Championship contenders run the risk of being caught up in ‘The Big One’ at Talladega(Photo: Getty Images)
Whoever is crowned as the NASCAR Cup Series champion on November 7th at the Phoenix Raceway may very well look back at the South Point 400 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway as the most important of the races within his NASCAR Playoffs run. After all, this race on the 1.5-mile layout located in the Nevada desert could very well be considered the only “normal” race within this ‘Round of 12’.
Besides the race in Las Vegas, this Playoff round consists of a race at the Talladega Super Speedway and the Charlotte Motor Speedway ‘Roval’. Both of those tracks bring in a much higher element of unpredictability than will likely be the case this weekend in ‘Sin City’.
Oddly enough, the track in Las Vegas seems to be much less of a gamble for competitors than does the other two venues that will make up the second round. So, winning here would spare a Playoff contender from the worries associated with having to score points at the always wild card tracks at Talladega and on the road course at Charlotte.
Talladega, of course, always provides the opportunity for the ‘Big One’ to occur which could wipe out multiple cars in an instant. Among those cars eliminated by such a wreck could obviously be some of those piloted by Playoff drivers while others might make it through the melee(or melees) unscathed. The randomness of such accidents might ultimately play a big role in deciding which of the remaining twelve drivers advance out of this round and which do not.
From Talladega, the NASCAR Cup Series teams move on to the quad-oval turned road course at the Charlotte Motor Speedway which brings its own set of challenges which might not always be the norm in this form of motorsports. And because of those challenges, Playoff drivers could easily find themselves taking a hit in the standings in what will be the next cutoff race as the tour heads toward it eventual conclusion.
While road courses may not be the wildcard they once were because of the expanded number of that type of track on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, there is still an element of uncertainty due to the fact that many of the drivers who compete on the series cut their racing teeth on paved and dirt ovals. As a result, off-track excursions and positions lost at critical times are still somewhat commonplace on the tracks that feature both left and right hand turns.
Another potential pitfall awaiting racers in Charlotte could be the weather. Last year, the NASCAR Xfinity Series race on the Roval took place in the rain and some of that moisture was still in place the next day when the Cup Series cars took to the track. After watching the race held earlier this season at the Circuit of the Americas, the potential effects of rain on race day are obvious.
Another road course race from this season played out on a track more known for oval racing that had been reconfigured into a road circuit. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway itself played a role in deciding the finishing order. Pieces of the track’s curb came up during the race and caused multiple incidents that ended the day for some.
Charlotte has had its own history of the track playing a role in the racing. The curbs in certain parts of the track have upset cars during each of the three races previously held there. Also, tire barriers used to outline the course have also played a role. Eventual winner Chase Elliott was lucky to escape damage when he banged into the tires placed at the entrance of the infield portion of the track in 2019.
Another factor that for both the races at Talladega and the Charlotte Roval is the fact that drivers who specialize in those types of tracks and are not still involved in the title chase could score unexpected wins and thus take away the possibility for a Championship contender to gain an automatic bid to the next round with a win. There has been evidence this season that such a thing can in fact happen.
Michael McDowell, who is no longer in the Playoffs, scored a very surprising win in the season-opening Daytona 500 which took place on the Daytona International Speedway, a sister track to Talladega. Also, non Cup regular A.J. Allmendinger grabbed the checkered flag on the Indianapolis road course proving that such could happen at Charlotte.
A 1.5-mile oval such as Las Vegas Motor Speedway is far less likely to produce some sort of major surprise or unpredictable moment than a massive super speedway or an oval turned road course. For that reason, this weekend’s race in Vegas might very well be the most important race of the entire NASCAR Playoffs for those who are still involved in the championship fight because it may be the only one of the three races in this round that has any degree of predictability.
Richard Allen is a member of the National Motorsports Press Association
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