This season in NASCAR, on and off the track, can best be defined by one word: Power.
There’s been constant discussion about horsepower under the hood, legal power in courthouses and the power media rights holders levee on the sport. With the playoffs in full swing, there’s another one trying to be added to the list: Is the current format hurting NASCAR’s ability to make stars?
While there’s an argument to be made for NASCAR’s struggles with creating stars at the NASCAR Cup Series level, the pressure cooker playoff format does something for the lower divisions that’s critical in that star making. When the lights are brightest, the character of a driver shines at full force. That’s especially ringing true in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
As Aric Almirola and Connor Zilisch began to drive off toward an incredible battle with 23 laps to go Saturday (Oct. 11) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Jesse Love and Nick Sanchez raced side-by-side in the row behind them. Sanchez stayed right on Love’s right-side heading down the backstretch, then Love got loose on the frontstretch and nearly collided with Sanchez.
The winner of the exchange in the record books was Sanchez, finishing fourth while Love settled for sixth after leading earlier in the day. Now’s the fun part.
Sanchez already has a bit of a reputation. Not necessarily as a dirty driver, but as one whose smirk can give off a tinge of cockiness and arrogance when confronted by another driver. Even after a confrontation with Matt Crafton at Talladega Superspeedway in 2023 left him bloody, Sanchez couldn’t wipe the smile off his face in later confrontations with Stewart Friesen and Sammy Smith.
Love is a little harder to read. He may be different away from the track, but anytime he’s racing, it’s all business. It’s easy to understand why, seeing as he’s already been racing stock cars since he was 13 years old. He’s calculated, measured and stoic beyond his years.
On any other week, Love may let hard racing by Sanchez go. But Love is racing for a spot in the Championship 4, not wanting to leave things to chance with Talladega and Martinsville Speedway left in the Round of 8. He can’t take it out on the track, but he gave Sanchez a piece of his mind.
“That’s why you crash half these [expletive] races,” Love said as he put a hand in Sanchez’s chest and walked away.
Was it Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison in the infield at the 1979 Daytona 500? No, all we got was a shove and a signature smile from Sanchez. But it is something to bookmark for next week at Talladega, where the two will be ECR Engines teammates, and Martinsville, where Love might have his last chance of getting in the Championship 4.
Does Sanchez continue to race Love, or any other playoff driver, as hard as he did at Vegas? Does Love get pushed over the edge by somebody in his pursuit of the Championship 4?
While NASCAR tries to make ‘Game 7’ moments in the Championship 4, it’s often the Round of 8 and its finale at Martinsville that provide the most memorable moments of the postseason. And in the Xfinity Series, it solidifies the characters that drivers take into the next step of their career.
Noah Gragson transformed himself as a title contender in the series with his win at Martinsville in 2021, eventually becoming a fan favorite in the series. Ty Gibbs finalized his heel turn to most fans by wrecking Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Brandon Jones for the win in 2022. Sheldon Creed and Austin Hill showed their contrast in character when the two raced each other out of a Richard Childress Racing win in 2023. Just last year, Cole Custer and Chandler Smith came to blows over their fight to make the Championship 4.
While it may not be producing the stars that grow the sport, the playoffs in NASCAR has replicated sports in more ways than one. The playoffs are now where some of the sport’s biggest moments come from, and in turn, where a driver’s legacy is forged. Just like any athlete who’s been the underdog who came out on top, Daniel Hemric pulled off a similar upset in 2021 for the title that will make him remembered for decades. Just as any team has come back from the brink in the highest pressure moments, Justin Allgaier cemented his legacy with his gutsy performance last season to win his first title.
Sanchez can’t win the title, but he could surely wind up in the headlines if he persists to race hard to provide Big Machine Racing a win. Love can win the title but also see an evolution in his perception to the fans beyond his even-keeled demeanor.
That’s just what the playoffs can do for those two drivers. There’s still two more races in this round and seven other drivers vying to race for a title at Phoenix. Odds are, someone’s legacy will be changed between now and the checkered flag at Martinsville. And a confrontation at Las Vegas might be the first domino toward that moment.
James Krause joined Frontstretch in March 2024 as a contributor. Krause was born and raised in Illinois and graduated from Northern Illinois University. He currently works in La Crosse, Wisconsin as a local sports reporter, including local short track racing. Outside of racing, Krause loves to keep up with football, music, anime and video games.