Nothing feels better than a dominant trip to Las Vegas. Chase Briscoe cashed in at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with his second win of the season, propelling him back into the NASCAR Cup Series championship hunt.
Briscoe delivered a dominant performance for Joe Gibbs Racing, leading 175 of 267 laps and winning both stages before holding off points leader Kyle Larson to claim his first victory of the 2026 Chase. Tyler Reddick finished third after making contact with Larson during a final-lap attempt to challenge for the win.
Meanwhile, Larson was able to strengthen his grip on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series championship, overcoming an early setback to finish second and extend his points lead over Denny Hamlin. An extended green-flag pit stop in the opening stage dropped the Hendrick Motorsports driver a lap down early,but meticulously worked his way back through the field, hounding Briscoe for the victory, and recovering to finish second.
A bad day turned worse for Hamlin, who was looking to earn his third straight victory at Las Vegas. After earning the pole and leading the race, a Stage One spin and mechanical trouble derailed his afternoon. Hamlin would ultimately finish 16th and surrendered additional ground to Larson in the points championship.
Christopher Bell, Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney sit in the next three championship positions, while Briscoe’s victory propelled him into sixth. Larson now leads Hamlin by 40 points, followed by Bell at 55 points behind, Logano at 71, Blaney at 80 and Briscoe at 84.
With five playoff races remaining, Larson has already collected two victories and five consecutive top-five finishes, earning an average finish of 2.2 in The Chase. The championship battle now moves to the home of NASCAR, Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The speed and thrills of NASCAR returns to the Valley of the Sun, October 16-18, with the ARCA Menards West Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, and NASCAR Cups Series for a group of pivotal races in The Chase, NASCAR’s latest postseason format.
