LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 15: Martin Truex Jr., driver of the #19 Bass Pro Shops Toyota, crosses the finish line to win the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on September 15, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images
Las Vegas Motor Speedway was the site for the first race in the 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. There are ten races in the playoffs, but it is a tough road to make it to Homestead-Miami as a contender for the championship title. Sunday night’s first race was a prime example of how competitive it is throughout the playoffs.
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – SEPTEMBER 08: Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Mobil 1 Ford, crosses the finish line to win the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 08, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images
The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series regular-season finale at
Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Big Machine Vodka 400 on Sunday afternoon
was high pressure for the bubble drivers around the cutoff line trying to race
their way into the playoffs with a win.
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – SEPTEMBER 08: Jimmie Johnson, driver of the #48 Ally Chevrolet, leads a pack of cars during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 08, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images
SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Jimmie Johnson emerged from a required check-up in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s infield care center fine physically but obviously disappointed to have his amazing run of NASCAR Playoff contention end with an accident on lap 105 of Sunday’s 160-lap Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard – the regular-season finale and his last shot at championship eligibility.
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – SEPTEMBER 08: Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Mobil 1 Ford, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 08, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images
SPEEDWAY, Ind. – It was a dominating victory for Kevin Harvick and a statement of superiority for his No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford team as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series heads toward its ten-race Playoff.
It was an ignominious end to Jimmie Johnson’s unique and unprecedented streak of qualifying for every Cup Series postseason.
BRISTOL, TENNESSEE – AUGUST 17: Daniel Suarez, driver of the #41 Haas Automation Ford, is introduced prior to the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on August 17, 2019, in Bristol, Tennessee. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – He’s back.
While much of the NASCAR community has been crunching numbers, making predictions and reviewing the statistical background of veterans Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer, and Jimmie Johnson in effort to figure out which two would earn the final two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff positions, Stewart-Haas Racing’s Daniel Suárez has quietly and efficiently added his name to the mix.