Championship Contenders at midway point of the 2022 season?

Jorge De Guzman

Jorge De Guzman

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Just like the title says, I stole this from Reddit but it got me thinking....who realistically has a shot at making the Championship 4 in Phoenix as of the current mid point of the season?
 
9, 11, 18, 1, 11 wins despite not running great a lot. 9 and 18 are consistent. 1 just doesn't have the experience
 
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as of right now our championship contenders in my view are Chase Elliott, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano. I think Logano is getting better as the season progresses here and is going to be a problem when the playoffs start. Some good tracks in there for him. Denny is finding ways to hang around, he also has good tracks in the playoffs and I expect him to get more wins as the regular season closes out. Kyle Busch can go on a tear and is a threat every week, TRD and JGR have really found some speed in this car as we hit halfway. Chase is the most consistent and flag bearer for HMS right now, he's having a championship contending season. I worry about his crew, not as much Alan , but I think Chase can overcome that if need be. The 5 is just missing something, they arnt finishing races and sometimes dont even show up fast like they did last year.... maybe this week cant start a turn around for them. I think the 1 is going to get some comeuppance come playoff time that is going to impact him in some way. I thought the 12 would be running faster too, they are also missing some speed as we go through the season here, but he's battling and also maybe Nashville can be a momentum starter for them, they are however ultra consistent as they sit 3rd in regular season points. Need some wins to build that playoff cushion though.
 
Chase Elliott and Ross Chastain.

Elliott's consistency has been unreal in a season where consistency is tough to accomplish. Chastain has been fairly consistent as well as Blaney, KyBu and Harvick, though Blaney and Harvick are winless and risk not making the playoffs. Christopher Bell's been pretty consistent too but also appears at risk of elimination.

Chase Elliott, however, is the best driver on track this year and it's not even up for debate.
 
AndyMarquisLive said:
Chase Elliott and Ross Chastain.

Elliott's consistency has been unreal in a season where consistency is tough to accomplish. Chastain has been fairly consistent as well as Blaney, KyBu and Harvick, though Blaney and Harvick are winless and risk not making the playoffs. Christopher Bell's been pretty consistent too but also appears at risk of elimination.

Chase Elliott, however, is the best driver on track this year and it's not even up for debate.
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Like I said in the race thread he isn't popping top 5s but he is basically 6th-8th every week
 
Even with all the hate and negativity from Dale Jr, My Melon Man, Mr. Ross Chastain, has as good a chance as any, guess Ross hasn't kissed Jr's ass. Chase also is in contention.
 
I haven't a clue, Truex hasn't had a season to remember but showed up strong yesterday, make the 8 and run hot for a couple races, I think what Denny said it's going to be a very unpredictable playoffs with how level the playing field is right now.

That regular season champion points bonus will be a nice cushion for whomever gets it, as usual, but doesn't take much to wipe that out either.
 
iam a hms fan mostly, but when they dont been really fast cars to the track.they make alot of really dumb pit calls,and end up 25 to 35.instead of just taking a 10 or 15.well sometime even when they have fast cars like larson at sonoma,what the hell was that???:wacko:
 
Would be nice to see the 9 team rack up a couple more wins and the regular season title so they could somewhat coast thru a round or two. They've made a habit out of surviving high stress situations the last few seasons to make the final 4, and as good as they've handled that, eventually that's not gonna work out in your favor.
 
Jorge De Guzman said:
Just like the title says, I stole this from Reddit but it got me thinking....who realistically has a shot at making the Championship 4 in Phoenix as of the current mid point of the season?
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Given the fact that the final race of the round of 8 is at Martinsville and somebody could get "Kensethed" .... it's anybody's guess with the randomness of how the championship format works.

But I will make a guess for the 4.
Kyle Busch
Kurt Busch
Ryan Blaney
Chase Elliott

Those who missed out
Kyle Larson
MTJ
Bowman
Byron

I look forward to being very wrong
 
sdj said:
Even with all the hate and negativity from Dale Jr, My Melon Man, Mr. Ross Chastain, has as good a chance as any, guess Ross hasn't kissed Jr's ass. Chase also is in contention.
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Agree…Ross is the most dangerous contender in the field, and NOT primarily because he‘s had some brushes with competitors. I’d also include Elliot, Larson and Logano as the others favored to be racing for a title.

Chastain is an absolute junkyard dog competitor who can drive the wheels off a race car. He’s in the Chase, and will likely find his way up into the top 8. Then it gets a bit dicey…as it wouldn’t surprise me to see the return of azz monkeys deliberately turning him for more “payback”. Hambone might find he’s eating a “nasty sandwich” in the finale if he does such dirty deeds…same for anyone else, even the white knight. Ross is legit…these guys need to quit treating him like he’s some fill in flunky. Trackhouse racing is excelling, and an amazing storyline of their own.
 
Conover said:
Agree…Ross is the most dangerous contender in the field, and NOT primarily because he‘s had some brushes with competitors. I’d also include Elliot, Larson and Logano as the others favored to be racing for a title.

Chastain is an absolute junkyard dog competitor who can drive the wheels off a race car. He’s in the Chase, and will likely find his way up into the top 8. Then it gets a bit dicey…as it wouldn’t surprise me to see the return of azz monkeys deliberately turning him for more “payback”. Hambone might find he’s eating a “nasty sandwich” in the finale if he does such dirty deeds…same for anyone else, even the white knight. Ross is legit…these guys need to quit treating him like he’s some fill in flunky. Trackhouse racing is excelling, and an amazing storyline of their own.
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you know in a very parallel way, Chastain's rise to championship contender and running up front each week reminds of Jeff Gordon's in 1995. I remember the country bumpkin establishment of drivers at the time were really sore about it and remember reading such articles in my father's Autoweek when they had NASCAR coverage. Felt he wasnt paying his dues, was racing too aggressive and threats of pay back. Hell Rusty Wallace is still sore about it I'm sure (check his DJD episode). But yea, I do agree with you its a great story. I'm not really a Chastain fan or Trackhouse fan but what they are doing with new ownership is so great for the sport. I dont think he makes it to Phoenix though, that road might be treacherous for him.
 
Right now I think we have a 9, 1, 11, 18 final 4
The 5, 12 and 22 are the next tier.
 
Blaney doesn't have the wins, but he has been very consistent which is important in the playoffs. If his pit crew can get their act together he should be in the final four this year.
 
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