For a few hours Sunday night after the Charlotte Roval race last month, Hendrick Motorsports thought it had all four teams into the Round of 8. A disqualification for Alex Bowman’s No. 48 when the car was too light in post-race inspection ruined that fairytale. Flashforward three weeks later, the organization faces the very real possibility of having one or none of its drivers advance into the championship round.
That’s not exactly how they planned their 40th anniversary season.
“It’s a lot of pressure trying to get two [drivers] in this week and that’s going to be hard to do,” Rudy Fugle said. “But if we can figure out how to sit on the pole and lead every lap for a while and get a lot of points, then maybe we can put that pressure on the [No.] 20 and we can move two cars in.
“But in reality, we can only focus on us, and our goal is to lead every lap and be upfront. Hopefully that will take care of itself.”
Fugle and his driver, William Byron, are the only ones from Hendrick Motorsports sitting in a transfer spot going into Sunday’s race. It’s a slim seven-point margin and the first driver below the cutline chasing Byron’s No. 24 is teammate Kyle Larson.
The final two spots in the championship race will be determined Sunday afternoon in the Xfinity 500. Christopher Bell, who sits ahead of Byron, has a manageable 29-point advantage on the cutline. A strong two stages for Bell’s team in points earned could change the narrative of the race’s final run to five drivers going for one spot.
“Of course, there is [pressure to advance a Hendrick car],” Cliff Daniels, of Larson’s team, said. “It’s hard to tangibly state what that is or what that means for the pressure that you talk about, but of course. Mr. and Mrs. Hendrick started the playoffs with all four cars in and a lot of big race wins this season, and an epic win by Bowman and his team at Chicago to lock their way in from what had been some ups and downs for them.
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“With all those things coming into play, where now you’re looking at the potential for the three cars that are eligible to not make it in, yeah, that’s a big deal. It’s a big thing that we highlight and are adding pressure to ourselves on top of what it already is. It’s hard to quantify or put a number on what that means. We feel it, we know it, and we want to go get it, and that’s the way we’re all operating.”
Alan Gustafson, from Chase Elliott’s No. 9 team, is not overthinking what is at stake. There is already the natural pressure tied to trying to advance into the championship race, and Gustafson doesn’t see Sunday as any different.
“I have the same motivation,” he said. “It is significant that it’s the 40th year and you want to celebrate that, and I certainly want it to be a storybook year for Rick and Linda [Hendrick] and everybody that works for the company. For me personally, I feel every year you’re up against it regardless. You want to get to the final four and win a championship.
“My perspective is pretty similar. Is there probably a little motivation there? Yeah, but I want to do that for all the parties involved every year and regardless of the situation. … You’re always striving to be the best.”
Elliott is last on the playoff grid in a 43-point hole. He has approached all three races in the round as a must-win.
At Martinsville, Elliott was the highest-qualifying Hendrick driver, earning a front-row starting spot. Byron qualified third and Larson qualified ninth.