NASCAR heads to Homestead with just three races remaining in the season. Who else can join Joey Logano in the Championship 4 this weekend?
Joey Logano became the first driver to enter the Championship 4 last week with his third career win at Las Vegas. Now, NASCAR heads to Homestead with three spots up for grabs to fight for the title in Phoenix next month.
Despite being in the midst of a tense championship fight, the talk around NASCAR this past week has to do with two non-playoff drivers. Bubba Wallace and Kyle Larson were involved in an incident that led to some serious consequences.
It occurred in the opening laps of Stage 2. Coming off of Turn 4, Wallace and Larson were side-by-side with Larson on the inside. Larson overdrove the corner and began to drift up the track, running Wallace out of room up top and causing him to slam into the wall. Immediately, Wallace retaliated. He dove down from the wall to the apron and took out Larson on the front stretch, sending both into the wall and ending their races.
To make matters worse, Wallace got out of his car and started a confrontation with Larson, which ended with Wallace pushing Larson several times before officials stepped in. All in all, it was not a good look for Wallace. He clearly caused the incident, intentionally taking out Larson, then escalated things in anger. NASCAR suspended Wallace for one race as a result of his actions, and he will miss this weekend’s race at Homestead.
The wreck also impacted the playoff standings. As Larson was crashing, he clipped the left rear of Christopher Bell, sending him into the wall too, and ending his day early. Bell now sits well behind his rivals and will surely need another win to clinch his spot in the Championship 4.
The Wreck and NASCAR’s Safety Issue
Perhaps the most puzzling aspect of the incident was that it comes at a time of heated discussions surrounding the safety of the new cars in 2022. Kurt Busch has missed several months due to a concussion stemming from a crash earlier this year, and playoff driver Alex Bowman saw his hopes end after he had to step away from racing due to a concussion of his own. The irony in all of this is that Wallace is only in the No. 45 car to replace Busch and help the team compete in the Owners’ Championship.
Wallace, along with several other drivers, has complained to NASCAR this season about the safety of the new cars, making it hard to watch an intentional wreck like the one he used on Larson. He later issued a blanket apology to NASCAR, the fans, Joe Gibbs Racing, and Bell for hurting his playoff chances. He did not directly apologize to Kyle Larson in his statement.
Take a look at the incident below.
Bubba Wallace has been suspended by #NASCAR for intentionally wrecking Kyle Larson under green.
Here’s another look at the incident. pic.twitter.com/ap7tiTa0Tr
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) October 18, 2022
The Track
Homestead Miami Speedway opened in 1995 and hosted its first NASCAR Cup Series race that same year. The track is 1.5 miles long and has also hosted IndyCar. It has undergone a few major renovations over the years. When it opened, it was a rectangular track, similar to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The racing was underwhelming, and in 1997 it was switched to the oval we know today. In 2005, variable banking was added to take it from mostly flat to more of a traditional NASCAR oval. It hosted the NASCAR season finale from 2002-2019, with several memorable championship moments taking place at the track.
The straights are both 1,760 feet long, with variable 18-20 degree banking in the corners. Greg Biffle and Tony Stewart both hold the record with three wins at the track, while Denny Hamlin’s three poles are the most at the venue.
Sunday’s race will be 267 laps long covering 400 miles. Stage 1 will be the first 80 laps, and Stage 2 will end on lap 165. The final Stage will consist of the final 102 laps of the race.
Playoff Standings
There was a big shake-up after last week, so let’s look at where the final eight stand ahead of this weekend.
IN:
- Joey Logano*, Team Penske – 4084 points
- Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing – 4063 points
- Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports – 4062 points
- Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing – 4051 points
———-PLAYOFF CUTLINE———-
OUT:
- William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports – 4045 points
- Chase Briscoe, Stewart-Haas Racing – 4042 points
- Ryan Blaney, Team Penske – 4040 points
- Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing – 4028 points
*Clinched a spot in the Championship 4
Race Predictions
I think we see the return of the non-playoff driver victory that dominated the early part of this year’s playoffs. Kyle Larson has three stage wins at Homestead and four top-five finishes. He also won a race there in the Xfinity Series in 2015. I’m backing him to spoil the playoff party this weekend.
- Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports
- Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports
- Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing
- Tyler Reddick, Richard Childress Racing
- William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports
How To Watch – (All Times EST)
- Practice/Qualifying: Saturday, October 22 – 10:05 a.m. – NBC Sports Streaming (Also live on MRN radio)
- Dixie Vodka 400: Sunday, October 23 – 2:30 p.m. – NBC (Green flag at 2:45 p.m.)
