Fighting for a race they had to win, William Byron bumped Ryan Blaney out of the way to take the lead, and he didn’t look back. Bryan Nolen joins Caleb Barnes to break down the action at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday (Oct. 26), which sets up the championship race in Phoenix Raceway.
The script flipped from previous years, where Byron was able to drive to the front at the finish instead of fading. Meanwhile, Blaney was unable to win a third-straight fall Martinsville race. Barnes and Nolen react to the finish and what it means now that Team Penske is shut out of the Championship 4.
That leaves Hendrick Motorsports and Joe Gibbs Racing competing for the title. Equipment trouble could be a concern for Toyota, who have had a laundry list of minor issues that grew into a trio of retired engines this weekend. Nolen believes it’s a sign of experimentation, not something to worry about.
Outside of the playoffs, Carson Hocevar and Daniel Suarez have rough days, while Ryan Preece leads a list of impressive run from the rest of the field.
There’s a lot to talk about, and just 10 minutes to do it. Check out Stock Car Scoop on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts!
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Caleb began sports writing in 2023 with The Liberty Champion, where he officially covered his first NASCAR race at Richmond in the spring. While there, Caleb met some of the guys from Frontstretch, and he joined the video editing team after graduating from Liberty University with degrees in Strategic Communications and Sports Journalism. Caleb currently work full-time as a Multi-Media Journalist with LEX 18 News in Lexington, Kentucky and contributes to Frontstretch with writing and video editing. He's also behind-the-scenes or on camera for the Happy Hour Podcast, live every Tuesday night at 7:30!
Bryan Nolen is the Operations Manager and Multimedia Director for Frontstretch.com. He also hosts the Bringing the Heat with Bryan Nolen Podcast and occasionally makes appearances on The Happy Hour Podcast. He has a Sportscasting degree from the Dan Patrick School of Sportscasting. He resides in Boise, Idaho, with his wife, his French Bulldog Archer and two rabbits.
Follow him on Twitter @TheBryanNolen
Ryan Preece can drive and deserves to be in a Mr. H car.