Chase Briscoe has done the unthinkable. After finishing rock-bottom at Atlanta Motor Speedway, who would have thought that the Stewart-Haas Racing driver would progress into the playoff Round of 12? The 29-year-old turned his season around dramatically, with two top-ten results at Watkins Glen International and Bristol Motor Speedway to keep his title hopes alive. Brimming with confidence, the future Joe Gibbs Racing driver is hopeful of making a deep playoff run and potentially challenging for the title at Phoenix Raceway.

Despite Stewart-Haas Racing ceasing operations at the end of the 2024 season, the No. 14 team has plenty to be confident about. If results in the last two races are anything to go by, it has proven that Briscoe can go wheel-to-wheel with any driver on the track, giving him some much-needed momentum ahead of the 2024 Hollywood Casino 400.

Chase Briscoe is proving all his doubters wrong!

Against all odds. That’s the best way to describe Chase Briscoe’s season so far. Stewart-Haas Racing’s year looked like a foregone conclusion after the team announced its decision to shut down, resulting in an atmosphere of uncertainty surrounding the NASCAR team. With everyone involved looking to move on, it was unlikely that any of their four drivers would have a season to remember, especially because of the limited resources at their disposal. However, the result at Darlington Raceway changed everything when Briscoe secured his first Cup Series win since Phoenix Raceway in 2022.

Speaking about Briscoe’s season so far, NASCAR YouTuber Eric Estepp went on to say, “Chase Briscoe’s playing hero ball right now. Winning at Darlington, we won’t talk about Atlanta. Back-to-back top-10s. What a month! What a month for a team we all dismissed. We just assumed this team was left for dead. All the drivers are signing elsewhere, crew members are leaving likely by the week, half the ownership group is completely disinterested. Ford unplugging laptops. Chase Briscoe is through to the Round of 12. How about that? Ton of respect, ton of credit to Briscoe and the entire No. 14 team for the performance last night.”

Briscoe’s journey in the first round of the playoffs has been topsy-turvy, to say the least. His opening Round of 16 race couldn’t have begun on a worse note after an early crash with Kyle Larson forced Briscoe to settle for a disastrous 38th-place result at Atlanta Motor Speedway. He went into the second playoff race at Watkins Glen 21 points below the cutline, knowing that he had nothing to lose. The fearless approach paid off, as the Indiana native finished sixth, the highest result for a playoff competitor on the road course.

However, the job was far from over. Chase Briscoe knew that he would need to get a result at Bristol Motor Speedway’s short track to keep his championship hopes alive, and he didn’t disappoint. Lady luck wasn’t on his side at ‘The Last Great Colosseum’ as Briscoe suffered a malfunctioning rear-view mirror, a brake fan fire, and a poor pit stop, but that didn’t stop the 29-year-old from getting the result. On a track where making passes was difficult, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver took advantage of the restarts to regain grid positions and finish in eighth place.

Noah Gragson wants Briscoe to win the championship

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After recent results at Darlington, Watkins Glen, and Bristol, the mood at Stewart-Haas Racing has changed considerably. The team is more confident than ever about their title hopes, believing that they can make it to Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway. Noah Gragson has expressed willingness to help his teammate in the upcoming races, hoping that his contribution can help Briscoe make a deep playoff run.

Expressing his happiness for Chase Briscoe’s form, Noah Gragson said, “I want Chase (Briscoe) to win the championship and we’re gonna help him as much as we can reasonably. But at the same time super proud of them (the #14 team) and their efforts. If I can help him on a restart lane, race him easy, that’s what I’m going to do. I’m here for him, I’m proud of him, I’m super happy for him and his group.”

With seven races to go before the season ends, there will be plenty of opportunities for Noah Gragson to help his teammate. Briscoe already believes that he can challenge for the championship, but will need all the support he can get to make that happen. It will be one of NASCAR’s biggest underdog stories if the 29-year-old does win the title at the end of the season, and a fitting way to close the curtains on Stewart-Haas Racing’s journey in NASCAR. The odds may be stacked against him, but stranger things have happened in the world of motorsports.