NASCAR: Ross Chastain prevented a possible controversy

Ross Chastain made a sensational move at Martinsville Speedway to lock himself into the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4.

Nobody could have seen coming what Trackhouse Racing Team’s Ross Chastain pulled off on Sunday afternoon at Martinsville Speedway in the round of 8 finale of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

His incredible last-lap video game-like move saw him jump from 10th to fifth place in the final corner. By not lifting and riding the wall through turns three and four coming to the checkered flag, the driver of the #1 Chevrolet secured himself a spot in the Championship 4 in his first season with the Justin Marks and Pitbull-owned team.

He did so with the unofficial fastest lap in Cup Series history at the four-turn, 0.526-mile (0.847-kilometer) Ridgeway, Virginia oval.

Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell won the race from below the Championship 4 cut line to secure his first career appearance in the final round, joining Team Penske’s Joey Logano. Logano advanced by winning the round of 8 opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Chastain was one of two drivers to advance on points, the other being Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott.

When the race ended, Chastain and Elliott were tied at four points above the Championship 4 cut line. Hamlin was four points behind both as the highest driver who didn’t make it in.

Entering the race’s final lap, Chastain was in 10th place, slated to score 27 points. Elliott was in 11th, slated to score 26, and Hamlin was in fifth, slated to score 32.

Hamlin had already scored 20 points by winning the first two stages (10 each), bringing his point total from 4,082 to 4,102. Elliott had scored 18 by finishing in second place in both stages (nine each), bringing his point total from 4,093 to 4,111. Chastain had scored four by finishing in ninth in both stages (two each), bringing his total from 4,101 to 4,105.

As they ran, Elliott was set to have 4,137 points, while Hamlin was set to have 4,134 and Chastain was set to have 4,132.

Chastain owned the tiebreaker over both drivers, having finished in second place in each of the first two round of 8 races. This meant he needed to make up two positions to pass Hamlin on points.

His bizarre move netted him five spots instead, and Hamlin’s spot was one of those positions. So he scored 32 points, and Hamlin scored 31, bringing Chastain’s point total for 4,137 and Hamlin’s to just 4,133.

While he didn’t need all five spots to advance, the move did secure him a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4.

That is, at the time it did.

RFK Racing’s Brad Keselowski, who initially finished the race in fourth place, was later disqualified after his #6 Ford failed to meet the minimum weight requirement in post-race technical inspection.

However, when drivers get disqualified, they are scored in last place and score just one point. This means that their stage results are also deleted, not just their race results.

Hamlin and Elliott finished ahead of Keselowski in both stage one and stage two, so they didn’t gain any additional points, other than the one they each gained because of Keselowski’s removal from the final results.

But Chastain gained two extra points in addition to the one he gained because of Keselowski’s removal from the final results, one in each stage, since Keselowski finished stage one in sixth place and stage two in seventh. Chastain was promoted from ninth to eighth in both (three points each).

So because Keselowski, technically speaking, ended up being doomed from the start, Hamlin had still scored 20 points through two stages, bringing his point total from 4,082 to 4,102, and Elliott had still scored 18, bringing his point total from 4,093 to 4,111. But Chastain had now scored six, bringing his total from 4,101 to 4,107.

Again, excluding Keselowski, Hamlin was set to finish in fourth place, which would have netted him 33 points and brought his point total to 4,135. Elliott was set to finish in 10th, which would have netted him 27 points and brought his total to 4,138. Chastain was set to finish in ninth, which would have netted him 28 points and brought his total to 4,135.

Chastain would have secured the tiebreaker and advanced over Hamlin had he stayed put in ninth place.

Of course, this should never tarnish the amazing move itself. And it won’t, because absolutely nobody — Chastain or otherwise — could have known what was going to happen in post-race inspection.

Chastain may have actually saved Hamlin from experiencing even greater disappointment and potentially prevented a bit of controversy, considering the fact that had he not made the move he made, Hamlin would only have lost his Championship 4 spot well after the race ended when Keselowski’s disqualification was announced.

He would have lost his spot to Chastain after all the “Championship 4” graphics featuring him, Logano, Bell, and Elliott were already published.

It might have hurt a lot worse than looking up and seeing a car that was just five spots behind you right beside you at the checkered flag.

NBC is set to broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 live from Phoenix Raceway beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET this Sunday, November 6. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don’t miss it!