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NASCAR: 2016 Chase-Clinching Scenarios For Talladega

By Christopher Olmstead

Sep 17, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; A general view of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series trophy during the The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Media Day at The Murphy Chicago. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 17, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; A general view of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series trophy during the The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Media Day at The Murphy Chicago. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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The second round of the 2016 NASCAR Chase will come to a close this weekend at Talladega. The field of 12 will be cut down to eight and from the looks of it, some quality drivers are going to have their championship runs crushed.

The second round of the NASCAR Chase has not been kind to half of the field. Coming out of the first race in this round, five drivers found themselves in precarious situations. Last weekend produced much of the same for drivers like Chase Elliott. This weekend Talladega will provide the biggest wild card of NASCAR’s version of the playoffs.

Anything can happen at Talladega, or so they say. A driver like Elliott winning would not come as a surprise, nor would a last-lap crash resulting in Chase drivers losing 20+ spots on the track. Below is a quick look at what the Chase drivers will need to do to secure their spot in the round of eight after Talladega.

Talladega Chase-Clinching Scenarios

  • Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson have already clinched a spot in the round of eight.
  • Matt Kenseth will clinch a spot in the round of eight with a finish of 28th or better (if there is a new winner) and 30th or better if there is a repeat winner.
  • Kyle Busch will clinch a spot in the round of eight with a finish of 26th or better (if there is a new winner) and 27th or better if there is a repeat winner.
  • Carl Edwardswill clinch a spot in the round of eight with a finish of 23rd or better (if there is a new winner) and 25th or better if there is a repeat winner.
  • Kurt Busch will clinch a spot in the round of eight with a finish of 16th or better (if there is a new winner) and 17th or better if there is a repeat winner.
  • Martin Truex Jr. will clinch a spot in the round of eight with a finish of 12th or better (if there is a new winner) and 13th or better if there is a repeat winner.
  • Joey Logano – will clinch a spot in the round of eight if there is a repeat winner and he finishes second with the most laps led. Otherwise, Logano needs a win to guarantee his spot in the next round. Logano can still make the next round on points with help from others.
  • Austin Dillon – will clinch a spot in the round of eight if there is a repeat winner and he finishes second with the most laps led. Otherwise, Dillon needs a win to guarantee his spot in the next round. Dillon can still make the next round on points with help from others.
  • Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski and Chase Elliott – a win will clinch their spot in the round of eight. Each can still advance on points but they would need help in the form of other drivers struggling.

The above scenarios do not include laps led for some drivers. A single lap led will bump the clinch spot down a point while the most laps led will drop it down two spots. For example, if there is a new winner and Carl Edwards leads a lap, his clinch spot would be 24th. If that happens and he leads the most laps, it moves down to 25th.

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Be sure to follow along with BTF all week as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series prepares to run at Talladega this weekend.

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