Chase Briscoe burns out after winning the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina on Sunday, September 1, 2024. (Photo: Ricky Martinez | The Podium Finish)
DARLINGTON, S.C – Every NASCAR driver knows that, when it comes to Darlington Raceway, they have to respect the track just as much as they respect each other, if not more. During the last 30 laps of Sunday night’s Cook Out Southern 500, Chase Briscoe showed the NASCAR world that he could tame the Lady in Black under the greatest pressure.
After a fairly uneventful first two stages in which Kyle Larson led the majority of the laps, the final stage was littered with cautions. With 26 laps to go, all eyes were on Ross Chastain, who chose to stay out during the preceding caution, taking a big chance on old tires while everyone else took four new stickers under yellow. It was all or nothing for Chastain, as he had no choice but to win the race in order to make it into the playoffs.
Chastain managed to maintain the lead during the restart, holding off a dominant Larson into Turn 1. However, his clean air did not last long as Briscoe completed a huge slingshot move on the inside, passing both Larson and Chastain for the lead. Briscoe began to pull away while Kyle Busch, another “win it and you’re in” driver, came into the picture, challenging Larson for second.
On Lap 345, the final caution of the night waved when a three-wide battle between Josh Berry, Ty Gibbs and Denny Hamlin went awry, collecting Bubba Wallace in the process and threatening his playoff chances. With 17 laps to go, the field restarted for the last time and Briscoe shot out to a lengthy lead. On newer tires than the majority of the field, Busch made leaps and bounds over his competitors and soon found himself in cleaner air with his sights set on Briscoe.
Kyle Busch racing after Chase Briscoe in the final laps of the Cook Out Southern 500. (Photo: Ricky Martinez | The Podium Finish)
It was clear that both Briscoe and Busch raced their hearts out. Briscoe began to make some light contact with the wall towards the end of the race as he did everything he could to keep Busch in his rearview mirror. Busch tried every racing line there was to find an advantage over Briscoe. In the end, the No. 14 Stewart Haas Racing High Point Ford Mustang took the checkered flag, dashing Busch’s playoff hopes for the second weekend in a row.
“We kept saying all week we got one bullet left in the chamber. That bullet hit,” Briscoe said to NBC Sports at the start/finish line. “I was sideways, counter steering. Like I was in a sprint car. Yeah, this night just literally went perfect. The pit crew did an incredible job. I was crying after the checkered. I just won the Southern 500, this is a crown jewel.”
A lot of talk has surrounded the news of Stewart Haas Racing’s closure at the end of the season, with many believing that the crews looking at being unemployed next season would give up before the season ended. While Briscoe landed the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19 ride following Martin Truex Jr.’s retirement, his fellow employees are facing a questionable future.
“For all 320 employees, everybody, to be able to race for a championship in their final year, man, unbelievable,” Briscoe said. “This group, the day that we found out that the team wasn’t going to exist anymore, we went over to the shop floor, we all looked at each other and said, ‘We’re in this till the end. We’re not going to give this up.’”
Chase Briscoe, his family and the No. 14 team in Victory Lane at Darlington Raceway. (Photo: Ricky Martinez | The Podium Finish)
Busch was also not willing to surrender last night, as he took the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet all over the tire-eating racing surface in order to find just one opportunity to pass Briscoe for the lead.
“When I made it through a few of those guys right there on the start, I thought we had a shot to get there,” Busch said in his post-race interview, clearly disappointed in falling short once again. “I think I just needed him to have maybe three or four more lap older tires for me to be able to break through the wake.”
Race number 26 of the Cup Series season served as the final opportunity for drivers like Chris Buescher and Wallace to race their way into the playoffs without necessarily needing a win. Despite overcoming many obstacles, Buescher finished an impressive sixth and Wallace finished 16th. With a new winner clearly in front of the field during the last few laps, neither driver could have done anything differently to get into the playoffs.
Tyler Reddick, who suffered from an extremely sick stomach throughout the entire race, was more than consistent. He stayed in the top 10 through every stage, and despite Larson leading so many laps and finishing in fourth, Reddick’s determination and 10th place finish landed him the regular season championship, one point over Larson.
Bubba Wallace racing his heart out for the final playoff spot alongside regular season championship contender Kyle Larson with an ailing Tyler Reddick following closely behind. (Photo: Ricky Martinez | The Podium Finish)
The field of 16 drivers vying for the title has a very diverse schedule of races to overcome on their way to Phoenix. They will tackle Atlanta as Race No. 1 of the playoffs next Sunday at 3:00 PM EST on USA.
