A quarter of this year’s NASCAR Cup Series 16-driver Playoff field will be competing for the season prize for the first time—Daytona 500 winner Austin Cindric, Phoenix winner Chase Briscoe, two-race winner Ross Chastain and Sonoma victor Daniel Suarez.
No first-time Playoff driver has ever advanced to the final round of the Playoffs (with the obvious exception of the inaugural year of the elimination format in 2014) but many say it would be no surprise to find one there this season with such a strong contingent of Playoff “rookies” — all driving for strong teams, and all just as motivated as the more seasoned Playoff veterans.
The veterans bring their experience, but this year’s new class of Playoff talent brings plenty of reason to consider this one of the most unpredictable championship chases in recent memory.
Chastain, driver of the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet, carries a pair of victories (at Talladega Superspeedway and Circuit of The Americas) into his title run. He starts the trophy chase re-seeded third in the standings, only 20 points behind Regular Season Champion Chase Elliott — highest among the first-time Playoff contenders.
And unlike so many of the tried-and-true veterans, Chastain conceded he arrives at Thursday’s Playoff Media Day at the Charlotte Convention Center making a point to savor this first-time Playoff experience.
“This is the exact spot that I’ve worked really my entire racing career toward… 11 years of wanting to be, as silly as it sounds, at Playoffs Media Day in the Cup Series,” a smiling Chastain conceded.
Not only did the 29-year-old Floridian score his first career NASCAR Cup Series win at COTA this Spring, but he is also one of eight multi-race winners this season. His 10 top-five finishes tie him with Elliott for most in the series, and his 14 top-10 finishes are second only to Elliott’s 17.
Many people consider him a legitimate threat to advance in the Playoffs. Chastain, however, refused to get too specific about his chances.
“I don’t think that question is ready to be answered,” Chastain said. “There are times this year where we did a really good job, and there are times this year where I did a really bad job behind the wheel. It’s about finding the middle ground.
“I don’t have a number of races we’ll go and how far we’ll go in this run,” he continued, “but I wouldn’t want to be in any other position than where I’m at. It’s a great time to be in a Chevrolet and a great time to be at Trackhouse. It feels good.”
Briscoe, 27, driver of the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford, earned his first career NASCAR Cup Series victory in the fourth race of the season at Phoenix, which is also the venue for the championship finale on Nov. 6. The former Xfinity Series championship contender said he realizes he is probably considered an “underdog” by many in the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs — ranked 12th among the 16 championship-eligible drivers.
“I kind of like that, because you can kind of go under the radar and do your own thing and there’s not as many cameras on you and people talking about you, and you can just go do your normal deal at the race track,” Briscoe said.
“I like that part of it, but from a speed standpoint, I feel fully capable that we could get there. It’s just been stuff I’ve been doing, self-inflicted, that kill our day, so if we can get it all together, I feel confident we can make a run in the Playoffs for sure.”
That optimism is shared even by those with more experience in the championship run. No one in the large sample of championship-eligible drivers asked to identify a “championship favorite” would or could do so, with the notable exception of Joey Logano.
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