World Wide Technology Raceway in St. Louis allowed NASCAR to make up for the racing lost at the Coca-Cola 600 last weekend. It’s a unique track, with long straightaways and tight turns, the 1.25-mile-long track is certainly among not only the newest in the Cup Series but also one of the most intriguing. Unfortunately, passing and tireware were hard to come by in the Enjoy Illinois 300. But for yet another week, NASCAR fans were gifted with a crazy finish, as well as a new winner.
The Denny Hamlin Bracket Challenge also debuted for a second straight season, and there were certainly some upsets. We’ll get into some of those in this week’s edition of NASCAR Three Up, Three Down coming from Madison, Illinois. For some reason, we refer to it as St. Louis, Missouri, 15 minutes down the road.
Three Up
#2 Austin Cindric
Embed from Getty ImagesWith just one top-15 on the season, the #2 car and Austin Cindric were probably surprised themselves to get into victory lane here at Gateway. Sure, it came only after the fastest car on the day (#20 Christopher Bell) suffered engine failure and Ryan Blaney inexplicably ran out of gas as he collected the white flag. But Cindric was running the third place, it’s impressive for him to even be in the position to back into the win as he did. It was a good weekend, starting on the front row and collecting P4 and P2 in the first two stages. It was a great outing for the #2 car, we’ll see if he can build some momentum going forward. As for the DH Bracket Challenge? He knocked out Bubba Wallace as the 20th seed.
#3 Austin Dillon
Embed from Getty ImagesOf course, the week that Austin Dillon and the #3 car are running well, it’s during the Bracket Challenge and he knocks out #2 seed Martin Truex Jr. But Dillon had a rare masterclass at Gateway. He finished P6 and collected stage points with a P9 in stage two. This is only his second top-10 and third top-20 all season. I wouldn’t call it a comeback on one half-decent race alone, littered with technical issues and unfortunate circumstances. But hats off to the #3 team anyway.
#51 Justin Haley
Embed from Getty ImagesCollecting a T-10 at a non-drafting track with maybe the worst team in NASCAR, Rick Ware Racing, has to collect some cheers and hat tips for Justin Haley and the #51 team. This is Haley’s second P9 finish in three races. Good finishes and strong outings could prove huge for the 25-year-old. With three charters left up for grabs, and their next-door neighbors Team RFK possibly looking to add, Haley could be in a great position to see a major upgrade in 2025 if things play out favorably. Either way, incredible stuff from the #51 car as we move forward.
Three Down
#12 Ryan Blaney (Moreso Jonathan Hassler)
Embed from Getty ImagesInexcusable stuff from the #12 team. All in all, it falls at the feet of one Jonathan Hassler, crew chief of the #12 car, and Ryan Blaney. How could you miscalculate or forget to tell your driver that he might be a lap short on fuel in this run and that it’s time to start saving? Once Bell suffered his technical issue, he could’ve started saving a little bit. All he needed was one lap. Some foresight would’ve been a big-time help and gave the best Ford in NASCAR it’s first win on the season. Unfortunately, it was handed to his far lesser teammate on a silver platter.
RYAN BLANEY IS OUT OF GAS. AUSTIN CINDRIC WINS AT WWT RACEWAY! pic.twitter.com/aTY0SL6zpI
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) June 2, 2024
Ryan Blaney and his relationship with Lady Luck is something to be studied. He’ll hope to rebound next week in wine country as the Cup Series hits Sonoma.
#23 Bubba Wallace
Embed from Getty ImagesA ten spot drop from last week for one Bubba Wallace. A P21 finish here at Gateway after a period of P7, and P11 in the last two points races is quite disappointing for this #23 team. It seems they’re cooling off from their hot start and that is concerning to all of us who believe this team and driver should be in victory lane by now. With a couple of road courses coming up, it seems his best odds will be at Iowa or New Hampshire. At Loudon specifically, Wallace has an average finish of 17.7 with a top-five and an additional top-10 finish.
#48 Alex Bowman
Embed from Getty ImagesHurts to do it to my guy Alex Bowman in the #48. But he had a good run come to an end at the hands of Gateway this weekend. After five straight-point races with finishes inside the top 10, he lost his brakes on Sunday and had to manage the rest of the race. Finishing at an underwhelming P28. His tweet tells us that just finishing was a best-case scenario for the team.
Honestly just glad we were able to limp it home there. Hard to run a place like this with no brakes. On to the next one.
— Alex Bowman (@Alex_Bowman) June 2, 2024
Bowman’s track record at the coming schedule isn’t phenomenal. Sonoma, New Hampshire (especially New Hampshire), and Nashville are all among his worst tracks by average finish. Never mind adding the Chicago Street Race where he collected a DNF last year after technical difficulties. But after this stretch, he’ll find a friendlier scene to him with Pocono Raceway on July 14th. Hang in there, Allies. It might be a tough month for Bowman and the #48 team.
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