The 2016 Chase for the Sprint Cup drivers pose for a photo after Saturday night’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond International Raceway. Photo by Chris Graythen/NASCAR via Getty Images
The field for the 2016 edition of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup was finally set after Saturday night’s chaotic Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway, and while several drivers were celebrating their first-time runs for the title, others were left scratching their head at what could have been.
This year’s Chase field will feature seven former champions, four first timers, and – for the first time since 2006 – two rookies, who will all battle it out over the next ten races to decide the 2016 Sprint Cup Champion.
Brad Keselowski will enter as the top seed with four wins while Kyle Busch – also with four wins – will be seeded second due to be lower in points than Keselowski.
Race winner Denny Hamlin earned his third win to take sole possession of the third seed, followed by Kevin Harvick, Carl Edwards, Martin Truex, Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth seeded fourth through eighth – each with two wins.
Joey Logano, Kurt Busch, Kyle Larson, Tony Stewart and rookie Chris Buescher make up spots nine through 13 with one victory each. Rounding out the 16-driver field will be rookie Chase Elliott, Austin Dillon and Jamie McMurray, all of whom made the field on points. Larson, Buescher, Elliott and Dillon will be making their first start in the Chase.
For each driver that made the Chase, there were just as many who ended the night on the outside looking in, including Kasey Kahne and 2015 Chase participant Ryan Newman.
Newman entered Saturday night’s race 17th in the Chase standings and still reeling from a 15-point penalty after failing post-race inspection last weekend at Darlington, putting him in need of a finish of 22nd or better to even have a shot at making the cut.
For much of the night, Newman was exactly where he needed to be – running in the top 20, trying to stay out of trouble.
Unfortunately, trouble found him.
Battling Tony Stewart for position with 38 laps to go, Newman got under Stewart coming out of turn two looking to take the spot away.
The two continued to make contact going down the backstretch until Stewart finally spun going into turn three, collecting Newman in the process. Newman slid up the banking and back into traffic, trigging an eight-car pileup the resulted in Dylan Lupton’s car winding up on top of Newman’s No. 31 Chevrolet.
David Ragan, Brian Scott and Carl Edwards also got caught up in the wreck.
The crash ended any chance of Newman making the post-season, and he had none to kind words for his former employer, Tony Stewart.
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“It’s just unfortunate not to end the way we wanted to. It’s just disappointing that you’ve got somebody old like that, that should be retired the way he drives. It’s just ridiculous.”
While the wreck eliminated Newman for contention, it also knocked out David Ragan, and all but locked Buescher into the show.
Buescher was in the unique position of having to race the points despite having a victory in his back pocket, sitting just 10 points inside the 30th spot in the points – the official cutoff in order to be eligible to make the field.
In order to make the championship field, Buescher needed a finish of at least seven of better or hope that someone behind him in points had trouble – namely Ragan, who was 31st in points.
With Ragan out, Buescher ended the night 29th in points and made the cutoff to qualify himself for the Chase, joining fellow rookie Chase Elliott.
“This is awesome. All the cheers we got after we got out of the car. They were cheering like we won a race or something. It wasn’t anything like winning a race but it is just as big in a difference sense,” said Buescher. “I know David (Ragan) is bummed to get caught up in a wreck and that isn’t how we wanted to clinch it but it made it easier in that sense. The second part was trying to get to the top-30 in owners points and that wasn’t easy either.”
Kasey Kahne was in a battle of a different sort to try to advance himself into the Chase, needing nothing short of a victory in order to make the Chase for the sixth time in his career.
After getting shuffled back out of the top-20 due to a speeding penalty, Kahne managed to fight his way back up to the top-10, gaining track position through pit strategy by staying out following a caution flag on lap 295.
Kahne tried to hang on over the final 100 laps, but ultimately couldn’t make it to the front of the field and ended the night sixth – missing the Chase by 43 points.
“Yeah, we gave it a good shot. The guys did a pretty nice job. We fought hard,” said Kahne. “I was just out there racing doing everything I can. I was never really going for the win. I don’t ever remember challenging for the win there at the end, but I was trying to get the best result we could. If we could get to first then great, but we couldn’t.”
While Kahne didn’t make it, his teammate Chase Elliott did, as did Johnson, giving Hendrick Motorsports two shots at the title.
Joe Gibbs Racing put all four of its teams in the Chase – the only team to put up four entries. Stewart-Haas Racing has three of its four teams in the Chase while Team Penske and Chip Ganassi Racing both have two drivers in the Chase field.
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