Race for the Championship (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 7 - The Cutoff - full transcript

The two 23xi
cars are up next to qualify,

and they'll get the green
flag this time by kurt busch,

still as good as he's ever been
behind the wheel of a race car.

Yep. oh!

hard contact. car
into the wall.

wow.

that was a hard hit for that
right-rear quarter panel,

and you see the damage.

backed it
square into the wall.

sorry, guys.

you have to push these
cars to the very limit.



and if you're gonna do that,

you're gonna step
over it sometimes.

Kurt busch will
not race in the pocono 400.

he is out with
concussion symptoms,

and he could miss more time,
pending further evaluation.

all right, four tires, two cans,
no adjustments. here we go.

The indy road course race
is deep into the summer races.

it's a point where if
you don't have a win,

you are absolutely concerned

about whether or not you're
gonna go after a title.

and ryan blaney is
the only penske driver

that has not gotten himself
locked into the playoffs.

12 car, you're up.

it's indy,



and the car's coming from a
different direction on pit road.

so the choreography is
gonna be slightly different.

the guys are so used to banging
out stops the normal way

that when you ask them to do
something else and switch it,

you get some bumps in
the road, so to speak,

you got to work through.

Last year, penske didn't
make it to the championship round.

you can't be a top-tier team

that is owned by roger penske,
one of the icons of motorsports,

and not be able to run
for a championship.

All right, four
tires, two cans, no adjustments.

here we go.

The 2022 season started off

really, really well
for team penske.

they win the daytona
500 with austin cindric.

they win the clash at the
coliseum with joey logano.

but somewhere around the midway
point of the regular season,

they sort of tailed
off a little bit.

Yeah, we got to massage
this rear hose a little bit.

who's throwing it?

calvin does it.

you can just let it
go once you throw it.

12, you're up.

good stuff.

great job, guys.

Every single week,

ryan and his 12 team
have to go after points

but also put their selves
in position to win.

so getting a win would just
alleviate all of the stress

of how they strategize
races and whether or not

they're gonna be going on a
championship run for 2022.

Ryan blaney
currently in the playoffs,

but only five points
as it sits right now.

The biggest thing that
i want you to think about

is what 23xi is about
and could be about.

we want to be a powerful brand

that happens to be a race
team, not a race-team brand.

denny hamlin was bored
during the pandemic.

that's what he'll tell you, and
we wanted to kind of, you know,

take a step back and
say, "what can i do

when i'm done racing?" and
he decided, you know what?

maybe starting a race
team was the best thing.

he's friends with
michael jordan.

he just kind of
off-the-cuff mentions that,

and that starts
the ball rolling.

And the next thing you
know, 23xi racing was formed

and bubba wallace was driving
the number 23 toyota car.

Some people may
have thought, "oh, sure,"

michael jordan's
gonna own a race team.

he's gonna be kind of a silent
partner behind the scenes.

nope. he is at the race track.

he is sitting on
top of the pit box.

he is walking down pit road.

he is engaging with the drivers.

he is very much a hands-on
owner in the nascar cup series.

an icon that michael jordan is,

the guy could do anything
he wanted, be anywhere,

and he chooses to be with us.

i think it gets us outside
of that nascar bubble

and legitimizes nascar

in the way that only
michael could do.

Bubba wallace...
the winner here at talladega.

Obviously, bubba
winning at talladega was a high.

but 23xi had an up-and-down
inaugural season, 2021,

and it became evident that
they needed a veteran presence.

and kurt busch is
that veteran presence.

in baseball parlance, he is
a locker-room.

he is somebody that
makes every organization

that he's with better.

Kurt busch
will take michael jordan

to victory lane
in the heartland.

kurt busch wins it.

kurt busch wins at kansas

in one of the
coolest paint schemes

with the jump-man logo on it.

and that locks 23xi racing

into a playoff spot
for the first time.

At pocono, i wanted
to get that first pull

for 23xi, and pocono
is one of my favorites.

and the car was there.

i just overstepped the line
coming through turn three,

and the thing just
snapped around so fast,

and it backed in, and boom.

and then i 1,000%
knew that it was

a different kind of hit.

that's been the scary
part and the tough part.

With a concussion,
it's sort of an invisible injury.

and kurt could walk
in here right now

and we would look at him and
go, "well, he looks fine."

we can't see what
his symptoms are.

we can't understand, you
know, some of the frustrations

and struggles that
he's dealing with.

What kind of
lunges we want today?

let's do ten kettle
bell for your first set,

and we'll go down.

ten?

For a driver,

a concussion is the last thing
that you ever want to get.

it can affect your eyesight.

it affects your balance,
it affects your timing,

your ability to
make fast decisions.

From where i was two
mondays ago to where i am now,

i know i've improved.

everything shoulders
down is very ripped,

and it's just here
up, it has to...

heal in different ways.

it's my eyes and trying to
get things back to here.

right now, i'm absorbing things

and hearing things
in far directions.

Flip it up, bring
it down controlled.

keeping the heart rate up
and fast head movements...

those are things that
happen in the race car.

checking the mirror,
listening to the spotter,

looking ahead with
peripheral, bringing it close.

200 by stage two.

come on, let's go, pick it up.

It's something
that is unknown,

and it's fascinating, as
well, to learn all of this

and go through it.

so improvements have
happened and are coming.

and it's just a process.

Yay! oh, ho, ho.

you got it. got it by one.

good job. you weren't nervous.

nope, not at all.

The last five races
of the regular season

are about as good a five-race
stretch of the regular season

as you can possibly have.

it's a veritable
murderer's row of races.

you've got the road courses
of indy and watkins glen.

those are always x-factor races.

you have michigan, which
could be a fuel-mileage race.

that's often an
opportunity for underdogs.

you have richmond, which
is a short track...

also presents an opportunity
for fuel mileage.

and then you land on daytona,
which is a free-for-all.

you have a group of
drivers and teams

that are getting prepared
for the playoffs,

and they're really trying
hard to execute well.

plus, you've got the guys
that are trying to make it in.

and you got the
guys that are trying

to keep the other guys out.

so usually, one or
two people kind of

sneak their way in
there to steal a spot.

I don't know that you
could have dialed a better day

to put on a spectacle.

welcome to the brickyard.

Fans
already filing in.

gonna be interesting to see
how it all unfolds today.

only two slots open right now
to advance to the playoffs.

there's a lot of pressure
down in the garage

to get into victory lane,

punch their way
into the playoffs.

martin truex jr., ryan blaney...
they got double pressure.

When you put
pressure on yourself

to try to do well, like,
"oh, we haven't won yet."

you know, "what's this mean?
are we gonna make the playoffs?"

Ryan blaney's
had a really good year.

he's been competitive,
he's had a lot of races,

led a lot of laps,
been up to the front,

been in position to win a race.

but what he hasn't done
is actually win a race.

and when you have a zero
in the "win" column,

you may miss the playoff
despite how the points stand.

I really hope we
do win one soon, though,

so i can stop answering
all the damn questions.

the same questions
every single week.

"do you think you're gonna win?"

yes, i think we are.

"is now the time to do it?"

no

Let's go trackside and
get it all cranked up here today

at the indianapolis
motor speedway.

drivers, start your engines!

crank 'em up.
can you crank 'em up?

Ready and green.

Here they come
for the first time today

into turn one, everybody
pushing and shoving.

justin haley gets shoved
around here in turn one.

Indianapolis
motor speedway

is really wide down
the straightaway.

you can get four or five wide
if you really get aggressive.

well, the problem is it
gets real narrow real quick

going into turn one, and
everybody's got to figure out

how to get through there,
and not everyone does.

Ross chastain.

down on the front stretch
here, race leader ryan blaney.

blaney's got the lead.

blaney with a roar through
through turn number 11

onto the short shoot.

Has a pretty
fast car all race.

young blaney coming
to play, baby.

i don't know if we
had the fastest.

the eight was pretty good,
but i thought, towards the end

of the race, we lined
up with him equal

at the start of the last stage,

when he started 15th
and drove up to 3rd.

Ryan blaney...
car has been really good,

but somehow, they have to
make up this 6-second gap

that tyler reddick built.

get this time. get this lap.

we had brief lane stops,

and we just did gas, trying
to get out the front gate.

go, go, go.

but i stalled it...
push, push, push.

coming out of my box,
and that hurt us.

Ryan blaney has
stalled the car and is lagging,

but no tire change at all.

We came out
right behind the gate,

and i think his fresh tires
kept him away from us.

That stall
could be the difference.

tyler reddick maintains
position over ryan blaney.

Late in a
road course race,

a caution flag could
come out at any moment.

Oh, big, big
hit here for ty dillon.

A huge
hit for the 42. wow.

and that brings
out the caution.

Kyle larson... he
really took a vicious hit down here.

ryan blaney... a
lot older tires.

we'll see if he can hang
on to that position.

Right now, if ryan
blaney can just hang on to third,

his points cushion
gets a little better.

Yeah, i
don't think anybody,

outside of maybe the
guys on the front row,

getting through this first turn
without some sort of contact.

it is going to be an
absolute slugfest.

Two laps to go.

tyler reddick will
be the race leader.

ryan blaney third.

the restarts at indy get
just absolutely crazy.

pan away.

green, green, green, green.

Show time
at the brickyard.

here comes the
leader, tyler reddick.

Blaney takes
a peek for the bottom

and he's blocked by reddick.

Oh! reddick
has to go down to block.

fans are on their feet
as we watch him get free.

four wide now, heading to one.

blaney locks up the brakes,
they race into turn one.

big pile-up, all these cars
slamming into each other.

ryan blaney the
big loser there.

we just got run over, and
that's... as a driver,

i mean, that just pisses you off

because you're doing
all the right things

and then you got guys
that just don't care,

that just dive in there and
then end up getting you wrecked.

then your race is over.

i don't know if they're
driving over their heads

or they just don't care,

but it's definitely frustrating.

Checkered flag.

tyler reddick will
go to victory lane

at the indianapolis
motor speedway.

Ryan blaney
had his opportunities,

but they disappeared
down in turn one,

like so many other
dreams did today.

he finishes 26.

Definitely
disappointing,

especially when you put yourself

in the spot that
we're in right now.

we haven't won yet, you know.

are we gonna make the playoffs?

it's kind of getting
down to that time of

those spots are filling up,

and we're kind of sitting
in the danger zone.

ooh! good job. oh.

Good morning.
what do you got going there?

scarlett, you're not gonna
eat this bacon, are you?

i love my bacon.

well, you better get
dressed here soon

or we're gonna be late.

i almost ran him over.
did you see that truck?

i did.

that's called a brush back.
do you know what that means?

when you bump somebody
just a little bit,

just so that they move
back a little bit.

sometimes when i'm driving
the race car, we do that, too,

when there's people on pit road
that are kind of in the way.

we do a brush back.

what, you actually touch the
man on the road with your car?

yeah.

how did you not run him over?

just a little bit.

a little bit's not
running somebody over.

it's just brushing them back.

yeah, but how don't
you run them over?

well, you just got
to be really careful.

daddy, if your name was on a
rock, how would you paint it?

with race cars and
checkered flags.

mine would have
flowers in the corner

and then a sun in
the up-top corner

and then i would put my
name right in the middle.

ooh, that's a good idea.

let's do it.

And we're off.

yeah, i grew up in
a racing family,

and part of growing up
in a racing family was

not getting to see mom and dad

as much as some of the
other kids in school.

so one of the few things
my dad tried to do for me

that i'll always remember

is he tried to always
drop me off at school,

and i carry that
forward for my kids

because i think about,
you know, the ability

to spend some time with
them like he did with me.

When brad made
the decision to go over to roush

and become part
owner of that team,

i think he would have went
into that thinking, you know,

"whatever happens, happens.
this is a long-term plan.

and we're not gonna
really take a lot of stock

in how this year goes."
but actually, you know,

they're running way better
than i thought they would.

i certainly feel like
we're making progress.

some days it feels
like more than others.

but, you know, whether it's our
average finish on the race track

or initiatives off
the race track there,

there's a lot to be proud of
here in the last few weeks.

i know brad... he's racing

but always sort of keeping
his focus on the big picture

of how this company gets better
in five years, in ten years.

and it's really remarkable.

i do believe that we
could win if we bring our

top-level efforts,
our a-game here.

so let's go do it.

thanks, everybody.

the carvel.

the highest end of
all birthday cakes.

so, gianna's birthday
was during indy,

so i was with her at indy.

we had a little birthday
dinner before we left,

but we didn't get
to have a cake.

so after my meeting
today on my team stuff,

i stopped and i got her
a little ice cream cake,

she's a big ice-cream
cake person.

so indy kind of stunk,
honestly, the way we finished.

but the good thing about
coming home to gianna

is that it usually kind
of brightens my day up,

so i'm excited
to take a moment.

i think it's really important
to balance your home

and professional life.

i don't think everything
can be about work.

i think you have to have
breaks every now and then

because if you think
about work all the time,

you're gonna go insane.

Hi.

so, i know we didn't
get to do a cake,

so i stopped on my
way home and i got you

a little ice cream cake.

aww, thank you.

i think i missed the
candles by a handful.

but happy birthday,
happy birthday, all that.

thank you. is it just
regular ice cream?

it's vanilla ice cream
and chocolate cake.

yay! great job.

thank you. how
were your meetings?

lovely. they were good?

we got to talk about
how we got wiped out,

so that's always nice.

yeah, but at least
you know what to

work on for next race.

these are actually
edible, too, so...

no, they're not.

gonna have me eat wax.

do you want a
slice now or later?

i'll have a bite now.

i just am scared i'm
gonna eat blue icing

and it's gonna
turn my mouth blue.

but i'll eat around it.

it'll match your dress.

that knife is bigger
than the cake.

yeah, i picked a chef's
knife to cut a cake.

i know. you picked
the biggest knife.

but honestly, it's
a good way to go.

you want a big piece
or a small one?

a small one, please.

i think it's pretty good.

it's the best
bargain cake ever.

and they already decorated it.

you didn't have to do anything
but put candles in it.

mmm. it is good.

did you take too
big of a bite?

you're gonna
have brain-freeze.

would they eat
the whole thing?

yes, they would. of
course they would.

Michigan
international speedway,

just over an hour
outside of detroit,

is the latest stop for
the nascar cup series

with just four races left
in the regular season.

just two spots left on point

with the playoff cut
line coming quick.

A lot of these races
are wild-card type races.

anybody can win them,

and if you win, you
make the playoffs.

Keselowski
is having a great run.

he's one of those must-wins
to make the playoffs.

Blaney absolutely
frustrated with that car.

he said it's plowing tight...

oh, blaney in the wall.

Kevin harvick...
a checkered flag is in the air,

and he becomes playoff eligible.

That
puts ryan blaney

as the last one currently
in the playoffs,

but only by points.

Blaney and
truex, the desperation twins,

coming in this
afternoon to richmond.

the early advantage
goes to ryan blaney.

Kevin harvick
is gonna win it, richmond.

he goes back-to-back.

Blaney actually
widened the gap a little bit.

so the blaney versus truex show
moves on to the road course.

The drama
of the nascar cup series

regular season is down
to just two races.

blaney is sitting in
eighth position right now.

martin truex jr. all
the way back in 21st.

Checkered
flag is in the air.

here comes kyle larson, and
he will score the win...

with that last
spot up for grabs.

Good morning.
how's everybody?

- Hey!
- El presidente.

thank you. thank you. thank you.

look, we wanted to pull
everybody together for an update

on where we are with
kurt and the 45 team.

hopefully you've seen kurt here
over the past couple of weeks.

you know, he's posted videos
of himself working out

and things like that,
so he is getting better.

unfortunately, he's still
not cleared to race,

and he won't be able to make
the start of the playoffs.

so what that means is he
wanted to do the right thing.

he's gonna relinquish
his medical waiver.

so it will open up
another spot for a driver

in the drivers' championship,
and i think his feeling

that, you know,
reserving a spot for him

when he knows he can't
go run for a championship

just didn't feel like
the right thing to do.

you know, it's
obviously unfortunate

and difficult for kurt.

i feel for him wanting to
battle for a championship.

we can't let him feel
like he's letting us down

because he's not.

appreciate all the work.

we got a lot to do
for saturday night

and then ten more weeks,
so thanks very much.

Yep.

not running for a
championship in 2022

was a tough moment.

that's probably been the
toughest about all of this.

but there's something
that will come out of this

on the championship
person that i am

and the person that i keep
continuing to push to be

and the lessons that
are within this.

Yeah, the big
one... that's sturgill.

i got him from a shelter about
three and a half years ago.

and the smaller one is malibu.

people think that
malibu is sturgill's kid

because they look exactly
alike, but malibu is gianna's.

luckily, our dogs get
along really well,

so that's always good.

yeah, they're great. and
they travel with me a lot.

they're just not coming this
weekend, unfortunately, but...

come on.

i know. i hear
you. let's hit it.

let's hit it.

go.

nice job. solid.

all ready.

we are heading to pet paradise,
a great boarding place

just right down the road
here in huntersville.

Hello, puppos.

come on.

and now we're headed down
south to go to daytona.

you know, i grew up
going there a lot,

watching dad race
the 500 as a kid.

i always remembered
this place and always...

i thought it was so cool

and wanted to be in
victory lane there

and was able to do it last year.

Ryan blaney will
see the checkered flag.

ryan blaney is one of the best
super-speedway racers out there.

he's won at daytona,
he's won at talladega.

he's always competitive
when he races.

he does a really good job of
putting himself in position

to be there at the end.

Really exciting
weekend for us.

the last regular-season
race before the playoffs.

and, you know, we're sitting
in the playoffs right now.

for ryan blaney, he
comes to daytona.

kurt has rescinded his
playoff eligibility.

so now there's two spots,

but there's still this
kind of points dynamic.

so a little more breathing
room than he had,

but still not feeling great.

you know, it's kind
of your whole season

of what you're racing for is
try to run for a championship.

you want to be part
of those 16 guys

that get to run
for a championship,

so it's a very, very big race.

it's definitely
gonna be exciting.

we won this race last year.

it'd be really cool to win
this race two years in a row.

Regular
season finale.

so many storylines coming in.

two spots remain in
the playoff grid.

Win this race and
you haven't already this year,

there's a high chance you're
going into the playoffs.

all you need is a chance.

hey, there she is.

what are you doing, autumn?

being a race-car driver
is a tremendous privilege,

but it comes with sacrifices.

that's the reality
of being a parent.

and that's the reality of
being a race-car driver.

my kids, they have school and
they have lives of their own.

they don't just get
to come every weekend.

what you doing the
rest of the day?

surviving.

i'm not gonna be there
for every moment.

getting to do what i love to do,

it's not a free ride.

there's trade-offs.

all right, catch you later.

all right. bye.

love you.

there's the update
from the home front.

we're big peanut butter
and jelly sandwich eaters

in the blaney bus.

How do you feel
for today? are you ready?

we'll find out. we'll see.

i'll be watching you.

good. make me nervous.

are you nervous? no.

yeah, you never get
nervous with your races.

no, not really.

i don't know, but god
damn, this bread's good.

i know. it's really good.

no wonder why they had so much
money to sponsor ricky bobby,

i'll tell you that.

sell bread by the
damn truckload.

are you nervous
about the weather?

i don't know. it looks
incredible right now, but...

that'll change.

Well,
guys, unfortunately,

mother nature is
going to win tonight,

and we will not be racing
the cup series race here.

all the action will happen
tomorrow at 10:00 a.m.

I really felt like,
going into the race at daytona,

we were gonna win it.

i felt like we had
the car to do it.

i felt prepped, ready to go,

and just a matter of
not having any bad luck.

look at the guys who
were going to daytona

not guaranteed a playoff spot...
brad keselowski, austin dillon,

ricky stenhouse jr.

this is a really good
opportunity for one of

those guys to get that win and
get themselves in the playoffs.

There are still two
spots open in the playoff grid,

but if there's a new
winner, points also matter.

so ryan blaney and
martin truex jr.,

they're gonna have to
be paying attention

to what each of them
are doing all race long.

where they stand, how many
stage points they've gotten.

all these different things
have to fall in place

if each of those drivers
want to be playoff eligible.

see ya. are you ready?

yeah.

And with
that, we're ready to go.

the field now comes
down to the line.

and a green flag is in the air,
and we are racing in daytona.

That draft
down low, it's a tight one.

they're all shoving each other

off the end of the
daytona super stretch.

oh, turn off turn number two!

they're wrecking.

ryan blaney will slide down to
the bottom of the race track.

Brad
keselowski is involved.

I knew in the moment
how hard it hit from the force.

i could feel the seat
bounce my own body.

i was pretty certain, at that
moment, our day was done.

you know, i thought it
was an extremely hard hit.

you know, 43 had a moment
and we all checked up.

and just like that
accordion effect,

once you kind of
straighten it out,

you're kind of in
damage-assessment mode

and "okay, what's wrong?"

At this
point, it's over.

ryan blaney is going
to miss the playoffs.

if martin truex jr. can keep
all the fenders on his car

and stay on the race track...

you know, props to everybody for
fixing it and sticking with it.

but i mean, i didn't think
we were gonna be able

to even get rolling and wasn't
able to keep us in the game.

brad keselowski has to win,

and then he gets in this crash,
and it ultimately dissolves

any hope of him
making the playoffs.

i would have to imagine that,
brad was pretty crushed,

that this is not
how he envisioned

his first year as
team owner to go.

But nobody said
this was gonna be easy.

it's not helpful to
not be in the playoffs.

it's never helpful to
not be in the playoffs.

2022 has definitely been one

of the most difficult
seasons of my career.

Through the
gearbox they go one more time

for a one-lap dash

to try to find out who's
gonna earn some points.

martin truex jr. in the 19 team

did really good job
of managing that race.

And the 22
is gonna win stage one.

So a few
points for martin truex jr.

that's good. they're
loving that, rick.

19 team went out, and they
got a bunch of stage points,

and those stage points
allowed them to hold that gap

on ryan blaney.

Ryan has this
bruised and battered car

and just kind of
has to ride around

praying, "a," his
car stays together

and "b," there's
either not a new winner

or something happens
to martin truex jr.

At this point,
ryan blaney's out

and martin truex jr. just
needs to kind of make it

to the finish line
with his car in piece.

Back under the green
flag, they climb the bank.

Oh, michael
mcdowell gets turned.

Back
under the green flag.

Legado
will drop to the bottom.

he'll take the lead over
mcdowell and reddick.

oh, michael mcdowell
gets turned.

and he'll spin to the
bottom of the racetrack.

he'll clip corey lajoie.

martin truex jr. is in it.

This has got some
rather big implications.

The tire on the 19
car, martin truex, is straight.

he's just got a flat front
tire. the body's ripped up.

i feel like they can
get down to pit road

and get that taken care of.

and that changes everything.

all of a sudden, ryan blaney's
got a glimmer of hope.

As we look
at the playoff grid,

blaney has problems early. now
truex has problems of late.

they're still in good shape,

as long as one big
thing doesn't happen.

Somebody that's
not in the top-six team

wins this race.

i knew we were in a
little bit of trouble,

but we still had hope of, okay,

maybe there's not
gonna be a new winner.

53 laps to go.

- A
- number of drivers,

if they can win it
here this afternoon,

could be racing
for a championship.

Racing
has been ferocious,

and it's about to
amp up a little more.

Coming off turn
four, chase briscoe goes around

right at the front of the field.

The laps are ticking away.

desperation to win this
race is at an all-time high.

They
are side by side

and side-drafting
off the top of two.

announcer #2:23 laps to go,
and the intensity meter is

already pegged here at daytona.

three wide here.

throw in momentum
if you have it.

they're all guiding them up top.

Side
by side for the lead.

they're stacked up three wide.

in a couple of drops. it
ain't gonna last very long.

Oh,
they're in the wall!

denny hamlin's in the fence, oh,
and the field is coming apart.

everybody is involved.

A massive
pileup in turn number one.

Ricky
stenhouse jr...

machine totally demolished.

oh, my god.

unbelievable. unbelievable.

I've never seen
racing that intense at daytona.

ever.

And martin truex jr.
is gonna gain some spots here.

And a number
of the drivers that were

trying to win to
get in are now out.

The skies
are opening up now.

it is a big cell
that's coming through.

the rain came, and austin
dillon is the leader

after getting through
the big crash.

Should we
not get back underway,

he would be in the playoffs.

then you look at that battle
between those two drivers

for that 16th spot as
far as the points go.

as it sits, martin truex
jr. is ahead of ryan blaney.

if you're martin truex jr.,

you wanted that race
to be over right then.

"oh, rain? we're
done. let's go home."

if you're ryan blaney in the 12,

you did not want
that race to end.

Right now, blaney would
not be racing for a championship.

You just hope
that weather clears up

then just give yourself a shot.

The rain stopped, nascar
is able to dry the track,

and the pressure is on

to win this race and
get in the playoffs.

If we get a new winner,
blaney is gonna have to find

15 points over truex in order
to make this year's playoffs.

We are
back at it at daytona.

Truex
pushing this 2 car.

It's now only five
points between truex and blaney.

Dylan is just
buried in the back bumper

of the austin cindric machine.

Now, truex, he's got to
work hard here to stay in this draft.

The 19
dropping further back.

One point
in front of blaney.

i was obviously
hoping the 2 wins

because it lets there
not be a new winner,

and that's good for us, no
matter what the points were.

really the only guy
that i was, like,

cannot win this
race is the 3 car.

Three laps to go.

How desperate
would austin dillon be?

When you get
the opportunity, go for it.

- whoa, whoa, whoa!
- here he goes!

Oh, they got shuffled
up at the front of the pack.

The
two almost spins out.

For austin
dillon, if he wins,

he's in the playoffs.

Because of dillon,
one more driver gets in on points.

it's either blaney or truex.

Truex
is losing positions.

Martin truex
jr. trying to fight back.

Two laps
to go here at daytona.

austin dillon's trying
to make that chevrolet

as wide as he possibly can.

One more spot.
ryan blaney's in 15th.

This is gonna
be a long lap and a half.

The white
flag is in the air.

Austin
dillon out in front.

he could be the guy who wins
his way into the playoffs

in the final race of
the regular season.

A lot of cars moving
around trying to figure out something.

here he comes up off turn four.
checkered flag in the air.

whoa-ho-ho-ho!

thank you, jesus, baby!

yes! whoo-hoo-hoo!

Austin dillon,
richard childress racing.

they are going to the playoffs.

because of dillon winning this,

one more driver
gets in on points.

it's either blaney or truex.

by three points,

ryan blaney is the final driver
to make it into the playoffs.

Just a huge relief
when they told me we were in.

it was kind of an
unbelievable day.

that was stressful.

I was really nervous.

racing can get scary.
racing's scary, so...

you never know what's gonna
happen until it happens.

definitely a lot more stressful
than i wanted, coming in here.

but i just got to give a lot
of props to the 12 group.

let's go race for
a championship.

it's been a good year, it
just hasn't been a great year.

that's because the
wins haven't come.

i'd like to say we're saving
our wins for the championship.

A crazy
one here at daytona.

six main drivers will be
racing for a championship.

The opening round
of the nascar cup series playoffs

promises to be spectacular.

16 drivers, all
with a shot at a championship.

Chase
elliott spins.

- on fire, guys.
- oh, my god.

Kyle busch does not know
where he's driving next season.

Going somewhere
else is scary.

winning is the
highest priority.

if you have one bad race,
you can easily be eliminated.

Big crash.

There's
smoke coming out of the 18!

got to find a way to level
up and get to the playoffs.