Shining under the beautiful South Florida sun is the 1.5-mile, progressively banked Homestead-Miami Speedway, the big stage for this weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ second race of the Round of 8, the Straight Talk Wireless 400, this Sunday, October 27 at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio (Channel 90).
With a role of the dice last weekend in Las Vegas, Team Penske’s Joey Logano and the No. 22 Ford team persevered, holding-off Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell, while managing their fuel milage to become the first driver and team to earn a spot in the Championship 4 Round, leaving just three positions still up for grabs heading into Sunday at Miami.
Logano entered the Round of 8 race at Las Vegas last weekend ranked eighth in the Playoff standings, and with his win, he leap-frogs the field to the top of the leaderboard earning the first spot in the Championship 4 Round and becomes the NASCAR Cup Series leader in Championship 4 Round appearances with six (2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024).
Spinning the tires in Logano’s wake is Joe Gibbs Racing’s Christopher Bell in second in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings outlook, up +42 points of the Championship 4 Round cut line. Hendrick Motorsports’ teammates Kyle Larson (in third, up +35 points) and William Byron (in fourth, up +27 points) round out the top four above the Championship 4 Round cutoff, in third and fourth, respectively.
Mired in the points below the Championship 4 Round cut line are Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin in fifth, -27 points back from Bryon. Regular Season Champion and 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick is in sixth, -30 points back from Byron in fourth. Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney, the defending series champion, is seventh, -47 points back from the Championship 4 Round cutoff and Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott is eighth, back -53 points.
Though not impossible, the drivers below the cutline after Las Vegas have a mountain of points to climb to move on. Only one driver in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs since the introduction of the elimination-style format in 2014, has pointed into the Championship 4 Round from 20 or more points below the cutline after the first race of the Round of 8, and that was Martin Truex Jr. (-22 points in 2021). All four drivers below the cutline after Las Vegas this season are at least 27 points back.
Interestingly, in each of the past five seasons, at least one driver from below the cutline after the first Round of 8 race has made the Championship 4 Round. Three eventual Cup champions won their way into the Championship 4 Round from below the cutline after the first Round of 8 race (Ryan Blaney in 2023, Chase Elliott in 2020, and Kevin Harvick in 2014).
Lock-It Up: Clinch Scenarios for Homestead-Miami Speedway
Homestead-Miami Speedway is serving-up one of two more chances in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ Round of 8 for the drivers and teams to lock themselves into the Championship 4 Round, below are this weekend’s clinch scenarios:
Already Clinched
The following driver has clinched a spot in the 4-driver field of the next round: Joey Logano.
Can Clinch Via Points
If there is a repeat winner or a win by a driver who cannot advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being 56 points above the 3rd winless driver in the standings. The same point requirements listed below would hold true if a new win comes from among Christopher Bell or Kyle Larson.
- Christopher Bell: Could only clinch with help
- Kyle Larson: Could only clinch with help
If there is a new winner from William Byron or another winless driver lower in the standings but still eligible to advance to the next round, the following drivers could clinch by being 56 points above the 2nd winless driver in the standings.
- Christopher Bell: Could only clinch with help
Can Clinch Via Win
The following drivers would clinch on their win alone: Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott
Homestead-Miami Speedway’s place in the Playoffs
Great racing is what Homestead-Miami Speedway is known for. That’s why it isn’t too surprising that South Florida’s 1.5-mile racing mecca has been a staple in the NACAR Cup Series Playoffs almost every year.
This season will be the 19th-year Homestead-Miami Speedway has hosted a NASCAR Cup Series Playoff race (2004-2019, 2022-2024).
Prior to the 2022 season, Homestead-Miami Speedway hosted the season finale race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs from 2004-2019 (16 straight races).
Then in 2020 and 2021, Homestead-Miami Speedway did not participate in the Playoffs and instead hosted regular season races those seasons.
The 2024 season marks the third-time (2022-2024) Homestead-Miami Speedway has hosted the eighth race in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs’ – the second-race in the Round of 8 (Race No. 34 of the season).
A total of 13 different drivers have won the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff races at Homestead-Miami Speedway, led by Greg Biffle with three postseason victories (2004-2006) at the 1.5-mile track in South Florida.
Denny Hamlin (2009, 2013) and Kyle Busch (2015, 2019) lead all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in victories in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff races at Homestead-Miami Speedway with two postseason wins each.
This season four of the eight active NASCAR Cup Series Playoff drivers are previous winners at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the series – Denny Hamlin (2009, 2013), Christopher Bell (2023), Kyle Larson (2021) and Joey Logano (2018).