Pressure Mounts as NASCAR Playoffs Begin at Darlington
DARLINGTON, S.C. – The NASCAR Cup Series heads to Darlington Raceway this weekend for the start of the playoffs, and the stakes are higher than ever. For defending Southern 500 winner Chase Briscoe, the pressure is especially acute as he transitions to Joe Gibbs Racing with increased expectations.
A year ago, Briscoe barely squeezed into the 16-driver playoff field, a surprise berth secured with a late pass at Darlington that gave the then-struggling Stewart-Haas Racing a shot at a championship. Now,comfortably locked into the playoffs with JGR,Briscoe acknowledges that simply reaching the Round of 16 is no longer considered a success. “If you just make the round of 16 at JGR, it’s kind of a failure,” he stated Saturday.
The frist round concludes with races at Gateway (St. Louis) and Bristol, where the field will be trimmed to 12 contenders. the razor-thin margin for error is well understood by veterans like regular-season champion William byron and Briscoe’s teammate, Denny Hamlin.
“You never know what everyone else is going to bring and how fast they’re going to be,” Byron said, despite his confidence in the speed of his No. 24 Chevrolet, which won the spring race at Darlington. “We’ve just got to keep working.”
Hamlin,who secured the pole for Sunday’s race,emphasized the importance of consistency. “What drives me is the competition knowing that I can still go out and win races,” he said. As a four-time winner this season and co-owner of 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan, Hamlin faces the dual challenge of pursuing his first championship while supporting his team’s playoff drivers, Bubba Wallace and Tyler Reddick. He recognizes that championships are often decided by the smallest of margins: “Those are the small things that decide whether you move on in the playoffs or not.”
Playoff Grid Dominates Qualifying:
The top 10 starting positions for the Southern 500 are all occupied by playoff drivers:
- Denny Hamlin
- Chase briscoe
- Josh Berry
- Tyler reddick
- Kyle Larson
- Ross Chastain
- Christopher Bell
- Bubba Wallace
- Austin Dillon
- Austin Cindric
Road Course Ace Looks to Oval Improvement:
Shane van Gisbergen, who leads the series with four wins – all on road courses – acknowledges his challenge on ovals.He’s focused on continued learning and improvement, having finished 20th at Darlington in april and 16th at Daytona last week. “Hopefully, it will be nice to prove people wrong,” he said, embracing the underdog role.
Favorites and a Quirky Championship Hopeful:
Kyle Larson is the betting favorite for the Southern 500
