THE NASCAR Cup Series reached its penultimate race of the regular season, and the intensity reached fever pitch with only two races remaining before the 10 races playoffs begin September 3.
With 13 of 16 playoff spots are now lockedfollowing Victory for Michael McDowell in Indianapolis last weekend’s race offers the opportunity for a winless driver to grab one of the three remaining spots, or for a handful of drivers to maximize their points to secure a winless playoff spot.
Sunday’s race at Watkins Glen International marks the second consecutive road event and could showcase the strengths of a number of drivers who are currently outside the 16-driver cut line. Daniel Suárez, 17th in the standings, finished third at Indianapolis a week ago and won the road race at Sonoma last year. AJ Allmendinger, ranked 21st, won at Watkins Glen in 2014 and finished second in 2022.
