Top 5 things to know about NASCAR Cup season finale at Phoenix Raceway
A season that started Feb. 4 and has covered 12,421.5 miles on the track comes to a close Sunday at Phoenix Raceway.
Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Tyler Reddick and William Byron will race for the Cup championship Sunday — coverage begins at 2 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
Here’s a look at what to watch for in the final 312 miles of the 2024 season:
A champion will be crowned
Joey Logano seeks to win his third Cup title and become only the 10th driver in NASCAR history with three or more championships.
Ryan Blaney looks to become the first driver to win back-to-back championships since Jimmie Johnson won a record five in a row from 2006-10.
Tyler Reddick and William Byron each are going for their first Cup title.
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Whoever finishes the highest among the four will win the championship. Blaney has finished in the top five in each of the last six Phoenix races. In March at Phoenix, Blaney was fifth, which was the highest among Reddick, Byron and Logano.
A title by Logano or Blaney would give Team Penske its third consecutive championship. A win by Reddick would give 23XI Racing, which is in its four year of existence, its first Cup title. Byron will attempt to win the 15th Cup championship for Hendrick Motorsports but first since 2021.
Kyle Busch’s last chance
The two-time Cup champion enters Phoenix on a career-long 56-race winless streak.
Sunday’s race is his final chance to win and extend his NASCAR record of 19 consecutive seasons with at least one victory.
Richard Petty ranks second on that list with at least one victory in 18 years in a row. David Pearson is third at 17 consecutive seasons with a victory.
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The Cup champion will be crowned Nov. 10 at Phoenix Raceway on NBC and Peacock.
Busch, who failed to make the playoffs this year for the first time since 2012, has come close to winning this year. He placed second twice and third in another race.
He lost the lead on the final lap at Daytona in August and finished second to Harrison Burton by .047 seconds. Chase Briscoe won the Southern 500 at Darlington to earn the final playoff spot, beating Busch by .361 seconds.
Busch’s other close call came at Atlanta in February when he finished third to Daniel Suarez by .007 seconds in the closest 1-2-3 finish in series history.
Busch has failed to finish in the top 10 in the last eight races entering this weekend.
Martin Truex Jr.’s last ride (sort of)
Sunday marks the end of Martin Truex Jr.’s final full-time season in Cup. Don’t worry, he will be back.
He has plans to compete in the 2025 Daytona 500 and has stated an interest in running select races.
But the 44-year-old Truex is done with full-time Cup racing after this weekend. Phoenix will mark the end of his 19th full-time season in Cup. This weekend marks his 684th consecutive Cup start — he’s never missed a start since he began running full-time in 2006. Truex ranks sixth on the all-time list of consecutive Cup starts.
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Truex won the pole last weekend at Martinsville, giving him a reason to smile while in a 51-race winless streak.
“It definitely reminds you again about how much fun it is to be successful,” Truex said after that pole run. “Reminder that if you keep working hard, good things will eventually come your way.
“It has been a tough stretch here lately – especially, the last three or four months – a lot of disappointing days. A lot of days where things are going good, and one thing takes it away. It is frustrating, because from the outside looking in, it could look like we are not trying or that we gave up – we’re not running good or whatever, and that really hasn’t been the case.
Last hurrah for Stewart-Haas Racing
Phoenix marks the final race for the organization that forever changed when Tony Stewart left Joe Gibbs Racing to join Haas CNC Racing and form Stewart-Haas Racing in 2009.
The four-car team will not exist after this season. Deals are in place for three of the team’s charters and the team will reorganize as Haas Factory Team and have one Cup charter and two Xfinity teams.
Stewart-Haas Racing will end its tenure with two Cup championships (Stewart in 2011 and Kevin Harvick in 2014). The organization has 70 victories, including Chase Briscoe’s win in the Southern 500.
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NASCAR will crown its Cup champion Nov. 10 at Phoenix Raceway on NBC and Peacock.
SHR’s driver lineup through the years has included Stewart, Harvick, Ryan Newman, Danica Patrick, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, Aric Almirola, Daniel Suarez, Cole Custer and this year’s lineup of Chase Briscoe, Noah Gragson, Ryan Preece and Josh Berry.
"To know that it’s all coming to an end is definitely bittersweet,” Briscoe said. “I was telling the guys last weekend at Martinsville, where we were eight days away from the company literally locking the doors, and we were still able to bring a car that, honestly, should’ve sat on the pole. That’s just a testament to everybody, and it’s just really, really cool and special that they’ve continued to put in that effort given the circumstances. But it’s going to be a tough weekend at Phoenix for a lot of different people and for a lot of different reasons.”
Moving on
Phoenix marks the final race for some competitors with teams.
Chase Briscoe will move from Stewart-Haas Racing to take over the No. 19 ride at Joe Gibbs Racing for Martin Truex Jr. after this season.
Josh Berry will go from SHR to Wood Brothers Racing in 2025. He replaces Harrison Burton, who returns to the Xfinity Series.
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Michael McDowell will run his final race at Front Row Motorsports — his home since 2018. McDowell and crew chief Travis Peterson will move to Spire Motorsports in 2025.
Noah Gragson will go from Stewart-Haas Racing to Front Row Motorsports next season.
Daniel Hemric will not return to Kaulig Racing after this season.
Crew chief Rodney Childers will go from Stewart-Haas Racing to Spire Motorsports and lead Justin Haley’s team in 2025.
