MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Martinsville (Va.) Speedway President Clay Campbell believes he has the best date in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
Sunday’s Xfinity 500 is the final cutoff race in the playoffs. It sets the field for the Championship Four who will fight it out for the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series championship Nov. 7 at Phoenix Raceway.
That means there are seven drivers desperate to take one of the final three positions to fight it out for the 2022 Cup Series title.
It will be intensity personified on the short track just north of the North Carolina state line in Southern Virginia.
“I’ve said that since day one this is the best in the playoffs because we have the Round of 8,’” Campbell told SPEED SPORT. “We have eight guys coming in here that have a chance of moving forward. Great for Phoenix to have four guys fighting for a championship, but I’ve got eight. That can really ratchet the intensity meter up.
“I love this placement. I think it’s the greatest one.”
Logano leads the driver points by five over Ross Chastain, 13 over Chase Elliott and 19 over William Byron. The four drivers below the cutline are Denny Hamlin, who is 24 out, Ryan Blaney, minus-37 and Christopher Bell, minus-52.
Those drivers can still get in by winning Sunday’s race. But at least two will have to get in on points.
“We have eight drivers and seven of them are desperate to get the final three spots for the Championship Four,” Campbell continued. “This track is perfect. A half-mile track with 40 cars out there, you’re going to have them mixing it up all day, but at the very end, that is when the intensity really goes up.
“This is it. This is the last race they have to make that run for the championship. I think it’s perfect. That’s the reason we are in the placement we are. We didn’t lobby for it. We didn’t ask for it. This is where NASCAR wanted it. I think that says what this place provides.”
One driver can get in by winning the race unless it’s Logano or a driver not competing in the playoffs. In that case, three playoff drivers advance based on points.
“Logano has already punched his ticket, so he’s in there,” Campbell said. “Look at the ones that are points racing. Ross Chastain hasn’t won here, but he is good everywhere he goes. Trackhouse Racing is top-notch. Chase Elliott, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe is back there but they are all potentially winners here. I can’t wait to see it myself. I’m a race fan, myself.
“The guys we have in the Round 8, they are pretty doggone good here.”
The drivers below the cutline are the ones that probably have to win the race in order to advance to Phoenix because they are too many points below the cutline.
“How many times has Blaney finished second or in the top five? Christopher Bell, too,” Campbell said. “There’s not a guy on this list that can’t win the race, because they all can.”
Martinsville Speedway is NASCAR’s shortest track, a flat .525-mile shaped like a paperclip where contact between cars is not only tolerated, it’s encouraged.
Other drivers may be a bit more aggressive and turn a car late in the race to get by, especially if it’s the last lap and a battle for the win.
Because the speeds are slower, usually the only thing that gets hurt is a driver’s feelings.
“Racing is not a safe sport, regardless of where you do it, but this style of racing on this size race track is door-to-door,” Campbell said. “You can have really exciting racing here and not even have any incidents. Side-by-side, you can push somebody out of the way and not wreck them. The fans love it.
“You don’t see the kind of racing you’ll see this weekend anywhere else. That is what separates this track form the other tracks.”
For the first time since 1963, the Cup Series may have a driver’s champion from one team and an owner’s champion from another.
With his win on Sunday, Kyle Larson’s Hendrick Motorsports No. 5 would be locked into the four entrants that can win the owner’s championship at Phoenix.
In 1963, Joe Weatherly won the driver’s championship scoring points for nine different teams, and Wood Brother Racing claimed the owner’s title.
In 1954, Lee Petty won the driver title with two different teams and Herb Thomas won the owner’s championship.
There have been split championships in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in recent years, but it has been 59 years since that has happened in NASCAR’s top division.
“We haven’t seen that in 59 years in the Cup Series,” Campbell said. “The driver championship and the owner’s championship plus drivers in the race that aren’t racing for the title. It’s a different dynamic. There is something to be gained by everyone on that race track. There is a motive in every move that is made on Sunday.
“That is one of the things that makes this race so special.”
With seven drivers desperate to get into NASCAR’s “Final Four,” it has created interest among Martinsville Speedway’s fan base.
That is always good news to a track promoter.
“The attendance here is going to be phenomenal,” Campbell said. “We hope to announce a sellout later in the week. It’s going to be our best crowd since 2006. The fans are really excited about this weekend.
“The penultimate race creates a lot of interest. It’s just a great weekend of championships and hoping for championships with these guys.
“It’s a tremendous way for us to cap off the 75th anniversary. After we get his race over, then we can start working on celebrating all over again with NASCAR’s 75th anniversary next year.
“Big stuff ahead.”