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A16 sports
Tuesday 6 sepTember 2022
NASCAR's wild regular season rolls over into playoffs

By PETE IACOBELLI series champ whose car
AP Sports Writer caught fire and had flames
DARLINGTON, S.C. (AP) — coming through the dash-
Buckle up your five-point board.
harness. Looks like NAS- Harvick parked the car on
CAR's playoffs will be just as the grass and scrambled
wild and unpredictable as away to safety. He did not
its regular season. return. Moments later, J.J.
That came into sharp fo- Yeley's machine caught
cus at Darlington Raceway fire under the hood and he,
where Erik Jones became too, had to get out quick.
the first-ever non-playoff Drivers have said the hits
racer to take the postsea- this year feel harder, some-
son opener in the Southern thing NASCAR's analytics
500 on Sunday night — one Erik Jones competes in the NASCAR Southern 500 auto race Sunday, Sept. 4, 2022, in Darlington, back up. Kurt Busch gave
week after the cutoff for S.C. up his playoff spot due to
playoff qualifying. Associated Press his continuing recovery
Jones' crew chief, Dave from a concussion suffered
Elenz, was gratified his At the end, Jones outlasted second. Hamlin reached qualify for the playoff. in a crash at Pocono.
team finally broke through all three of his old Joe Gibbs Jones' back bumper on the Busch and Hamlin are vy- "I'm sure it's just crappy
at one of the most difficult Racing teammates — Mar- last lap but couldn't pass ing for the title. parts on the race car like
tracks in NASCAR. "But I tin Truex Jr., Kyle Busch and him. Earlier in the night, playoff we've seen so many times,"
think the first thing Erik said Denny Hamlin. Truex lost a "It was crazy. I've never had favorites Chase Elliott and Harvick said. "They haven't
to me is, 'Don't you wish we late lead with power steer- anything like that happen," Kyle Larson of powerhouse fixed anything. It's kind of
won Daytona'" in the regu- ing problems, Busch's en- Jones said. Hendrick Motorsports strug- like the safety stuff. We just
lar-season finale, Elenz said. gine blew up with Jones in Truex, like Jones, didn't gled. let it keep going and keep
Elliott bounced off the wall going."
as he spun by himself in the Harvick fell from ninth in the
first 100 laps, damaging his playoffs coming in to 16th
suspension, which his team and is on the brink of elimi-
could not repair. Top-seed- nation if things don't im-
ed coming in, Elliott was prove the next two weeks.
out of the race and fell to Darlington brought a quick
ninth in playoff points. and surprising shuffle to the
Larson, the defending NAS- playoffs, which are unique
CAR Cup Series champion among sports because
who is seeded fourth this those who aren't racing
year, had early engine for a title still get to race
problems and fell four for victories. Imagine if the
laps off the pace. Larson NL's top-seeded Los An-
steadily rebounded to get geles Dodgers lost to the
back on the lead lap and Florida Marlins, who didn't
end 12th — not what was make the playoffs. That's
expected out of the 2021's what happened at Darling-
most dominant driver. ton as Jones won his third
"So, pretty bummed about NASCAR race and second
it, but also happy at the Southern 500.
same time because I Jones, who drives for Petty
thought we were going to GMS, was the 17th racer to
have another DNF," said win in 27 races this season,
Larson, who fell to seventh closing in on the most ever
in the point standings with in NASCAR, which was 19
two more races at Kansas different winners in 2001.
and Bristol before four of Jones also gave the histo-
the 16 playoff teams are ry-filled No. 43 car, made
eliminated. famous by NASCAR Hall
Busch, faced with ques- of Famer Richard Petty, its
tions about his racing fu- 200th win.
ture much of the summer, Joey Logano, fourth at
looked he'd have a mo- Darlington, moved into the
ment of celebration as he points lead with William By-
led the race with less than ron second, Hamlin third
40 laps remaining. Then his and Christopher Bell fourth.
failing engine sent him to Joining Harvick on the bub-
the garage. ble as the first four out were
The race's least surprising first-time playoff partici-
result? Continued driver pants in Austin Cindric and
anger over what they see Chase Briscoe, and Austin
as an unreliable, unsafe Dillon, who pulled off a win-
Next Gen car. The loudest and-in at Daytona a week
voice Sunday came from earlier just to make playoff
Kevin Harvick, the 2014 field.q