Will Charlotte Once Again Fuel Ross Chastain’s Road Course Misery as Trackhouse Racing Superstar Finds Himself in Joey Logano’s Shoes?

Ross Chastain’s Hail Melon moment feels like it was ages ago, even though it hasn’t even been a full year yet. That is how much things have changed in the 2023 edition of the NASCAR Cup Series from the year before. The man who made it to the championship race finds himself on the verge of elimination with one race to go in the round of 12. As fate would have it, even that final race is at a track where the Trackhouse driver simply has not been able to perform.

Ross Chastain performed exceptionally well in the first round of 12 race in Texas. He finished the event in second place behind William Byron. He earned 38 points and was in a decent place on the table, points-wise. However, everything went wrong in Talladega. The driver of  #1 crashed out and was forced to retire from the event. He now finds himself three places and 10 points behind the cutline.

Ross Chastain and Joey Logano’s seasons took a similar turn for the worse

All hope is not lost for Ross Chastain. The Trackhouse Racing driver will get one final chance. But it will be held at the Charlotte Roval, a road course. And if history has shown us anything, Ross Chastain hates road courses, especially the Roval. He would have been in a good position had he not suffered a DNF in Talladega, which makes his situation similar to what Joey Logano faced.

Joey Logano was in a good position going into the final round of 16 race at Bristol. However, he was involved in a crash and was forced to retire from the race. His points tally was not good enough to keep him in the playoffs and fans were guaranteed to have a new champion in 2023. Ross Chastain faced a similar situation at Talladega. The only difference is that the Trackhouse star has one more chance to make it count.

How things have changed since last year. In 2022, Joey Logano was crowned the champion and Ross Chastain was the runner-up in the championship. Almost a year has passed since then. The defending champion has already been eliminated and the runner-up might suffer the same fate in less than a week’s time.

Ross Chastain’s record at road courses does not flatter him in any way. He has taken part in 22 races so far in his career and has finished in the top five only four times. While he has won once at COTA, the 30-year-old’s Charlotte numbers are far from inspiring. 

The no. 1 driver has taken part in four races at the Charlotte Motor Speedway so far and has not even been able to finish in the top 10. His average finishing position at the road course is 26.5. This will simply not be good enough if he wants to make it through to the next round.

There have been talks about teams strategizing as the Charlotte Roval will see stage breaks. No other road course has seen stage breaks this season. Ross Chastain and his team could strategize to maximize points. However, given his points situation, it might not be the wisest option.

He might not be successful in getting through, but Ross Chastain believes that he will fight till the end at the Charlotte Roval irrespective of the result.

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Trackhouse star looks to “live his dream” in Charlotte

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Ahead of the Roval race, the driver of the no. 1 said, “I’m going to make left and right-hand turns this weekend and live my dream. We’ll put out best foot forward and as long as I’m getting to drive these rocket ships that Trackhouse Racing brings me, I’m living my dream and keep fighting.”

These are either the words of someone confident of his chances at the Roval or one who has accepted that his chances of getting through are slim, and is not taking too much pressure.

It is important to note that Ross Chastain barely managed to get through to the round of 8 last season as well. He was only 6 points ahead of the cutline on that occasion. So maybe the Trackhouse star can pull something out of the hat this year as well.

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