1. Is Denny Hamlin a Feel-Good Story Now?
There’s no scientific proof to measure how liked or disliked a driver is. The best gauge, by far, is how fans react at the track to them winning a race.
For Denny Hamlin, Sunday (Oct. 12) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway was different. If you have been on-site for one of Hamlin’s recent NASCAR Cup Series wins, a total that’s now reached 60, it’s for the most part been marked by a chorus of boos likened to when a heel-turn happens at a pro wrestling event.
Sunday? Those reactions were highly muted. The emotion of Hamlin’s win, with what it means to him and with his dad in reportedly failing health, Sunday’s win was not just a win; it was more sentimental.
Yes, it’s easy to dislike someone for various reasons. It’s part of what makes the passion of NASCAR fans more devoted than many others. But the emotion of what yet another title hunt and a clinched Championship 4 spot mean for Hamlin? That resonates, for sure.
If there is such a thing as a sentimental favorite going toward Phoenix Raceway, Hamlin is it.
2. How Much Will Strategy Matter At Talladega Superspeedway?
While it may be true that a win this weekend at Talladega can clinch a spot in the Championship 4, how much juice is worth the squeeze when it comes to having an actual strategy? Fuel mileage or not, this race is full of all things outrageous, nonsensical and unexpected.
As the late great Barney Hall once famously said in the quote posted in the track’s media center, “They don’t race ’em anywhere else in the world like they do in Talladega.”
You can craft all the strategies that a team can dream up. But anything can happen at Talladega.
Yes, you can do all you can to run up front and be in a position for a good finish – drivers like Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney need that. But at some point, all you can do going into Talladega is be in position and let the chips fall where they may.
3. Is Shane van Gisbergen Improving on Ovals an ‘Oh No’ For Everyone Else?
Ever since Shane van Gisbergen, on a road course, ended up being a violation of the Geneva Conventions against other drivers, there has been a limit to what he could do. Yes, he was dominant, but other than those wins getting him into the playoffs, how much could van Gisbergen factor in elsewhere?
But there’s always been this perception that if SVG can get things going on ovals, then it could be lights out for the rest of the Cup Series garage. A season ago, van Gisbergen fared no better than 12th on ovals. But strides have been made, especially as of late. On Sunday at Las Vegas, the New Zealander was within the top 10 before the late race fracas ruined those hopes. The week before at Kansas Speedway, van Gisbergen was 10th. In addition, in his last eight oval races, he has three finishes of better than 16th, and it would have been four until the late going on Sunday.
Contrast that with the recent showings by Trackhouse Racing teammate Ross Chastain, who has four such finishes in that same span.
Let’s not get carried away, here. This is not a place to crown van Gisbergen as the champion. But if he can start running respectably on oval tracks, it changes the game for the rest of the Cup garage.
4. Matt DiBenedetto Can Still Get Results
It’s always good for a driver to get a shot at redemption. Sometimes it works out, and sometimes it does not. A driver has to weigh the choice of riding around in lesser rides or settling for lower series… or deciding to still race at all.
Matt DiBenedetto had one such chance on the ground floor going back to last year at Viking Motorsports. Starting with a new team can be daunting, but taking that operation to a pair of top 10s at non-drafting-style races takes some doing. He was able to keep performances near that level this year. In addition to a top five at Talladega in the spring, there have also been two finishes of 11th at World Wide Technology Raceway and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
All of that, however, was not enough to keep DiBenedetto in the seat, as Viking announced a driver change.
Losing a ride is a disappointment for any driver, for sure. But in his time at Viking, DiBenedetto proved a point. That was that he can get results, even if the equipment may not be top caliber. That’s why it’s not wise to close the book on his career as a driver just yet.
5. Do Not Count Joey Logano Out
It almost seems like a pattern, until it isn’t.
In 2022 and 2024, there was one key element to Joey Logano’s championship seasons – a win at Las Vegas to vault to the Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway, where Team Penske’s rate of success usually adds up to a good chance of winning a title.
That happened on both of those occasions. That won’t be the case in 2025, as Logano came up shy of a win on Sunday, meaning that he needs one of two things to race for a title: to win one of the next two races to fight his way in via points.
The easy cop out is to say that since there is no Vegas win for Logano, his title hopes are cooked. But that’s forgetting that he has won at Talladega and Martinsville Speedway a combined four times. Paul Wolfe is too good a crew chief for this team to be written off, and the same goes for the No. 22 team.
This group is still very much in it, and if Logano wins the title this year, it would be his best championship effort and a major middle finger to anyone doubting the legitimacy of titles in this title format.
Brad joined Frontstretch.com in 2020 and contributes to the site's 5 Points To Ponder column and other roles as needed. A graduate of the University of Georgia's Henry W. Grady School of Journalism and Mass Communication, he has covered sports in some capacity for more than 20 years with coverage including local high school sports, college athletics and minor league hockey. Brad has received multiple awards for his work from the Georgia Press Association.