NASCAR Cup Series: Aric Almirola must win at Phoenix to advance
By Asher Fair
Aric Almirola must win the final race of the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series round of 8, the Can-Am 500, at ISM Raceway to advance to the Championship 4.
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola entered the second of three races in the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series round of 8, the AAA Texas 500, at Texas Motor Speedway in eighth place out of the eight round of 8 drivers in the playoff picture.
Prior to the 337-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Texas Motor Speedway oval in Fort Worth, Texas, the driver of the #10 Ford sat 50 points below the Championship 4 cut line.
Almirola finished the AAA Texas 500 in eighth place, and he moved up to seventh in the playoff picture, as he passed teammate Clint Bowyer, who finished the race in 26th in his #14 Ford.
However, Almirola now trails the Championship 4 cut line by 57 points, meaning that he must win the final race of the round of 8, the Can-Am 500, at ISM Raceway in order to advance to the Championship 4.
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Team Penske’s Joey Logano and Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick have already clinched berths in the Championship 4 by winning the opening two races of the round of 8, the First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway and the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, respectively, leaving two spots open in the Championship 4 heading into the round of 8 finale.
The two drivers who currently occupy these two spots are Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch and Furniture Row Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. Truex Jr. is the driver who is currently on the bubble right above the Championship 4 cut line, as he trails Busch by three points.
Truex Jr. is the driver who Almirola trails by 57 points, and Almirola has no way of passing his point total in the Can-Am 500 without winning the race.
A maximum of 60 points are on the table for each driver in each race. Stage one winners receive 10 points, stage two winners receive 10 points and race winners receive 40 points.
For drivers who do not win a race, a maximum of 55 points are on the table. They can still earn 10 points by winning stage one and an additional 10 points for winning stage two. However, second place finishes are worth 35 points.
As a result, the only way by which Almirola’s point total can possibly pass that of Truex Jr. — and even if this happens, it isn’t guaranteed to do so — is if Almirola wins the race, at which point his point total will no longer matter for him anyway since he will have automatically clinched a berth in the Championship 4 because of the fact that wins automatically qualify drivers for the next round of the playoffs no matter which round is next.
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Will Aric Almirola win the Can-Am 500 to clinch a berth in the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4? Tune in to NBC on Sunday, November 11 at 2:30 p.m. ET for the live broadcast of the race from ISM Raceway to find out.