Justin Haley picked up his second Playoff win last week at Texas and joins veteran Johnny Sauter (Martinsville, Va. winner) with secured championship opportunities at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 16.
Haley’s win was his 12th consecutive top-10 finish. It vaulted him into Playoff contention and booted Grant Enfinger from fourth to fifth place in the standings – the first position outside the title foursome. This will be only his second Phoenix start. He crashed in his debut and finished 24th.
Enfinger is now 18 points behind fourth place Noah Gragson. Former champion Matt Crafton is 23 points behind Gragson. He is winless in 17 tries at Phoenix and has crashed out in two of the last three races there.
Sauter’s six victories in 2018 are a personal best. His only win at ISM Raceway was in this race last year.
This will be championship contender Brett Moffitt’s Phoenix debut.
Gragson is still looking for his first top-10 at the track. He was 16th and 15th in two previous starts and has led 55 laps.
Twelve drivers will be making their track debut in Friday’s race.
GMS Racing continues to lead the owner’s championship. It holds a 20-point advantage on Hattori Racing Enterprises.
Kevin Harvick holds the record for wins at Phoenix (four).
Chevrolet leads manufacturers with 15 victories.
The closest race at Phoenix was in November, 2002 when Harvick beat Ted Musgrave by .022-seconds.
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!
