Championship Field is Set with Denny Hamlin’s Win at ISM Raceway

AVONDALE, ARIZONA – NOVEMBER 10: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Ground Toyota, takes the checkered flag to win the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Bluegreen Vacations 500 at ISM Raceway on November 10, 2019, in Avondale, Arizona. Photo – Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

For one final time before the championship race, the NASCAR Cup Series round of eight drivers will square off at ISM Raceway. Martin Truex Jr. and Kevin Harvick have already clinched a championship bid with their wins in the previous two races. The final two spots remained unknown with six drivers trying to earn a shot at the championship.

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Denny Hamlin Goes from Favorite to Long Shot in One Wild Ride

FORT WORTH, TEXAS – NOVEMBER 03: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Office Toyota, is introduced prior to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 03, 2019 in Fort Worth, Texas. Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images

The weekend was going well for Denny Hamlin—up until the 80th lap of Sunday’s AAA Texas 500.

Hamlin came to Texas Motor Speedway second in the Playoff standings and qualified third for the second race of the Round of 8 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.

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Truex Wins Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Opener at Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 15: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota, celebrates in victory lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on September 15, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images

LAS VEGAS — It had been almost three months since Martin Truex Jr. last raised a trophy and while others may have wondered about his No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota team’s Playoff potential, this team never wavered in its confidence or pursuit.

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NASCAR Cup Series Championship Favorite?

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LAS VEGAS, NV – SEPTEMBER 12: A general view of the start/finish line of Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the upcoming South Point 400 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Playoff race on September 12, 2019, at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, NV. Photo by Chris Williams/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Sportsbooks in Las Vegas have decided one of the city’s native – Kyle Busch – is the odds on favorite to win both this weekend’s South Point 400 as well as the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup championship.

Busch, the driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, is the regular-season champ and a four-race winner in 2019. The casino’s sportsbook puts him as a 9-2 favorite to win Sunday’s Playoff opener and a 7-2 favorite to win the Cup championship. Defending race winner Brad Keselowski has the next most favorable odds to win again at Vegas.

Reigning series champion, Team Penske’s Joey Logano has the second-best odds 5-1 to repeat as champion, followed by Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Denny Hamlin, and Martin Truex Jr.

Erik Jones Ends Up-and-Down New Hampshire Race on an Upswing

LOUDON, NEW HAMPSHIRE – JULY 20: Erik Jones, driver of the #20 STANLEY Toyota, shares a smile during practice for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on July 20, 2019, in Loudon, New Hampshire. (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images)

LOUDON, N.H. – The most critical aspect of Erik Jones’ third-place run in Sunday’s Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was the mistake he thought he had made—but didn’t.

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