With the standings as tight as ever heading into the final race of the Round of 16 at Bristol Motor Speedway, NASCAR insiders Jeff Gluck and Jordan Bianchi are not ruling anyone out ahead of Saturday’s race.
On the latest episode of The Teardown, the pair from The Athletic discussed why some of the Cup Series’ top drivers aren’t as secure as they might appear, and how a few of the drivers currently on the outside could still turn their championship hopes around in Tennessee.
“Christopher Bell’s +46. Even if he has a disaster, I don’t think he falls out, being +46. Austin Cindric, another top-10 when he needed it, is +43. He’s having a heck of a playoffs so far. Alex Bowman is +41, another guy who had pressure to perform but is now in good shape.
Daniel Suárez, despite his gravel detour, is +36. Tyler Reddick and Chase Elliott are +30. Ryan Blaney is +29. Kyle Larson is +26, and William Byron is +25. I don’t think any of those drivers are safe,” Gluck said.
“If it’s going to be a high tire-wear race at Bristol, like the spring, anything can happen. If you don’t manage your tires, you could go multiple laps down, or you could be collateral damage if someone blows a tire.
I don’t think anyone is completely safe, not even Harrison Burton with his 20-point gap. We just saw someone go from -21 to +6. It’s a very tight field, and I’m not counting anyone in or out at this point.”
While Gluck believes all 16 drivers have a chance to advance, Bianchi thinks the number is actually 15 — he’s counting Harrison Burton, the Coke Zero Sugar 400 winner, out of advancing beyond Bristol due to the number of drivers near the cutline and their strength at the track.
“I’m counting Harrison Burton out,” Bianchi said. “It’s not just how many points you’re down; it’s the number of guys in that mix. You need a great run, and you need other guys to have bad ones. You need a lot of help if you’re Harrison Burton. I just don’t expect him to have a great run at Bristol.”
While Harrison Burton aims to prove Bianchi wrong, the possibility of all 16 drivers advancing to the Round of 12 is more realistic than some may think. It promises to be an exciting race as the NASCAR Cup Series returns to Bristol, where chaos could reign.
