By ZECH YODER
The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff field is set:
- William Byron – 2,036 points
- Martin Truex Jr. – 2,036 points
- Denny Hamlin – 2,025 points
- Chris Buescher – 2,021 points
- Kyle Busch – 2,019 points
- Kyle Larson – 2,017 points
- Christopher Bell- 2,014 points
- Ross Chastain – 2,011 points
- Brad Keselowski – 2,010 points
- Tyler Reddick – 2,008 points
- Ryan Blaney – 2,008 points
- Michael McDowell – 2,007 points
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – 2,005 points
- Kevin Harvick – 2,004 points
- Bubba Wallace – 2,000 points
At 6 p.m. on Sunday, the Cup Series Playoffs will officially begin with a Labor Day Weekend classic, the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway.
Last year, the Southern 500 was riddled with chaos. Many of the frontrunners had trouble, including Kyle Larson who had engine trouble; Chase Elliott, who crashed entering the corner; Kevin Harvick, who had a bizarre rocker panel fire; and a dominant Kyle Busch, whose engine expired while leading the race under caution. Erik Jones weathered the storm to capture a surprising victory for Petty GMS Racing (now Legacy Motor Club).
William Byron won 2023 spring race at Darlington that featured a much-discussed late race incident between Ross Chastain and Kyle Larson. Kevin Harvick finished second, Chase Elliott finished third, followed by Bubba Wallace and Harrison Burton.
On Sunday night, look for the Toyotas to be strong. The Toyotas of JRG and 23XI has been particularly strong on similar tracks with Martin Truex Jr. winning at Dover and New Hampshire Speedway. Denny Hamlin has a strong resume at Darlington and finished second in the 2022 Southern 500. I also expect Hendrick’s car to be formidable. William Bryon and Kyle Larson will surely factor into the battle for the win and Chase Elliott has something to prove after being locked out of the playoffs this year.
My pick Sunday is Christopher Bell. He has been hot and cold throughout the year, leading for several races but has been hampered by mediocre pit stops and late race mistakes. As the playoffs begin, he will swap pit crews with Ty Gibbs, who has had the best pit crew throughout the entire season.
In my opinion, a late race caution and pit stop will be the difference in pushing Christopher Bell to the victory.
Zech Yoder is a local resident, an attorney at Adler Attorneys in Noblesville