By JENNA FRYER AP Auto Racing Writer
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — NASCAR’s playoff system is designed to give a long shot a chance to race for the championship.
As a pack of underdogs hurtled toward the finish line at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday night there was a real possibility of an upset and someone racing their way into the postseason by winning the regular-season finale.
Then a favorite spoiled it all.
Ryan Blaney won a four-wide race to claim the checkered flag — a victory that denied a Cinderella moment and gave Alex Bowman the final spot in the playoffs.
Blaney was 13th with two laps to go, then muscled his Team Penske Ford to the front and surged slightly ahead right before the finish line. He beat Daniel Suarez by 0.031 seconds, Justin Haley by 0.036 seconds and Cole Custer by 0.049 seconds.
Erik Jones was fifth, Kyle Larson sixth and Chris Buescher seventh and Ty Gibbs eighth. Any of the seven drivers behind Blaney besides Larson would have been first-time winners this season and claimed the final spot in the 16-driver playoff field.
But Blaney — a former series champion already locked into the field — denied them all. His victory assured Bowman, who crashed early in the race and had to watch for more than three hours on TV to learn his fate, would race for the championship this season.
The first 19 cars across the finish line were all within a half-second of Blaney, who wound up second in the regular-season standings. Daytona 500 winner William Byron had already wrapped up the regular-season title.
“What a wild couple last laps,” said Blaney, who waited until the end to aggressively move through traffic. “It’s definitely not as traditional a way as we like to run them, we like to lead laps and things like that. We just couldn’t really get there until the last second.”
Suarez, who is being replaced at Trackhouse Racing at the end of the season, was disappointed not to make the playoffs.
“All in all a good car. Just not enough and a little too late,” Suarez said.
Haley, who is likely to be replaced at Spire Motorsports at the end of the year, also was frustrated. Haley and Spire’s only Cup Series win came in this race in 2019, when it was shortened by rain while Haley was the leader.
“It hurts, especially with the year the 7 car has had. We obviously had a rough season,” Haley said. “You’re counting them down and just trying to play everything out. It stings, but still a good night.”
Buescher said coming up short of the playoffs would force him to “just be mad about it for a while.
“Not trying to pout, just I’m proud of this team,” he continued. “It was a great night. We certainly had a shot and had the speed again, so want to be excited about that, and I am, but man, it’s just another one of those we had the ability to win this race, had the speed, had the handling, and no champagne to celebrate.”
The victory was on brand for Team Penske, winner of the last three Cup Series championships. Joey Logano won in 2023, Blaney in 2024, and Logano again last year.
The team has won those titles by overcoming summer slumps and then turning it up when the playoffs begin. Blaney’s won snapped an 11-race losing streak for Penske and Ford.
Penske, who was in victory lane to celebrate with the No. 12 team, has all three of his drivers in the playoff field.
Last 2 spots
Tyler Reddick crashed early in and still clinched a spot in the playoffs.
How?
Just nine laps later, Bowman wrecked at Daytona and, with Bowman out of the race, it automatically locked Reddick into the 16-driver field.
Reddick and Bowman both started the race trying to claim the final two spots in the playoffs. Reddick, last year’s regular-season champion, held a 29-point cushion over Bowman. But when he wrecked 18 laps into the race, he suddenly became in danger of missing out on racing for the championship just nine months after he made it to the title-deciding finale.
His worries went away on Lap 27 when Bowman was collected in a multi-car crash that ended the Hendrick Motorsports drivers’ race. Bowman can still claim the final spot in the playoffs if there is not a first-time winner Saturday night.
“There’s just nothing you can do, welcome to superspeedway racing,” Bowman said about the crash. “We feel like it was out of our control and it is what it is. I am going to sit in front of a TV and watch, unfortunately we are on the sidelines watching and we’re going to find out here in a couple of hours.”
Reddick was pleased to make the playoffs but frustrated it has been so difficult.
“Really disappointing for the experience I have to find myself in that position. As a driver you never want to make a mistake like that that early,” he said. “I hate that it came to that, but yeah, we at least made it.”
Team Penske mourns
Hours before the race began Team Penske noted the death of Karl Kainhofer, the first employee Penske hired when he launched the motorsports juggernaut in 1966.
Kainhofer was was part of 10 of Penske’s 20 Indianapolis 500 wins, including Mark Donohue’s 1972 win as chief mechanic. Donohue was Penske’s second hire.
Team Penske said Kainhofer died Friday night. He was 94.
“Karl Kainhofer’s contributions to Team Penske are immeasurable,” Penske said.
Up next
The playoffs open next Sunday at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina. The race was the regular-season finale in 2024 and won by Chase Briscoe, who used the victory to claim the final spot in the playoffs.