Larson Launches into Phoenix

Autotrader EchoPark 500:

Nothing shocking here: Kyle Larson dominated and won another 1.5 mile race. Can't say I didn't see this coming - even though I did pick Hamlin to win last week - I had a change of heart Friday night and swapped to Larson in the NASCAR pool I am in with my coworkers. Thankfully that decision paid off as Larson absolutely spanked the field Sunday afternoon in Texas and propelled himself to race for a Championship in a few weeks at Phoenix.

As for the rest of the race, it was a predictable and near snooze-fest the first 400 miles - sans the massive pile-up triggered by Bubba Wallace on lap 31. There was some fuel strategy in Stage 1, but aside from that not much craziness happened until the last 50-75 laps. Sure there was a bit of drama with Chase Elliott having a vibration in the middle of Stage 2, but that was quickly downplayed with a debris caution several laps later and the speed the of the 9 car to get back on and stay on the lead lap. Stage 2 ended with no other major drama and then all hell broke loose after Chase Briscoe lost a tire and brought out a caution. From there we had Logano lose a motor (first time in sever years), Hamlin crash (x2), the 17 car nearly crash - causing Alfredo to demolish his SpeedyCash.com Ford - then the 17 car actually crashed, followed by Truex pinching Suarez causing them to connect and putting Truex's Toyota hard into the wall, and through all of that some intense, crazy restarts. Of course, Larson was quick and perfect and held onto the lead through seven Stage 3 restarts.

Again, to me, the finish and results were somewhat predictable. I do hate that, but it demonstrates the dominance that Larson has this year - especially on 1.5 mile tracks. I think he has, by locking himself in to the title race, is the favorite. I still think the JGR Toyota's can compete with them at Phoenix, but two weeks of Cliff Daniels perfecting that Phoenix car, the 5 team will be hard to beat for the title.

Andy's Frozen Custard 335:

Unfortunately, I missed a big chunk of this race due to some errands and getting distracted by college football. However, I did not see John Hunter Nemecheck winning this race. Being fast and competitive? 100%. But winning? Did not see it happening. And to cap it off, rallying from that penalty late in the race to win was truly a feat. His performance Saturday has me questioning why he is staying in the Truck series another year - he can be, and will be, dangerously competitive when he gets a shot in any of the top two series in top equipment. Aside from that, this seemed like a standard Xfinity race with the normal players. As always, after catching the highlights from what I missed, the Xfinity guys had the best action on track. And again, here's me hoping the NextGen car gives the Cup series that type of racing. The JHN win does have some playoff implications - guaranteeing at least drivers get in the playoff four on points. It is shaping up to be some hardcore racing at Kansas and Martinsville to set the four title contenders for the Xfinity Series.

Looking Ahead:

This weekend is shaping up to, in my opinion, set the temperature for how Martinsville is played out and truly shape the final four contenders for their respective playoff races. Kansas, for the Cup drivers, will likely be more of the same for the 550HP package. Let's just hope something exciting happens. As for the Xfinity Series, it will be entertaining. It could be the race that determines the champion if someone locks into the title race or it could add to chaos and confusion with no true outlier as the favorite - much of what I believe the Xfinity Series playoffs have been thus far. My predicitions:

Cup Series:

• Winner - Kyle Busch

• Darkhorse - Chris Buescher

Xfinity Series:

• Winner - Justin Allgaier

• Darkhorse - Sam Mayer

Header Photo: Chris Graythen Getty Images