AVONDALE, Ariz. – Losing a Cup Championship is never easy. Disappointment is inevitable, but Phoenix can rest easy after the trio gave their all in eliminating a title contender.
Ross Chastain is not a playoff driver, but won the season finale In Phoenix. Ryan Blaney took second place and celebrated his first Cup win. Title candidate Christopher Bell, William Byron Kyle Larson also fell short of winning the title.
None of these drivers made any significant mistakes that would put them out of contention for 312 laps. Bell finished 36th, but only after his brake rotor exploded and he fell into the outside wall. Larson and Byron placed third and fourth.
“I’m relieved to know that’s it for today,” Larson said. “I know it didn’t look like that last run, but it was all I could do. The team did a really good job to put us in that position.
“…I didn’t think I had the best car, but I had a chance, so it’s a shame not to win. At the same time, I probably came close to this and was already eager for more next season. There will be.”
Larson started 4th. Although he didn’t lead any laps, he spent the afternoon in the top 10. This was part of the speed of his car. Part of that is thanks to the pit crew that earned him a spot on pit road.
“The only reason we were being held back was obviously pit road and the pit crew,” Larson said. “Seeing the way the pit road lights were done, the engineers and the people planning it and everything else, I was like, oh, I just want to keep going down pit road.”
Byron had the dominant car early on. He led 95 laps, becoming the second driver this season to exceed 1,000 laps in 2023. Larson was its first driver.
Byron’s situation completely changed midway through Stage 2.
Laying more rubber changed the track. This took Byron out of contention for the win, and he was more than two seconds behind Blaney and Larson after the final restart. He became the first driver to lose the championship after winning his first pit stall at Phoenix.
Byron: “It looks like we’re running out.”
William Byron’s No. 24 became too tight when the track became rubbery, and the balance changed considerably, especially after losing the lead, but I’d like to think he can get back in a position to fight for a Cup title next season. .
“So it’s a little disappointing considering how the race started,” Byron said. “As soon as we get into Stage 2, we’re trying to figure out how to manage what we have and hopefully make it a little bit better. But we need more on short track. We just worked hard as a team.
“We had a great season, a lot to be proud of, a lot of really solid races and communicated well as a team. Hopefully we can get a little more speed on certain tracks that we know are important. , I feel like all of that could be taken up a notch. It was tough from here for sure. Nothing really needed to happen, but I’m okay with that.”
Although Bell participated in the 4th Championship for the second consecutive year, he had never had a chance to compete for a championship. He started in 13th place and reached 9th place at the end of Stage 1, but ultimately ended the day in last place.
Larson: “The pit crew kept us in the game.”
Kyle Larson talks about the level of respect he and Ryan Blaney showed for each other during the NASCAR Cup Series championship race after finishing runner-up in the title race.
Bell missed out on the championship for the second time in two seasons. He expressed disappointment in the result and in not being able to contend with Blaney, Larson, and Byron. Although he was disappointed, his excitement for future opportunities remained.
“I’m very proud of the effort our team put in to get to Championship 4, but we feel like we left a lot unfinished in the various races throughout the year,” Bell said. “I’m excited about the future. We haven’t reached our potential yet.”