FORT WORTH, TEXAS – JULY 19: Austin Dillon, driver of the #3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on July 19, 2020 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Dillon Wins at Texas Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Cup Series O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 on Sunday, July 19th, leading a one-two finish for Richard Childress Racing.
Austin Dillon held a hard-charging field off three times on restarts in the closing laps to earn his first NASCAR Cup Series victory of the 2020 season in Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. It was a one-two finish for the Richard Childress Racing team with Dillon’s rookie teammate Tyler Reddick finishing a mere 0.149-seconds behind.
HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA – JUNE 14: Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 Toyota, leads a pack of cars during the NASCAR Cup Series Dixie Vodka 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on June 14, 2020 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
NASCAR Cup Series Expectations Check: One-third of the way into the 2020 season is time to do a check on the drivers and whether they’re meeting expectations to this point of a unique year.
As crazy as the 2020 season has been, normalcy is gradually returning to NASCAR. Eight races have been run since the ten-week-long hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, bringing the season to its one-third completion mark. Drivers needed an adjustment period to the post-pandemic era of the sport; no practice, no qualifying, no fans, two races in one weekend, the list goes on and on. As the races continue to roll on by, these adjustments have allowed some drivers to surprise, and caused others to disappoint. With the season at a bit of a junction heading into Talladega, here’s a quick look at which drivers are exceeding expectations, and which drivers are flopping.
AVONDALE, ARIZONA – MARCH 06: Tyler Reddick, driver of the #8 I Am Second Chevrolet, practices during practice for the NASCAR Cup Series FanShield 500 at Phoenix Raceway on March 06, 2020, in Avondale, Arizona. Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Tyler Reddick in the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet wasn’t running at the finish of Sunday’s FanShield 500, but the top finishers in the NASCAR Cup Series event certainly knew he had been there.
Reddick started 29th in a field of 38, but by the time the second stage ended on lap 190, he had worked his way up to fourth, having passed Kyle Busch for the position. But after a two-tire call and a second-place restart on lap 222, Reddick was shuffled back in the running order.
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 15: Noah Gragson, driver of the #9 Bass Pro Shops/BRCC Chevrolet, celebrates winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series NASCAR Racing Experience 300 at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2020, in Daytona Beach, Florida. Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images
Three drivers ‘made their names’ in the NASCAR Xfinity Series over the last couple of years. Tyler Reddick, Christopher Bell, and Cole Custer each earned their place in the ‘Big Three’ of the series last year. On their way to collectively winning 21 of 33 races (64%), these three drivers took a meteoric rise to the top. Reddick went on to claim the championship for the second year in a row and now, the ‘Big Three’ are moving up to the NASCAR Cup Series as part of the rookie class in the premier series. That leaves the question of who fills the role of being next in the ‘Series where Names are Made?’
For many, the common answer is Justin Allgaier, Chase Briscoe, and Austin Cindric. These drivers finished the season right behind the departing drivers, fourth, fifth and sixth respectively in the point standings. Briscoe won at Las Vegas and now leads the series points battle just two races into the season. Meanwhile, Cindric sits sixth and Allgaier ninth. While a strong case can be made for these three, there are other drivers already making their statements for this season on the track.
With the racing ‘graduation’ of several of the last two season’s championship contenders – including two-time Xfinity champion Tyler Reddick, Cole Custer, Christopher Bell, and John Hunter Nemechek all to the NASCAR Cup Series this year – the 2020 Xfinity championship field has a distinctive new competitive look.
