Chasing the Chase: How Have Chase Drivers Have Fared At Gateway?

The NASCAR Cup Series Chase for the Championship reaches the second leg of the 10-race marathon. For 16 drivers, there is still the hope that if all cards fall their way for the remainder of the championship fight, they could perhaps be the one driver hoisting the Bill France Cup after the finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

After the opening event of the Chase, the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, we saw Denny Hamlin lose more than half of his 25-point advantage over the Chase Grid, and with a win, Christopher Bell climbed his way to the second spot in the championship standings.

This week, the NASCAR Cup Series heads to the 1.25-mile World Wide Technology Raceway, a unique track in the offering of facilities inside the 10-race Chase. That being said, how have the 16 Chase drivers handled this track over the course of their careers?

1. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin, who heads into the Enjoy Illinois 300 looking to maintain his series point lead, has a very good track record at World Wide Technology Raceway.

Hamlin is the defending winner of the Enjoy Illinois 300. In addition to the win at Gateway last season, Hamlin also scored back-to-back runner-up finishes at the facility in 2023 and 2024.

Hamlin did finish 34th in the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series event at the track, but that was a product of an ongoing feud he had at the time with Ross Chastain. Hamlin was swept up in a crash with Chastain in Turn 1 on the 65th lap of the race.

Overall, Hamlin and his fans, should feel comfortable heading into this weekend's race, but as a reminder that anything can happen on any given weekend, Hamlin had more wins (5) at Darlington than any active driver, and still suffered an 18th-place finish after being involved in an incident with Michael McDowell.

2. Christopher Bell, -12 Points

With a career average finish of 8.5 in his four starts at World Wide Technology Raceway, Christopher Bell ranks second among active drivers.

However, Bell has yet to record a top-five finish at the track. Still, he's had three top-10 results and he's led 80 laps in his four attempts to win at the 1.25-mile oval.

In 2024, Bell looked like he had a chance to score the race win, but a motor issue in the closing laps led to him fading to a seventh-place result.

It'll be interesting to see if Bell, who finally pulled through for his first win of the season last week, can keep the momentum rolling at Gateway.

3. Ryan Blaney, -16 Points

Ryan Blaney has yet to win at World Wide Technology Raceway, but it hasn't been for a lack of trying.

Blaney has been in the mix, evidenced by his 120 laps led at the track, and he has come away with a pair of fourth-place finishes (2022 and 2025) and a sixth-place result in 2023.

However, it's his 24th-place finish in 2024 that is truly a deceiving result. Blaney was the dominant driver in that event, and looked to have the win sewn up. Then, coming to the white flag, his No. 12 Team Penske Ford sputtered out of fuel, and he putted across the line with a disappointing result.

Expect Blaney to be in contention for his first career Gateway win this weekend.

4. Tyler Reddick, -24 Points

After a summer slump saw Tyler Reddick drop from the seemingly obvious No. 1 Chase seed to third, the driver has finally started to turnaround his on-track luck and finishes.

Reddick heads into this weekend's race riding the high of a three-race top-10 finishing streak, the last two of which have been third-place results.

That being said, Gateway will be a big-time test for the driver and his No. 45 23XI Racing team, as they haven't had incredible results at the 1.25-mile facility.

Aside from a fourth-place finish at Gateway in 2024, Reddick has never finished better than 16th at World Wide Technology Raceway.

There is also the concern of brakes, as this track always seems to collect a couple of teams throughout the race. Reddick, who has suffered from brake issues throughout his 23XI Racing tenure, feels confident the team finally has those issues figured out.

If they do, and he can have a clean race on Sunday, he could have a clear runway for the remainder of the Chase.

5. Chase Briscoe, -37 Points

World Wide Technology Raceway has been a complex track for Chase Briscoe. The driver scored the pole position for the inaugural event at the track in 2022, but in his first three starts at the track, he had an abysmal average finish of 25.0.

Last season, Briscoe moved to Joe Gibbs Racing from Stewart-Haas Racing, and instantly collected a career-best finish at the track with a second-place effort.

While his career average finish at Gateway is 17.5, expect Briscoe to be closer to his finish a year ago at the track than his career norm.

6. Ty Gibbs, -39 Points

Ty Gibbs has shown so much improvement this season, that I almost want to say to throw out his past results at any track he heads to.

However, when you look at his results at World Wide Technology Raceway, you realize, he's been pretty solid at the 1.25-mile track.

In his 2023 rookie campaign, Gibbs was 20th, but since then he has logged finishes of 11th and 10th at Gateway. Expect Gibbs to turn in an effort worthy of a career-best Gateway finish on Sunday.

7. Kyle Larson, -49 Points

While it has been a lackluster year for Chevrolet and Kyle Larson, the driver, who is in the midst of a 50-race winless skid, has been very decent at Gateway.

No, he doesn't have a win at the facility, yet, but he does have the third-best average finish (9.5) of any driver on the entry list this weekend.

Larson's career-best finish at Gateway was a fourth-place result in 2023, and he's never finished worse than 12th. Perhaps, he can find himself in a position to score his first win of the season?

8. Chase Elliott, -72 Points

It's no secret that the shorter, flat tracks are not really in the wheelhouse of Hendrick Motorsports. Chase Elliott's track record at Gateway showcases that fact, perfectly.

In his three starts at the track, Elliott has an average finish of 12.3.

However, last season, Elliott did rise to the occasion in a third-place finish, his lone top-10 finish at the track. At 72 points behind the point leader, Elliott needs to pull through with a solid finish on Sunday.

9. Joey Logano, -72 Points

Joey Logano is THE GUY to watch this weekend at World Wide Technology Raceway.

The three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion leads the series with an average finish of 3.5 in his four starts at Gateway.

Logano, the driver of the No. 22 car, led 22 laps in a winning performance in the inaugural event at Gateway in 2022, and he hasn't finished outside of the top-five yet at the 1.25-mile oval.

Team Penske has been undoubtedly the best team overall when it comes to this style of track in the Next Gen era. Expect Logano to be tough to handle on Sunday.

10. Bubba Wallace, -81 Points

Bubba Wallace heads into Sunday's Enjoy Illinois 300 with a career average finish of 21.3 at World Wide Technology Raceway. For those keeping score at home, that's not ideal.

Despite struggling mightily through his first three starts at the track, races where he logged finishes of 26th, 30th, and 21st, Wallace finally found the front of the field last season.

The 23XI Racing driver came home eighth in this event a year ago, and he'll need a repeat performance to keep himself in the championship conversation.

11. Chris Buescher, -88 Points

Chris Buescher has yet to lead a single lap at World Wide Technology Raceway, and has just one top-10 finish at the track.

That being said, he hasn't been horrible at Gateway. He's just not been flashy.

His best finish at this facility was a ninth-place result last year, and his worst finish was 14th in 2024. Expect Buescher to contend for a top-10 finish Sunday at Gateway.

12. Carson Hocevar, -89 Points

Carson Hocevar is a driver, who hasn't made many friends on the track, and last week at Darlington he made a fresh enemy in Brad Keselowski.

Keeping an eye out for Keselowski's potential revenge will be on everyone's mind this weekend, including Hocevar, but at the end of the day, the driver needs to just focus on the task at hand,

Gateway is the track that Hocevar made his NASCAR Cup Series career at in 2023, and in that race he impressed mightily before a brake rotor exploded and sent him into the outside wall.

In his two races at this track since his debut, Hocevar has had respectable results, as he finished a career-best eighth in 2024, and was 15th a season ago.

If he can come away with a top-10 finish on Sunday, it will be massive to his championship hopes.

13. Daniel Suarez, -94 Points

Daniel Suarez has not had a great career record at World Wide Technology Raceway. His career average finish at the 1.25-mile track is a subpar 22.0.

However, the driver has had a spark in results this season, his first campaign driving the No. 7 Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports.

Suarez does have one top-10 finish at Gateway, a seventh-place result in 2023, so, there is hope that he can produce a similar result this weekend for Spire.

If not, his championship odds will grow longer and longer.

14. Austin Cindric, -102 Points

Austin Cindric may be coming into this weekend as the No. 14 seed in the Chase, but expect him to potentially contend near the front of the field in the Enjoy Illinois 300.

He drives the No. 2 Team Penske Ford, and as mentioned earlier, the Penske Fords have been incredible at this style of track in the past.

Additionally, Cindric has won at Gateway before. In 2024, while running second heading to the white flag, Cindric saw his teammate Ryan Blaney run out of fuel ahead of him, which handed the lead, and win to him on a silver platter.

While Cindric hasn't added any other top-10 finishes at Gateway, he's always right around the top-10. He finished 11th in 2022, 13th in 2023, and 19th in 2025.

Maybe he can find the 2024 magic this weekend?

15. Ryan Preece, -104 Points

With no top-10 finishes and a 19.7 career average finish at World Wide Technology Raceway for Ryan Preece's career, he feels like a massive longshot.

And, well, he is. That being said, he thrives in the underdog role, and truly believes he can contend for the championship.

Last weekend, he went to Darlington, a track he had never scored a top-10 at, and he finished 10th. Don't count out Preece, who could deliver a Gateway career-best finish.

Preece did finish 17th with Stewart-Haas Racing here in 2023, and 13th a season ago with RFK Racing.

16. William Byron, -114 Points

William Byron finds himself in a very unideal situation. After a blown engine last weekend, he enters Gateway as the final seed in the Chase.

To add salt in the wounds, he drives a Hendrick Chevrolet, and next up is the short, flat Gateway track that his team has struggled at.

Byron does have an eighth-place finish on his record at Gateway in 2023, but that is far below his typical bes finish at a track.

The driver of the iconic No. 24 machine has a career average finish of 13.3 at Gateway, and he's going to have to better that statistic if he wants to work himself back into championship contention.

Tune-In Info:

The NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway is scheduled for Sunday, September 13. The race will be televised on USA Network with coverage set to begin at 3 PM ET. The Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio will provide the radio broadcast of the event.

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