TALLADEGA, Ala. — As if trying to win races and score piles of points at Talladega Superspeedway isn’t dizzying enough, the potential drama associated with swapping positions in the crowded draft should rise a level in Sunday’s YellaWood 500.
The battle for the NASCAR Cup Series championship is realistically down to seven drivers, with Kyle Larson holding only a five-point lead in first place and Tyler Reddick, the seventh-place driver, only 56 points behind. In between are Christopher Bell, Chase Briscoe, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano.
The grand theater can be found in the mix: four Toyotas, two Fords, one Chevrolet. The scramble for top positions at the end of the first two stages and, of course, at the checkered flag could be epic, and the concept of “risk versus reward” could take on a new dynamic.
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Larson is the loner in this scenario. While the four Toyota drivers — Bell, Briscoe, Hamlin and Reddick — and Ford’s Logano and Blaney will be in the somewhat uncomfortable position of both trying to help each other in the draft and also beating each other for stage points and the race win, Larson potentially could benefit from unrestricted help from fellow Chevrolet drivers who aren’t in the championship mix.
“That’s a real thing,” said Adam Stevens, Bell’s crew chief. “That’s something that we’re going to have to battle against, and it’s a one-horse race over there (with Chevrolet). And they have the resources to put toward it. So, if it comes down to group decision-making, we’re at a disadvantage, for sure.”
Larson could use the help. In 58 races on drafting tracks, he is 0-for-forever in the win column. He approaches Sunday saying being aware of the situation lap by lap is a key, for himself and potential drafting partners.
“I’m not asking for people to go out of their way, move over, anything like that,” he said. “I think just the awareness is always good, which I feel like there’s been that throughout The Chase already. It’s been going on for a handful of weeks where I feel like I’ve been cut a lot of breaks from other Chevy cars, which has been much appreciated.
“But then, on the Talladega side of things, it’s always easy to have a plan, but it’s always difficult to replicate your plan on the race track. So, again, just the awareness is all for me.”
Drafting in the modern era at Talladega is always a potentially divisive subject. Teammates are supposed to help each other. Manufacturer mates are supposed to play well together. You block for me, I’ll block for you. Often it works; sometimes it doesn’t, and in spectacular ways. Pre-race plans usually dissolve in the final lap or two, when it’s everyone for himself.
Add in the tightness of The Chase presented by Mobil 1, and there could be issues.
“Blaney and us need to score as many points as possible, right?” said Paul Wolfe, Logano’s crew chief. “I think everyone’s mindful of that and trying to work toward that goal. At this point in the season, everyone’s in a little different situation depending on where they are in the point standings and what they’re trying to accomplish.
“I think everyone has typically done a good job from the Ford side to try to help out the guys that are in The Chase, and we’re expecting that’s how it will look Sunday, as well. The Toyotas always seem like they don’t always look super-aligned, but they have a lot more cars up in the top five.”
For Chasers who, like Logano and Blaney, are somewhat down the list, use of the “go” button near the end of stages might change, particularly if crashes trim the field.
“If something happens early that collects a bunch of cars, then that may look different,” Wolfe said. “We’ll be fairly aggressive trying to score those points because that’s a must if we’re going to have a realistic shot at this. You have to be up there and willing to take that risk versus riding around and trying to stay out of trouble. That’s not really an option for us.”
There’s yet another factor for this Talladega visit with NASCAR’s decision to trim the cars’ rear spoiler from 4 inches to 3.5 inches in an attempt to spice competition. Across the garage, expectations are limited.
“We’ll adjust our balance a little for it, but, in the grand scheme of things, we’re not expecting a big impact,” Wolfe said. “I don’t know that the difference is going to be night and day. But it’s not a negative.”