Chase Briscoe has been on a roller coaster that would make the most hardened theme park fan queasy. Just two weeks ago, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver stunned everyone by taking the win at Darlington Raceway, snatching one of the final spots in NASCAR’s Playoffs. Then, as quickly as the euphoria arrived, it vanished last week when Briscoe crashed out early in Atlanta, sending him tumbling to the bottom of the Playoff standings like a rock in freefall.
But oh, what a difference a week makes.
Sunday at Watkins Glen, while 12 of the 16 Playoff drivers were falling apart faster than a cheap suit in a hurricane, Briscoe was simply getting on with it. Ryan Blaney wrecked on lap one, leaving him fuming in the garage and squaring off with NASCAR officials. Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, and Brad Keselowski were swept into the chaos too. Sure, they continued, but it was a damage-limited slog with any hope of victory just a distant dream.
As the race unfolded, Bell was spun again, Reddick followed, and Keselowski found himself battered, bruised, and slapped with pit road penalties. Kyle Larson wasn’t spared either, nor was Chase Elliott, who got tangled up in a late-race mess. In the middle of this carnage, there was Briscoe — methodical, measured, and most importantly, clean.
He collected points in both stages, and when the dust settled after an overtime finish, Briscoe emerged quietly in sixth place. No fanfare, no drama — just results.
“It was huge,” Briscoe said, matter-of-factly. “We needed to score stage points and have a good run, and we did that. It was a solid day for our HighPoint.com Ford.”
But of course, no competitive driver is ever satisfied with “good.”
“I felt like I could have grabbed a few more points, but I didn’t want to risk it at the end,” Briscoe admitted. “I knew I was in a good position compared to most of the field, so we did what we had to do. Now, we just need to repeat that next week.”
And what a difference that finish made. Entering Watkins Glen, Briscoe sat in dead last in the Playoff standings, a dismal 21 points below the cutline. Now, thanks to his steady drive and the collective meltdown of his competitors, Briscoe heads to Bristol in 11th place, six points to the good.
“We need to keep hitting singles and doubles, and avoid doing anything stupid,” Briscoe said, keeping his eyes on the bigger prize. “As long as we execute all day long, that should be enough. Now, it’s on to Bristol to see what we can do.”
Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.
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