NASCAR 2017 Championship Picture
Sunday's Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway saw two more of the four spots for the championship get claimed. This leaves only one spot remaining.
Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex, Jr. are in the Championship 4 after Texas. Harvick claimed his spot with the win. Truex clinched his by points after finishing in second place on Sunday.
Truex was leading the race. But bobbled slightly on the straight away with just ten laps to go and Harvick passed him and went on for the victory. See complete race results.
Kyle Busch earned his spot in the championship race by winning the previous event at Martinsville. So now there's one spot left, and there are five different drivers competing for it at the next race at Phoenix on Sunday.
Then the final four will race for the championship the following week in Miami. So, who will join Truex, Busch and Harvick in the Championship 4?
First, let's take a look at who's eligible. Brad Keselowski is currently in fourth place in the playoffs after finishing fifth on Sunday at Texas..
Denny Hamlin is below the cut-off line in fifth place in the playoff standings after a strong third place finish Sunday. Ryan Blaney is sixth in the standings.
Chase Elliott and Jimmy Johnson are seventh and eighth respectively. They both would most likely need a victory in Phoenix on Sunday to get into the championship contest at Miami.
And I wouldn't count either one of them out as they are both rated high at Phoenix. Personally, I am expecting either Johnson or Elliott to win Phoenix and claim the final spot.
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