On Nov. 3, 2024, the Xfinity 500, a cut off race for the Cup Series in Virginia, is happening. It is the oldest track on the NASCAR schedule. While all the racers are still able to participate, only four are able to compete at the championship race. Two drivers are already locked in for the championship. Joey Logano after winning in Las Vegas and Tyler Reddick after winning in Homestead.
The Xfinity 500 has been run every Cup Series season since 1949. The winner of this race receives a custom built grandfather clock. There are 500 laps and it is 263 miles long. The team with the most wins is Hendrick Motorsports with 18, and Chevrolet is the manufacturer with the most wins at 32. It is the shortest track on the NASCAR schedule. It is the final race of the Round of 8 leading into the championship. There have been many name changes for this race until Comcast became the title sponsor in 2014. It took until 2017 to add lights to the track, so the race could start later in the day without the drivers having to worry about not being able to see.
The drivers to watch this race would have to be Christopher Bell, William Byron, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliot. These drivers all have a possibility to be the two who advance to the championship race. Bell, who is 29 points above the cut line, has a high chance of making it into the championship race if he performs well. Whereas Elliot is 43 points below the cut line, so he would have to win the race to make it past this round. Byron is seven points above, Larson is seven points below, Hamlin is 18 points below and Blaney is 38 points below. The two drivers who have the best chance of making it into the final race are probably Bell and Byron, however it is anyone’s race and they all have a chance of making it depending on how well they perform at the Xfinity 500.
While Logano, the driver I usually root for, is already in the championship race, I would like to see Bell win and make it into the race. He only has nine wins and it would be really great to see him make it into the biggest race there is. He has won the Truck Series championship race in 2017, and after switching over to Cup Series, I would like to see him win more and make it into the championship race.
This race is a very big deal to NASCAR fans and it will be interesting to see who makes it onto the last round. I can not wait to watch!