gibbs family. That’s the important piece.”
Bell had already earned the title of “Mr. October” in NASCAR because of his two walk-off wins in two elimination races that allowed the former USAC Midget Champion to survive and advance.
Faced with one more elimination race to determine the championship, Bell’s hopes came to an end.
“I think the season was successful,” Bell said. “To get to the Final Four is what every driver in NASCAR’s goals are. I’m very proud of that effort.
“With 40 or 50 to go, the last green flag pit stop we put ourselves in position to race for it. You can’t ask for much more than that.
“Looking towards next year, I think we have potential to be stronger yet, and certainly we have room to improve at Phoenix.
“I’m very content with where we ended the season and proud of the effort on this 20 car. I’m excited about the future with Joe Gibbs Racing.”