There is only one race on the books in Round 8 of the Cup Series. But Joey Logano is already locked into the Championship 4. Las Vegas win And Playoff point standings viewIt’s already a must-win time for four drivers.

Denny Hamlin (-27), Tyler Reddick (-30), Ryan Blaney (-47) and Chase Elliott (-53) are four drivers who find themselves below the cutoff line. While they all have the talent to put together a top-five or top-10 finish at Homestead or next week at Martinsville, the reality is that it may not be enough to overcome the deficit.

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Good runs will be void if the drivers at the front of the line (Christopher Bell, William Byron and Kyle Larson) continue to serve. If this trio continues to finish ahead of the field as they have in most of the Play-offs, trying to make up points will be a futile effort. Unless disaster strikes these three drivers, such as an accident or mechanical issue, the only sure bet to advance is to head to Victory Road.

“We’re in a must-win situation for the next two weeks,” Chase Elliott said bluntly.

He is not alone in this assessment.

The season is quickly coming to an end and time is running out for two experienced drivers to add another chapter to their storied careers.

Martin Truex Jr. will hang up his helmet as a full-time driver at the end of the season as he wraps up his 19-year career. Truex has won 34 Cup races, 32 since 2015. He had a career-high eight wins in 2017, when he won the series title. However, he has no wins in 2024.

Truex Jr. “Sure, I’d like to have another one before I leave full time,” he said after Las Vegas last week. “We had the speed, it was just a matter of putting the whole race together, running it and having no problems.” “I still believe we can achieve this.”

Busch becomes the first three-time winner with Richard Childress Racing in 2023. But this year was a different story, with the two-time Cup Series champion not only missing Victory Lane but often competing in an uncompetitive car.

Busch has won at least one race to date in his 19-year Cup career; Unless something goes wrong, this streak looks set to end in three weeks. He hasn’t won since Gateway in June 2023 and is in the midst of the longest winless drought of his Cup career.

Homestead was the site of NASCAR’s Championship Weekend for several years until 2020, when it was moved to Phoenix Raceway. The Arizona track will host the finale again in 2025, but there is a growing view that NASCAR will return to South Florida to finish the year in 2026.

There are a limited number of markets and regions in the country in early and mid-November where warm temperatures and pleasant weather are normal. Of course, Phoenix has been ticking that box for years, and the Championship Weekend has been a mostly good-weather experience since moving to the Valley of the Sun. But the Miami area isn’t a bad choice in that regard either, and will give fans a chance to enjoy some sun and racing before the final checkered flag of the season flies.

Returning to Homestead to finish the season also has a competitive angle. The track is almost universally praised by drivers and teams for its passion for creating good racing.

“The driver can actually do some things to direct the car to run a certain way based on his driving style if the car isn’t being handled perfectly,” Denny Hamlin said. “Anytime the drivers can have a bigger factor in your performance, I think they all enjoy that.”

Although it is a 1.5-mile trail, one of many on the schedule, the Homestead’s layout is a unique one that adds to the specialness of a solo visit each year. Unlike Phoenix, where teams are taking notes from the track’s annual spring race, Homestead offers a much blanker preparation slate.

We’re a long way from the release of the 2026 schedule, but seeing Homestead in the season finale again will bring a lot of smiles to the NASCAR world.

The numbers for all three races at Homestead-Miami Speedway this weekend have been fascinating to watch since the initial odds were released on Monday. Despite three non-Playoff drivers taking three of the first seven postseason races, there is a significant trend in the Cup Series for Playoff drivers to be prohibitive favorites.

Kyle Larson is the clear favorite for Sunday’s Straight Talk Wireless 400, and the Hendrick Motorsports driver isn’t even close to winning at +350. The surprise isn’t Christopher Bell behind Larson, but how far behind the Joe Gibbs Racing driver’s numbers are at +600, where he’s tied at the same odds as Tyler Reddick. Only one driver is in triple digits and William Byron is at +700.

It gets interesting from there. Ryan Blaney started the week at +1300 but dropped to +1000 at the threshold of the weekend. He shares the same number as Team Penske driver Denny Hamlin, followed by Chase Elliott (+1400) and Martin Truex Jr. (+1600) is coming. Joey Logano is the Playoff driver who reached +1700 to win the race.

The dynamic of the Xfinity Series is intriguing, with Cole Custer leading the favorites list at +320, followed by Aric Almirola still trailing Joe Gibbs Racing in the team owners’ championship at +500. William Sawalich, who is making his Xfinity Series debut for JGR before joining the team full-time next season, is listed at +2800.

Lastly, it’s no surprise with Corey Heim (+160) and Christian Eckes (+300) being the favorites for Craftsman Truck Series 1-2.

One of the crown jewels of Super Late Model racing returns this weekend with the World Crown 300 at Cordele (GA) Speedway (Available on RacingAmerica.tv for Racing America subscribers). More than 30 drivers are participating in the event portion of the UARA National Super Late Model Series, including Bubba Pollard, Stephen Nasse and Johnny Sauter. Dick Trickle, Mike Eddy, Darrell Waltrip, Rich Bickle, the late Bobby Gill, Freddie Query, Chase Elliott, Preston Peltier and Casey Roderick. Racing kicks off a two-week drop next weekend with the prestigious All-American 400 at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway (Available on PPV on Racing America).

Martinsville Speedway has a unique doubleheader. The Whelen Modified Tour’s season championship will be held on Saturday, with Justin Bonsignore and Ron Silk still vying for the title. The weekend will also feature the first race at the Virginia half-mile for the Mazda MX-5 Cup Series. It’s the first time the series has raced on an oval track with a $60,000 prize money.