The first round of the NASCAR playoffs has come and gone, and four drivers have said their goodbyes to the 2023 Cup Series Championship. Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, Michael McDowell, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. were all eliminated after last weekend in Bristol. Logano and Harvick made it a fight, but Logano was bounced after a wreck. Harvick just couldn’t keep up with Truex and Wallace.
So we have a new set of drivers on the bubble, some are familiar with chasing the pack. For others, this is their first look at being behind the 8-ball. We’ll take a gander at those four, as well as the two who are just above it. They’ll head to Texas Motor Speedway this weekend, where last year Tyler Reddick picked up the victory. Without further delay, let’s get right into this one.
#23 Bubba Wallace Jr (-14)
Embed from Getty ImagesWallace came up big time to squeak past the round of 16. He benefitted largely from that aforementioned Joey Logano crash, but Wallace overcame a HUGE deficit. He’ll have to overcome one of similar size over the next couple of races if he wants to make this a real run. At Texas, the #23 driver in eight races has just one finish inside the top 10. In the last two races, he’s placed 25th and 16th. We saw a crazier comeback last round, but the odds are once again stacked against Bubba Wallace here.
#12 Ryan Blaney (-6)
Embed from Getty ImagesBlaney is an interesting driver in this stack here. He’s been very up and down all season long, especially since winning the Coke 600 back in July. He’s ranged from Top-5 finishes to several DNFs and rough placements. But he’s got the chance to prove himself again by making it out of the round of 12 from a deficit. Last round, he averaged a 14th-place finish, including placing P9 in Darlington. At Texas, the Penske driver has four top fives in 14 races. Including a win in the all-star race last year and fourth in the playoffs. He’ll be a favorite here again and could very well lock himself into the next round immediately.
#6 Brad Keselowski (-3)
Embed from Getty ImagesWe saw another grizzled veteran driver Kevin Harvick get bounced in the last round of the NASCAR Playoffs. Now Brad Keselowski is at the risk of facing the same fate. Starting behind the eight-ball at -3. But he’s been around the track a few times and has been pretty solid all season long. Though, Texas hasn’t seen Keselowski in victory lane yet. In 27 races Keselowski has six top-five finishes and six more in the top-10. I think he’ll have ample opportunities to pass the three-point gap that he’s facing, but a win would be nice insurance. Especially after coming so close in the regular season multiple times.
#1 Ross Chastain (-3)
Embed from Getty ImagesA top-five finish at Darlington basically ensured that the #1 car would outlast the round of 16. But Ross Chastain hasn’t been anything special since winning the Ally 400 in Nashville. He’s had an average finish just inside the top 15 and had just one finish inside the top 10 since winning in Nashville prior to Darlington. I’m not sure what to expect of Chastain here in this round, but Texas probably won’t be the win for him. In six races he’s got just two placements inside the top 20. We’ll see if he has another rabbit to pull out of the hat to find victory lane again at any point this round.
#45 Tyler Reddick (+3)
Embed from Getty ImagesWinning at Kansas ensured that Tyler Reddick would be here for the next round no matter what. But the fire is immediately on his rear end with two clutch drivers right behind him. Reddick has been pretty consistent all year long. He has the win at COTA along with seven top-five finishes and four more in the top 10. His average finish is just a tad lower than Chastain’s, but Reddick is always a factor in any course. It wouldn’t shock me if he went to victory lane again, especially in Texas. He won this race last year in the NASCAR Playoffs and doesn’t have a finish lower than 19th in the six races he’s run. Look out for #45.
#20 Christopher Bell (+3)
Embed from Getty ImagesChristopher Bell had maybe the best car in the race at Darlington, but a bump into the wall would take him out of the running swiftly. A similar story at Kansas where he finished eighth after some contact with the wall and at Bristol, the #20 car finished third. He’s swept the NASCAR Playoffs in the pole position so far. It’s safe to say C.Bell has been great this year and was fantastic last round. Unfortunately, the win still alludes to him and now he’s facing some heat. Texas wasn’t kind to Bell last year, he finished 34th after being taken out of the race under the Damaged Vehicle Policy. But before that, he had a top 10 and two third-place finishes. He’s another favorite this round and everybody will be keeping an eye on him. Especially if he can continue the streak of his pole wins.
If you enjoyed this content, or hate it and want to argue with me, follow me on Twitter @KalebEmcee! Also, read up on the rest of the NASCAR content Belly Up Sports has to offer here!
