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Darlington NASCAR Race Winners and Losers: Martin Truex in the Playoffs
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Darlington NASCAR Race Winners and Losers: Martin Truex in the Playoffs

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Chase Briscoe is competing in the NASCAR playoffs.

Kyle Busch narrowly missed out on a playoff spot and a much-needed win.

Briscoe won the NASCAR race at Darlington Speedway in South Carolina, holding off a late charge from Busch. Both drivers needed a win to earn automatic playoff spots.

These are our winners and losers after the Cook Out Southern 500 in Darlington.

Winners

Pursuit Briscoe

Briscoe won for the first time since 2022, but it may be the biggest victory of his career. It also gives Stewart-Haas Racing one driver in the playoffs in the team’s final season.

Tyler Reddick

Reddick raced while ill at Darlington, but he never gave up. He finished 10th in the Southern 500, edging Kyle Larson by a point for the regular-season championship. However, Larson has the most wins this season and will be the heavy favorite in the playoffs.

Martin Truex Jr.

Has a driver who finishes second to last ever been called a winner? Probably not. Truex was involved in a crash on Lap 3 and finished 36th, ahead of Ryan Blaney. But he is a big winner this week. He secured a spot in the NASCAR playoffs after Stage 2 when Chris Buescher failed to score a point.

Losers

Chris Buescher

Buescher didn’t get a chance. Chase Briscoe’s win guaranteed him a spot in the playoffs, leaving just one opening for a driver without a win. That gave Ty Gibbs the final spot. Buescher missed the playoffs by six points.

Kyle Busch

Busch may be a fixture in this industry, but he came so close to winning and making the playoffs. Richard Childress Racing has come a long way in the past month, but it took too long for Busch, who is yet to record a win this season.

Bubba Wallace

Wallace and Buescher battled for much of the race in hopes of a playoff spot, but that changed when Briscoe took the win. Wallace, who started from pole, finished 27 points behind the playoffs.