Matt Johnson
Sunday’s Great American Getaway 400 at Pocono Raceway did not deliver the kind of chaos you’d expect. While a few notable drivers got taken out in an early wreck, it was largely domination from a select few cars. There’s plenty of NASCAR analysis to go over from this Cup Series race.
Let’s dive into our winners and losers from the NASCAR race today at Pocono.
Related: NASCAR Results Today at Pocono, Cup Series Stage Results
Winner: Denny Hamlin
Three straight wins for Denny Hamlin, and it looks like no one in NASCAR can touch the No. 11 car right now. Hamlin earned the Stage 1 win and, even with the pit strategy, still managed to earn some points in Stage 2. The speed of the No. 11 then showed up on the final stage as he navigated his way toward the front before overtaking Christopher Bell and then coasting to victory lane for the third week in a row. With the hot streak Hamlin is on, maybe 70 career wins is on the table.
Related: NASCAR Cup Series All-Time Wins Leaders
Loser: Brad Keselowski
It’s been a bad start to the summer for Brad Keselowski. Just a few weeks ago, he sat near the top-10 in points for the Cup Series. He’s been in a freefall ever since. Coming into the NASCAR race today, Keselowski had consecutive 34th-place finishes with just 7 points combined. With two road-course races on the horizon, Keselowski needed a strong showing at Pocono on Sunday. Instead, in a wreck caused by Austin Hill, multiple cars got turned and the No. 6 slammed nose first into Bubba Wallace’s No. 23 as it spun across the track. Keselowski has now combined for just 8 points in the last three races and with the race at San Diego on deck, he’s dropped below the cutline.
Related: RFK Racing Driver Has ‘Unclear Future’ with Team
Winner: Erik Jones
Erik Jones stays hot and don’t look now but the No. 43 car might make The Chase. Coming into Sunday, Jones boasted a remarkable 7.25 average finishing position in the last four races and averaged 33.3 points per race in the last three points races. The momentum carried over into Pocono. Jones earned points in both Stage 1 (3 points) and Stage 2 (7 points), pulling him even closer to that 16th spot in The Chase. Legacy Motor Club just kept it goes from there, with Jones finishing sixth and netting 41 points on the day.
Related: NASCAR Standings Right Now, The Chase Cutline after Pocono
Loser: Joey Logano
It is time to start talking about Joey Logano potentially not even making The Chase. Heading into the NASCAR race today, he sat right below the cutline and just 3 points back of Austin Cindric. Given his underwhelming track record on road courses, he could not really afford a setback on Sunday. Unfortunately for the No. 22 team, much like Brad Keselowski, Logano got caught up in the sizable wreck caused by Austin Hill. While the damage to the car did not end the day, he progressively kept falling a lap down throughout Stage 2. We would still put the odds in Logano’s favor to make The Chase, but it is far from a guarantee at this point. Heading into San Diego, Logano is now 21 points behind the final spot in The Chase.
Winner: John Hunter Nemechek
It was a career-best day for John Hunter Nemechek. He arrived at Pocono with a personal high of 20 laps led in a single Cup Series race (the 2024 Spring race at Talladega). He blew past that mark in the first two stages of the NASCAR race today. Nemechek led 33 laps through the first two stages on Sunday, building off the momentum the team had after Erik Jones’s 2nd-place finish at Michigan. Nemechek finished fourth on Sunday, picking up 41 points (tied with Legacy teammate Erik Jones) and he led the most laps at Pocono with 42. Legacy Motor Club is really puting it together as of late, and it is great to see the success. This is also shaping up to be a career-best Cup season for JHN, who has now set his career-high for laps led in a season.
Loser: Zane Smith
It had been a remarkable run for Zane Smith and Front Row Motorsports coming into the NASCAR race today. Smith had an 18.4 average finishing position in the last six races, better than the likes of Christopher Bell (18.8), Chase Elliott, and William Byron (20.2). Disaster struck on Sunday. Smith got a bit too aggressive on Lap 41, overdriving it and getting loose. While he deserves some kudos for not taking out Denny Hamlin in the process, the No. 38 car sustained race-ending damage. It’ll be a valuable lesson to learn from for Smith.
Winner: Todd Gilliland
Sunday’s Great American Getaway 400 delivered a few personal bests and career firsts for Cup Series drivers. In the case of Todd Gilliland, he earned his first career stage win in the Cup Series. The fuel-saving strategy paid off perfectly for the No. 34 team and Front Row Motorsports, with Gilliland holding off Chase Briscoe on the closing laps of Stage 2. While it did cost the team in terms of finishing position, those 10 stage points do get Gilliland a bit closer to being in The Chase mix.
Loser: Josh Berry
Josh Berry announced earlier this week that Wood Brothers Racing wouldn’t be bringing him back in 2027. That made Sunday’s Great American Getaway 400 his first opportunity to show to other teams why he deserved a Cup Series ride. Instead, Berry finished 33rd and 3 laps down to the leaders. Over the last 10 races, Berry’s best finish was 15th at Michigan, and he has an average finishing position of 27.9 during this 10-race stretch. At this point, with how poorly he’s performing this year, it’s fair to question if Berry’s NASCAR career might entirely be over after this season because he also doesn’t have the popularity nor sponsorship support to even get a full-time ride in the O’Reilly Series.
Related: Latest Intel on Who Will Replace Josh Berry at Wood Brothers Racing
