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Chase Elliott scored a historic win at Darlington Raceway last Friday. He became the first rookie driver to win in their Darlington debut.
Next week, NASCAR will head to the 0.75 mile short track of Richmond International Raceway. Will we see another trend in the Nationwide Series broken at Richmond?
The last 20 Nationwide races at Richmond have been won by Sprint Cup Series drivers. Johnny Sauter was the last non-Cup Series driver to win a Nationwide race at Richmond in 2003. He moved fellow Wisconsin driver Matt Kenseth with a bump-and-run maneuver on the last-lap.
Brian Scott almost pulled off an upset in the series’ last trip to Richmond. Scott dominated and led 237 of 250 laps. However, he did not lead the one that counted the most, and Brad Keselowski stole the race to keep the Cup dominance going. Scott hopes to settle some unfinished business and become the next trend ender.
Chase Elliott is on fire. He’s won the last two races. No non-Cup Series driver has won three Nationwide races in a row since 1999. That driver was Dale Earnhardt Jr., Elliott’s owner. Elliott’s talent, combined with Hendrick horsepower, makes him a threat to win every weekend.
Elliott Sadler, who just came up short at Darlington, is also one to watch next week. Sadler has five top-10 finishes in his last seven starts, including one top-five. Joe Gibbs racing usually have good cars at the track. Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin have combined for four Nationwide wins and six Sprint Cup series wins at the short track.
Will the Cup guys continue their dominance or will we see another trend come to an end?
The Pace Car 