A look at the winners and losers after a wild day at Martinsville Speedway.
Winners
Ryan Blaney — He did it again. Blaney won last year’s Martinsville playoff race to secure his spot in the Championship 4 and won the Cup title a weekend later. Can he do it again? Sunday’s victory came a week after Blaney lost the race on the last lap to Tyler Reddick at Homestead. That put Blaney in a must-win situation at Martinsville. Blaney was 10th on the final restart with 87 laps to go Sunday and drove his way to the front, leading the final 15 laps.
In controversial finish, Blaney wins Martinsville; NASCAR gives Byron final Championship 4 spot over Bell
William Byron claims final spot in title race on points as Bell’s last-lap maneuver is deemed illegal.
Team Penske — The organization did not win a Cup race until June but will have two of the four drivers racing for a championship this weekend at Phoenix. Team Penske has won seven of the last 21 races, including two of the last three in the playoffs to secure Championship 4 spots for reigning champion Ryan Blaney and two-time champion Joey Logano.
William Byron — NASCAR’s decision to penalize Christopher Bell for riding the wall on the last lap secured the final spot in the Championship 4 for Byron.
Long: Agonizing wait after Martinsville race leaves one NASCAR driver perplexed, another numb
NASCAR’s decision sends William Byron to title race, while Christopher Bell is eliminated.
Brad Keselowski — He led 170 laps at Martinsville. He had led 148 laps in the first 34 races of the season. Keselowski’s ninth-place finish was just his second top 10 in the playoffs.
Austin Cindric — His fourth-place finish tied for his best result in the last 13 races.
Losers
Christopher Bell — NASCAR dropped him from 18th to 22nd (last car a lap down) after running the wall on the final lap. NASCAR outlawed the maneuver after Ross Chastain’s “Hail Melon” in the 2022 playoff race there, citing it as a safety concern.
William Byron, Christopher Bell and fans — Waiting about 25-30 minutes after the race for NASCAR to decide who was in and who was out of the Championship 4 was excruciating. NASCAR said it took the time to get the call right on Christopher Bell running the wall and was focused on only that.
NASCAR explains decision against Bell that sends Byron to championship race
NASCAR dropped Christopher Bell from 18th to 22nd for riding against the wall on the final lap at Martinsville.
NASCAR — After a dramatic finish, the talk was more about the the actions of Austin Dillon and Ross Chastain while running behind fellow Chevrolet driver William Byron in the final laps and the action of Bubba Wallace that allowed fellow Toyota driver Christopher Bell to pass him on the last lap. NASCAR is expected to delve into video, audio and other data to determine if any penalties are warranted this week.
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