All language subtitles for NASCAR.Full.Speed.S01E03.NF.WEB.h264-EDITH.en[cc]

[crickets chirping]

[alarm beeping]

[light switch clicks]

[crickets chirping]

[Mike Bagley] Welcome back to
The Morning Drive.

What an incredible race
in Bristol this weekend

to close out the Round of 16.
Twelve drivers are left now,

and the Round of 12 starts
in Texas this Sunday.

Three more races, and then four more
drivers will be eliminated.

You know one big name
who's been quiet through these playoffs?

Last year's second-place finisher,
the Watermelon Man, Ross Chastain.

[producer] What is the nickname
you've been given by other drivers?

[sighs] Asshole, jackass, dumbass.
[laughs]

[water splashes]

People don't ever tell you
your bad nicknames to your face.

That's after I walk
out of the room.

I do believe that I make
other drivers uncomfortable,

and I'm comfortable making
other drivers uncomfortable.

My natural way to race
and to go about my life

is not to be buddy-buddy
with my competitors.

I do have friends and buddies,

and people that I
enjoy hanging out with,

but then when I started racing
against them,

we're not so friendly anymore.

[announcers chattering]

Stop. Stop it.

What the fuck is your
fucking problem, man?

[upbeat music plays]

[Steve] Around goes the 9, Chase Elliott.

I think the 1 car had
something to do with this.

Ross races to win, period.

And if he's gotta rough
you up to do it, fine.

[crew member] He just pushed hard.

-[Steve] Whoa.
-Oh, look at this. Chastain.

[man] Dude, every **** time.

[Justin] We had to decide
on who to put

in that Number 1 car, and it
wasn't a very long discussion.

What I'm happy about is that I've got
a driver people are talking about.

He's got a lotta talent,
but he's making enemies.

[man] What a hack.

[man 2] Three races that that one car
has taken us out of.

[Ty Norris] He drives every lap like his
job's determined by how he comes out

on the other side.

That's something he's been
known to do here recently.

Probably needs to
get his butt whooped.

[commentator] Oh, hello.

I think you sit here and
watch all these fans,

they're sick of
all the vanilla drivers.

[Kevin] You got a really inexperienced guy

in a really fast car that made
a bad move and it wrecked me.

[Shannon] There's always a part
to certain people

who are afraid that it's
gonna go away tomorrow,

and I feel like Ross
races with that.

Nobody confronts the guy. He just
keeps doing it, and I'm tired of it.

[Marty] You might be mad,
and you can like it or not,

but I ain't taking it back.

I got the checkered flag
and the trophy.

And all the stuff that
comes with that, whatever.

Some guys just love the spoils.

Ross ain't one of those guys.

He's a watermelon farmer.

[slow country music]

[Ross] I grew up an eighth-generation
watermelon farmer.

I never thought I wanted
to be an astronaut,

or the president,
or anything else.

My dad was everything
that I wanted to be.

[boy] I wanna be a NASCAR driver
just like you, champ.

You want to?

-Uh-huh.
-[Ty] He connects

with the blue-collar fan
in the grandstands

more than anybody since
Dale Earnhardt passed away.

I think Ross has struggled
with the idea of being a star,

'cause he still looks at
himself as one of the guys.

-[fan] Thank you, sir.
-Yeah.

And by the way, I absolutely
fell out of my chair

-when you were at Martinsville.
-Yeah.

-Yeah, so did we.
-I seriously fell out of my chair.

I felt like I was going to,
in the car.

[Marty] Last season,
Ross Chastain was in a position

on the last lap of the final race

before the championship race,

and he was outside of
the threshold to qualify

for the championship race.

[Shannon] If you don't advance
to Phoenix,

-you're not racing for a championship.
-[Rick Allen] One lap to go.

Ross is running 10th
on that final lap.

[Marty] He had to throw a Hail Mary,

and his Hail Mary was
something that's never happened

in the history of NASCAR.

And I thought my TV
glitched or something.

[Ross] At that point, you've
had your chance,

and at lap 500, the gate shuts.

What do I have to lose?
I'm out.

And I just picked a spot on the wall,
aimed right for it,

and never questioned it.

[Marty] He madded the gas as
hard as he could press it

to the floorboard,
he steered his car into the wall,

and rode the wall
all the way around the racetrack.

[Jeff Burton] Chastain did
a video game move.

Put the car against
the wall, wide open,

all the way around
turn three and four.

Sparks flying, parts flying,
shit flying everywhere.

[Jeff] He went
from 10th to fifth place.

I have never seen anything
like that before in my life.

It was dangerous as all hell.

[Jeff] But that's why Justin Marks
hired that guy.

[Justin] What came into my mind was,
"Is it legal?"

Was I hallucinating,
or did it actually happen?

His crew chief, his team owner
didn't know he was gonna do this.

It's a Hail Mary,
but it's the Hail Melon

because it's Ross Chastain.

That strategy is now illegal.
You can't do that anymore.

Damnedest thing I've seen
in the sport in a long time.

[Ross] This is where we rode the wall.

We didn't win the race that day,
but we won the...

The bigger battle was to
make it to the final four,

so I love that it
meant so much to us

and that I was willing
to do what I did

to try to make it,
to fight for a championship.

[Steve] We talk about Trackhouse.

They're a brand-new team,
they have some fresh blood.

And Ross Chastain is a
perfect driver for Trackhouse.

I was impressed what
he did at Martinsville.

The fact that he was even that close
at Phoenix, I was impressed with.

[Rick] Finishing second in the point
standings will be Ross Chastain.

Sure that's not
what he was hoping for

as far as this storybook ending to
what a season it has already been.

[Steve] They took that as motivation

and found their way back
to the playoffs this year.

[Justin] The competitor in you in the
moment is bummed out that you didn't win.

Second's about the worst place
that you can finish,

'cause you're
that close to the win.

We were 235 feet from
winning the championship,

and so we decided
together to turn that

into a rallying cry
for our company.

We painted 235 on the road in here,
just so, when you drive into work,

you realize that that's how close we were
to the highest prize in the sport.

[Ty] So when you win the NASCAR
Cup Series Championship,

it's a trophy so big that it takes two
or three of 'em to hold up,

and it's just beautiful
sterling silver.

And when you finish
235 feet away

from winning the championship,
this is the bowling trophy you get.

So, no disrespect,
this is a perfect reminder

that second is really
the first last.

[producer speaking]

It drives me now.

[interviewer] What have you learned from
last year's whole playoff experience

to now coming back in the playoffs?
Have you approached it differently?

I definitely have evolved from last year.
There's no doubt.

There's no way that I
could come back and not,

knowing what I learned,

that I wouldn't be different.
So it's part of my evolution.

[Steve] It's now down to 12
at Texas Motor Speedway.

This round also includes Talladega
and the ROVAL at Charlotte

where four more drivers
will be eliminated.

Ross Chastain, Brad Keselowski,
Ryan Blaney, and Bubba Wallace

start the round
below the cut line.

[Dale] It doesn't bother me to look at
Bubba in 12th.

Even though he doesn't have any points,
you've to come in with a mindset of,

"We're chasing a checkered flag."

[Bubba] I don't wanna push it too much.

So here it's like, "Alright, I know what I
need to do to qualify."

-[man] Okay, good car.
-[engine roars]

[Steve] This could be a huge lap
for the 23 of Bubba Wallace,

at the bottom
of the playoff grid currently.

Man, what a great job
by Bubba Wallace.

There's no points awarded
for the pole,

-but a great starting position.
-[Bootie] Flagpole sitta.

[Rick] Bubba Wallace has
captured the pole position

for the Autotrader
EchoPark Automotive 400.

The last man out goes
to the top of the list.

Fuck yeah!

Thataboy.

-Way to go, my man.
-Wow.

First pole of the season,
you do it when it matters the most.

-How does it feel?
-Ah, it feels great.

Appreciate everybody
on this 23 team.

-You're so short, dog, I missed you.
-[laughs]

Just keep it up.

-You're doing great, man.
-Thanks, bro.

[Dale] Qualifying on the pole is
a big morale boost for a team.

Starting up front is
a great advantage.

It makes them feel whether it's reality
or not that they had the best car there.

Well, hell yeah.

Put that one in the collection.

It ain't bad.
Get about 100 more.

[door clicks]

[Rick] Round 2 starts today, another
opportunity for a playoff driver

to win their way
into the next round.

[Bubba] Alright, team, great job
on starting off on the right foot.

Let's lock in and
do what we need to do.

Appreciate every one of you.
See you at the end.

-Yeah, yeah!
-[Steve] Green flag is in the air.

Bubba Wallace on the charge
on the low side.

Looks like he's gonna pull
the train to turn one.

[Bubba] These races are hard to win,
and Texas is so treacherous.

[Steve] The dominant car here so far
is the pole-sitter, Bubba Wallace.

[Bubba] But at that moment,
you put everything aside,

and whatever happens, happens.

[Rick] He's led 89 laps today.

That is a career-high.

[Steve] Out of nowhere, Ross Chastain
is in the mix. The Watermelon Man.

[Ross] All right, you control your own
destiny down at the bottom.

[Rick] Bubba Wallace and Ross Chastain
streak away from the rest of the pack

by a couple car lengths.

[Bubba] Trying to find speed.
Right rear is just... no security.

[spotter] Copy.
No security, right rear.

[Steve] Kyle Larson is on the charge.

[Rick] And there's Mr. H, Rick Hendrick,
looking for win number 300.

Bubba Wallace under
fire as the 5 gets by.

[Bootie] Kyle Larson had the best car.

I think we pretty much
had the second-best.

-[Steve] Oh, no!
-[Rick] Oh, round goes the 5!

Larson gets sideways,

and he spins underneath
Bubba Wallace.

[Bootie] Kyle Larson
got loose and wrecked,

but he didn't take us out.

And that was huge.

-[Cliff] You all right?
-[Kyle] Yep. Sorry. Fuck!

[Cliff] Come back to pit road,
to the garage. We're done.

[Byron] I felt a pressure.

When he crashed, I'm like,
"Well, Mr. H is here,

300's on the line.
I need to win this race."

[Rick] Bubba Wallace.

Can he win his way
into the Round of 8?

Green flag's back in the air!

[Jeff] Now we're side by side
down the back straightaway, contact.

-Here comes Byron to the inside.
-[Rick] Wallace a little loose.

Here comes Byron. He clears him.

Byron in front, five laps to go.

Ross Chastain
gets around Bubba Wallace.

Chastain is second.

[Bubba] When things
are looking to be okay,

there's something that comes in
and humbles you real quick.

[Rick] Is it gonna be the driver of the 24

that gives Rick Hendrick
his 300th win in the Cup Series?

One lap to go.

[Byron] When you're out in front,
everything's quiet, track's clear.

It just feels awesome.

That's the moment you live for.

[Rick] Byron, the 25-year-old,
is gonna win at Texas!

[Byron] Hell yeah, boys.
Awesome job.

Playoffs, baby, let's go!

Whoo! Three-hundred! Twenty-four on the
round of eight. Hell yeah! Whoo!

[Rick] After leading 111 laps today,
Bubba Wallace ends up in third.

[Bubba] I know what I did, and I choked.

I really needed a win there,
and I hate it for my team.

They put so much effort into giving me
the best race cars to win races in.

Giving it up like that is heartbreaking.
Devastating.

[interviewer speaking]

[Bootie] I mean, like dog shit.

How else is there to feel?

We had a chance to win
there and seal the deal

to get into the Round of 8.
I knew how massive that was.

I'm proud of everybody,
I'm proud of him.

But enjoy it, 'cause I'm
taking this motherfucker off.

-[producer] I appreciate your time.
-Yeah. Can you take this?

-[producer] Yes, absolutely.
-Thank you. Appreciate it.

[producer speaking]

Hmm.

I guess I lied to your ass.

I guess I was upset
that we got that close

and it just didn't happen.

I was mad at Texas,
I was mad at the heat,

I was mad at you for having
cameras on me, and microphones.

Just basic human emotion.

That's it, I think.

[Rick] William Byron
led only the final six laps.

Three hundred wins
for the Hendrick organization.

-[fan 1] William, William!
-[fan 2] William!

[Byron] You work so damn hard
to get to that spot.

It's just a joy that
you can't replicate.

That's why it's so special.

[cameraman] Straight ahead.
Y'all ready?

-[crowd] Whoo!
-One, two, three.

[all] Whoo!

[Chad] Guys, I'll tell you, it's amazing.

To think, a few short years ago,
we were at 200.

Just a couple of years ago,
we eclipsed the Petty number.

And to be sitting here today
on 300 is just phenomenal.

[Gordon] Everybody wanted
to be the ones

sitting on that victory lane to get 300.

It's a big milestone,

but great job to the 24 team
for getting it done.

But I just wanted to say,
everybody has gotten us here.

[Chad] It's amazing to see the amount of
pride in the company right now.

At 4:00, we're gonna shut down,

we're gonna get a bunch
of adult beverages,

and just invite everybody
on campus up here just for a drink.

But it's gonna be a full house.

[Byron] Oh, this is cool.

How we doing? Hey, guys.
How's it going?

-Good to see you.
-Come here.

-I'm gonna get you a drink.
-Yeah. I like that.

-Hey, good job, buddy.
-Thank you, man.

-I appreciate it.
-Yeah.

[Byron] Right now,
it's a little bit of a blur.

In Texas, I'm like,
"We haven't won a playoff race."

What is holding us back
from being that team

at that point of the year?

So I don't know. I think right now
what sticks with me,

and this is probably selfish to say,
but what sticks with me

is that we won
a playoff race for the first time.

Here we go.

[Dana] I'm trying not to get my hopes up,
'cause I know how hard it is.

Every step is hard.

Obviously, this win puts us
in the next step,

but I felt pretty confident
he could make it in the top eight.

So it's gonna be really hard
to get in the top four,

no matter how good you are.
Everybody's good at this level.

Yeah, it's fine. What?

-What'd you do?
-Nothing.

You spilled it?

-It's okay.
-It's all good.

[Dana] It's kind of unreal, a little bit,
because, I mean, he's still just my...

he hates it when I
say this, my little boy.

Sorry, I had girls with me,

-so I was trying to push it along.
-Don't you have a girlfriend?

-Yeah.
-No, my mom and my girlfriend.

Yeah. Mom.

There's your mom right there.

He's doing good at this, too.
Getting better.

I remember when he
wouldn't say a word.

[Rudy] That never giving up and that
satisfaction of winning a race like that,

I think is what this
place has been built on,

is that, never give up.
So really appreciate everything,

and let's go get more.

[Byron] When I came here as a rookie,
it was overwhelming.

I think that I was intimidated
by the people I work with.

The last couple of years, it's different.
I feel more comfortable here,

and I think that's made
a lot of the difference.

[Jeff] This organization,
it's like a family in many ways.

It's a great feeling
to be a part of that.

And right now, the momentum
is there to keep it rising.

So appreciative of all of you guys.

You know, I grew up as a race fan,

watching Hendrick Motorsports win
number 200.

We wanna win more,
we wanna win the championship.

Sunday was really special,

and definitely wanna get
a few more, so, appreciate it.

Cheers.

-Cheers.
-Cheers.

[cheering and applause]

Cheers, bud.

[Mike] You know,
you talk about these big teams,

Hendrick Motorsports
with their 300th win,

but so far, Team Penske,

not exactly what they
were hoping for at all.

[Steve] Rick Hendrick and Roger Penske
are both titans of industry.

Personalities are
very different.

What's the common thread?
They win. They wanna win.

[Penske] Winning is an important
part of our DNA in our company.

To get there is a real journey.

[Mike] Joey Logano has
already been eliminated,

and then there's Ryan Blaney
currently sitting below the cut line.

[Ryan] I'm definitely in
the shadow of Joey.

You know, he's two-time champion,
won tons of races.

He's accomplished more in his
career than I have in mine.

I think it kind of fuels me, right?

When people who you work
with have success.

You wanna be at that level, too.

[slow country music]

The first-time saddle.

-Here we go.
-[Gianna] Remember how to get in?

Oh, yeah.

[Gianna] There you go.

[Ryan] I feel like a kid
at the county fair.

-Say, "Trot."
-Trot, trot.

Come on, trot. Trot.

Good girl.

[Ryan] Gianna, my girlfriend, we've been
dating for just over three years now.

I never dated anybody growing up,
like, long-term.

Never had
a serious relationship.

I got really lucky that her
and hit it off.

A toast.

We're gonna have to have you
come back and get more lessons.

Yeah. Good job.

Okay.

[laughs] This is Malibu.

She thrives for attention,
as you can see.

[laughs] Honestly.

My racing roots go
back for a long time.

My grandfather, Lou,
raced from the '60s

all the way up to the 2000s,

and then my dad and his brother, Dale,
raced through the '80s, '90s,

and then I started racing
when I was about nine.

So I was born into it,
and it's just what I did,

it's what our family did.
I didn't really know anything else.

[interviewer] Besides your dad,
who's your favorite driver?

Probably Kasey Kahne. He's kinda cool,
and my sister likes him, so...

My younger sister, Erin,
she's dating William Byron.

They've been dating longer than me
and Gianna have been together.

I told her, "If you would've picked

any of the other youngsters
out there, I would be upset."

But William was definitely
the best one, so...

I don't play a ton of pool.

I don't play any pool,
so no one judge me.

Hopefully, I get
a good break here.

This is big for the brand.

Fuck me.

[producer] Cut.

I was so concerned about
hitting the shit out of it.

Gianna knew nothing about
racing when we started dating.

I mean, she had no idea
about the sport at all.

You know, she's a pro now.

She understands the dangers of it
and understands the risks.

[Rick] Coming up on the final lap
of Stage 2, big push from Blaney.

Oh, into the wall hard goes Ryan Blaney.

[Steve] That's a big impact.
Really big impact.

[Ryan] What'd you think at this moment?

[Gianna] I froze. I didn't know what
to think at first.

I was just waiting to hear your voice
on the radio so I knew you were okay.

I think I'm okay.

I need a second. Fuck.

What happened there?

Before I knew it,
I was hitting the fence.

I saw the whiteness of the wall
the very last second,

and then I'm hitting it.

You take a while
to catch your breath.

It took me two or three minutes
to get my bearings together.

[Gianna] You could tell
he didn't really have his breath,

and he was a little shaken up.

Shaken.

-Yeah.
-But not stirred.

If this was four years ago
and I had a wreck like that,

I would've drank all day Sunday.

It's nice to have that little angel
on your shoulder there, like,

"Hey, you should
probably rest up."

I don't think about
the danger side of it.

We think of the safety side,

of what we can do better to keep
improving safety of these cars.

Those safety innovations
that we've had

in the last 20 years
has been phenomenal.

[Rick] SAFER barrier has
Styrofoam behind the wall,

and he hit it about as hard as we've seen
someone hit a wall here.

And it happens quick.

Ryan's the kind of driver
that if he can have good enough fortune,

he's gonna need a couple
things to go his way,

a little bit of luck maybe,
but he can win anywhere.

Talladega's a great track for him.

If he can be one of
the four at Phoenix,

then his shot's as
good as anyone's.

[Mike] Talladega's Superspeedway is the
halfway point of the NASCAR playoffs

with speeds of almost
200 miles an hour,

racing in four wide packs,
and big wrecks.

You can't win the championship at
Talladega, but you sure can lose it.

[Steve] Talladega is an event.

-Oh, yeah.
-[Steve] It's a bucket list item.

It's in country songs,
it's in the middle of nowhere.

If you drive down the interstate,
you see it, your eyes pop out,

can't believe that's
what the place looks like.

It has a couple great races,
two nights of parties.

What could be wrong with Talladega?
It's spectacular.

[Jeff] Talladega Boulevard.
One thing is for sure, Brad, I know this.

They've never lost a party
here at Talladega.

They are undefeated.

[Brad] It is almost better to come watch
that than to watch the race, almost.

[fan] This is
a 1957 Chevy 150 Handyman.

My wife and I retired
four years ago,

and this was on our bucket list,
and we said, "We'll try it once."

This is our seventh time here,

and we're already paid up for
next spring and next fall.

[interviewer speaking]

[fan] I just like Ross. He's kind of
a low-key, even-kinda-going guy.

-Whoo! Whoo!
-[fan] When he gets in that car,

just like me in this thing,

it's like, "Just get outta the way, buddy.
We're coming through."

[Ross] Holy moly.
How you doing?

-Hey, buddy.
-I had to come see this.

-It's our Watermelon Wagon.
-Yeah, right?

[engine revving]

[fan] He's an everyday guy.

I mean, he's standing here,
talking to me, and I'm nobody.

He's a superstar.

He'd take the time outta his day
to come find us, in the first place,

and then spend the time and
talk with me, and sit in my car.

We spotted you from
a quarter mile away,

-'cause we could see the watermelon.
-Yeah.

One thing I can find,
and that's a watermelon.

-That's what we were hoping.
-Yeah.

[in Italian accent] Hello.
Welcome to Super Mario World.

[Alexa laughs]

-This is Mario.
-And I'm Luigi.

-No, no, I'm Luigi.
-I'm Mario.

You're Mario.

Beau wanted to be Mario.
Naturally, he needs his crew, right?

-[Alexa] Yeah.
-He wanted me to be Luigi,

he wanted Alexa to be Bowser,
which I thought was funny.

Bowser, yes.
So here I am, shell and all.

-There you go.
-Appreciate it. Thank you.

It's Mario.

[Alexa] They put on this event every year,
call it a fall festival.

Kids dress up,
they have the Halloween costume,

we all go trick-or-treating,
and it's just like at home.

If your light is on outside your door,
you better have some candy,

because they are
gonna come a-knocking.

-And first place goes to...
-I'm excited.

-Beau Reddick.
-There you go, Beau!

[Tyler] I was just always
a big fan of Mario

and the Super Mario Brothers world,

so it was just like
a cool, real natural fit

that the movie came out when it did.

Beau latched onto it.

It was just really convenient,
because I grew up

having a lot of
interest in Mario.

Grew up?
He still plays Mario Kart.

Well, yeah.
I mean, you have to. Yeah.

That's how I get ready...
for races, it's Super Mario.

Yes.
Does anyone know where our kid is?

-Yes.
-Okay, I'm sorry.

Peppa Pig, right?
We watched that for a big span.

I loved it, then I was like,
"Okay, can we figure out something else?"

I don't like Peppa Pig.

I like Peppa Pig,
but the same thing every day

for months on end...

We did Frozen like
that for a while.

-Yes.
-I'm like, "All right,

-let's try something different."
-Yeah, I get that.

Less Frozen. But now we're kinda
cool watching Frozen

'cause we don't see it
every day multiple times.

I know. Yeah.

-Kids are funny like that.
-I know.

[country music playing]

[Dale] Y'all ready?
We're heading to the TV compound.

I love waking up and getting out in
the infield on race morning.

We just got done
trick-or-treating last night.

All these campers are waking up
with a headache this morning.

Some of 'em. I'll see you.

-I love you, Daddy.
-I love you, too.

See y'all in a couple days.

My wife will tell you when I was driving
in the races, "You're pretty moody."

Hard to be in conversations
about other things going on

in your life other
than the race.

With a broadcaster,
we like to say there's no wins and losses.

We don't walk out of there
and go, "You know, man,

we lost today or
what we won today."

It makes me admire
the guys that do it

because I know what
they're dealing with.

I love everything about
the sport I grew up in.

It is everything about me.
It's all I know, and so...

I wanna bring that passion
up into the booth as well.

The one thing that I was
curious about is this big influx

of team orders by manufacturers.

We can tell that story while it's
happening if we get lucky to see it.

'Cause we all can easily
recognize somebody trying

to win something
or trying to create,

create a pass or move
forward in the field.

But trying to recognize
when someone's trying

to help someone else
is really difficult.

[Mark] Take care of
each other out there.

Get everybody to the finish.

Give everybody
an opportunity to win.

We always know and respect it.

You're racing for your team
and your team owner,

but also you're racing
for Ford Motor Company.

So you represent our company
and Ford family

and looking forward to
seeing that teamwork play out

and hopefully,
we get a Ford in Victory Lane.

The mic's officially on.
Don't say anything dumb.

-[Tyler] How are you?
-[Nick] It's good. Very easy.

You've to beat every other car.

I've watched 40 hours of film.
We can't fuck this one up, right?

[Steve] So you know, a driver
is in the car for three

or four hours by himself.
It can be a lonely situation.

The only way he could communicate
is a two-way radio.

There's really three people on that radio.

The driver, the spotter up above
and the crew chief.

[Nick] That's a real like...
Criminal way to do that.

[Tyler] Dude, it's, it is probably
the worst avocado.

[Nick] Avocado nuggets.

The simple role for a spotter
is to be the driver's eyes and ears.

Don't hit anything.

-Yeah, yeah, okay. Yeah.
-Okay?

-Alright, let's roll.
-Good luck.

-See ya.
-[Nick] You have their life in your hands

and help 'em stay safe every weekend.
But Talladega's tough.

Yep.

It's definitely a place
where you know wrecks happen

and they happen big at Talladega.

It's not "if" it's "when,"
you have to prepare weeks in advance

for these super-speedway races and then
just be on the same page.

'Cause, if you're not on the same page,
it can turn bad really fast.

We maintain a good tan
all year round, so that's nice.

That's a perk of my job.

[Mike] It's race day in Alabama

and as always, anything can happen here
at Talladega Super Speedway.

William Byron is already through by virtue
of his win a week ago.

Denny Hamlin's in
good shape in points,

but he would love to win here.
So would his drivers

on the 23XI racing team,
Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace.

[Steve] Ross Chastain comes into Talladega
plus 12 to the cut line.

What level of aggression
is good for today for you?

[Ross] Whatever it takes to
get points, that's all that matters.

[Steve] The last eight Talladega races,

Ryan Blaney has finished
first or second half the time

and he needs that today.

Finding himself 11 points
below the cut line.

-What's up?
-Be safe.

Thanks. Appreciate it.

I love you, and no matter
what happens today,

I'm proud of you.

[jet engine roaring]

[Steve] It's time for the playoff race
at Talladega.

The drivers dread it,
the fans love it.

Let's get the engines
cranked here in Central Alabama.

-[Tyler] Copy, Nick.
-[Nick] Loud and clear.

-[Tyler] Alright, have a good race, buddy.
-[Nick] You too.

[Rick] Green flag is out.

It's like a train
coming up to speed.

Delaney takes that momentum.

[Gianna] Depending on the race
and the track,

I do get bad anxiety when
I'm up there, so I like

to come back to the bus,
decompress, watch a little bit.

It's a dangerous sport
and anything can happen,

especially towards
the end of the stages.

They get more aggressive

'cause they want to be... get
the stage points and be up there.

[Rick] Here comes the 12.

[team member] 24 right with you.

[Rick] Blaney needs the points.
Austin Cindric falling back in the middle.

Contact made! Ross Chastain goes around,
he tags the wall.

[Steve] Chastain's getting aggressive,
trying to get some stage points.

[Ross] Obviously, while I'd
take it back if I could,

I just thought I could
slide through there

and wasn't the right move.

Huge issue for Chastain.

No stage points
and a torn-up race car.

[Ross] No steering.

Could be the end
of the day for him.

Copy on that. No steering, guys.
We're done then.

[Ross] Sorry.

[Rick] And Ryan Blaney, under caution,

is going to win stage one
here at Talladega.

-[Jonathan] All right, man. Good work.
-[Rick] Ten stage points.

The day's going the way
we wanted to so far.

Knock on wood.
Let's keep kicking butt.

[Nick] If Bubba pushes you here,
you should get a good run.

[Steve] Tyler Reddick with a trunk full
of his teammate Bubba Wallace.

They'll go to the lead in Talladega.

[Rick] 23XI racing showing the way in
that outside lane.

Still half in front, half behind.
No changes, still middle-three.

[Steve] Here comes Ryan Blaney
storming up the outside.

[interviewer speaking]

I'll just be so excited.
I'll probably be a child.

Like, "Oh, my God."
And then I'll probably cry.

I'll be so proud of him.

[Steve] Who is gonna win at Talladega?

In one lap,
we will know the answer.

[Rick] Blaney on the high side.
Harvick on the inside.

[Ryan] We've always done a good job
of these racetracks.

I have confidence in Josh,
my spotter.

[Josh] Off by half and tight.
Lemme push back to you here.

[Dale] Harvick is clear on the 12.
Now he's gonna have to spot both lanes.

[Ryan] All you can ask for is
putting yourself in a spot

to win the race at the end.

[Josh] Getting a push from the #7 behind,
you're all clear.

[Rick] The 12 to the inside.
Now, Blaney and Harvick.

You fucking got this.

[Rick] Blaney with a push
from the 24 of Byron.

[Byron] In that moment, tactically,
the best thing I can do is to push him.

Do I want him to win over
somebody I don't like?

-Yeah, probably.
-[Steve] Here they come.

[Rick] Side by side, Blaney, Harvick,
they spin behind them.

You got this.

[Ryan] Did we get it?

[Rick] It's gonna be Blaney.

Oh, my God!

[Ryan] Yeah, fucking right, we got it!

[Rick] Blaney gets the win at Talladega.

12/1000s of a second.

[screeching playfully]

I'm so happy.

That was intense.
That was so exciting.

Gosh, I had to look and be like,
"Wait, he won."

I know, me too, I stood there
and I'm like, "I need to confirm."

I know, I didn't wanna
cheer too early.

[interviewer] Tyler Reddick, what was
missing today for you and the team?

[Tyler] One way or another, we need to
come out better than we did coming in.

But I mean, with Blaney winning
and for us to still be minus two

considering all things like,
I mean, it didn't really go...

Hey, it's still on fire.

Anyways, our car's on fire.
There's that.

[upbeat rock music plays]

[Rick] Ryan Blaney secured a spot
in the round of eight.

-I'm in shock. Are you in shock?
-It's fucking cool, ain't it?

Yeah, I'm really proud of you.

You should have saw
my emotions were... [mimics panting]

-Tell Willy B, thanks!
-[Ryan] It was a good day for us

and it was
better for Erin 'cause

both her brother and
her boyfriend

finished pretty good and helped
each other out and one of 'em won.

You appreciate the ones you win
so much more because

in this sport, you're gonna
lose more than you win.

-Good job, guys.
-Thanks, sir.

[Ryan] Roger Penske was there.
Always fun to have him at the races

and especially when you can win.

That's like the only time
I get yelling excited.

It's like I...
I don't do that ever.

I really want a beer,
but I gotta drive.

[Gianna] Baby, you want me to drive?

We have a long night
of celebrating tonight.

The good news about
drinking after races...

[Gianna] You get drunk faster.

It doesn't take too much
to get tipsy.

I guess we're partying tonight.

You wanna drive or
you want me to drive?

-I'll drive.
-You should probably drive.

I am always the DD.
I'm used to it.

[Ryan] Our group has tons of confidence
now and that's what you need.

That's what makes you better.

And that's what makes you
believe that you can do it.

And our group needed that,
and luckily we got it.

[Ross] No, you didn't
grow up in Florida, buddy.

You know how you know in Florida,
if there's an alligator in the water?

-It bites you?
-If the water's wet.

[laughs]

My job every day is to be the
best race car driver I can be.

We just got out of a 500-mile
rollercoaster ride

at a hundred-and-something degrees
for two, three, four hours,

and that's gonna have
a effect on the human body.

That's why the training is so important.

I really don't know what
other drivers are doing

and I don't know what
you're supposed to do,

'cause there is no like
handbook and playbook.

There is no school to go to.

There's no certain path
from six years old to 16

for how to be a NASCAR driver.

I'm not saying that swimming is going
to make me a better race car driver,

but I know that changing the way
I do things has helped me.

I used to eat breakfast,
lunch and dinner at Chick-fil-A.

Now, I've got powders in the morning,

a salad at lunch
and a rice bowl at dinner.

We're always looking for an edge.
I know what I used to be,

and I know what I
have transformed into.

We weren't necessarily swimming this far
and I know that it's made me better.

I just want to be the best I can be.
I don't know.

And I really don't care
what other people are doing.

[trainer] So the first one we got
is the big E.

Single target,
jumping around on you. It's reaction.

This is all reaction time. You're not
following it, you're tapping it.

-[Ross] Tapper time.
-Yep.

You keep your fingers on
stationary start points.

[Ross] Everything we do now
is all revolved around

making us better in the car.

There's a lot of
ways to do that.

And I don't feel
like I do enough, so...

[trainer] Good.

-Good, good, good, good, good.
-[trainer laughs]

[Ross] Kyle reading a book in here.

Look at him, sprawled out.

"Yeah, I always lay in
here with my abs out."

[laughs]

Put some clothes on.

-Yeah.
-Come on, man.

[Mike] With one race to go in this round,

you look at drivers that
are desperate for a win

and right at the top of
that list is Ross Chastain.

His crash in Talladega threw him
way down in the standings.

People are calling for those racing
heroics they saw a year ago.

Quite frankly,
it hasn't been there.

[Ross] People believe that I'm not as
aggressive, but I would just point back

to the last few
races of this round.

Texas 30th. Second, Talladega.

I went through a hole into
turn three early in the race

that put me four wide and I crashed.

I wish I would've
calmed down at Talladega

and just finished 10th in the stage.
Maybe got a point, maybe not,

but lived to fight for
more points at the end.

We work and we prepare with
the goal of getting to Phoenix.

We're currently 10 points
out of that cut-off.

It's gonna be a disappointment
if we don't make it,

but four...
four guys have to be out.

Like, there's just no way,
there's no way around that.

[Denny on radio] Hey, guys, welcome to
Actions Detrimental.

I love this playoff talk.
Let me ask you this here.

Who would be the most likely
to not make it outta the second round?

This is, I'm not hating on him,
but I'm just gonna say Ross.

The performance
perspective of Ross.

You know, it's just been "eh,"

because they...
they just haven't been strong.

Love it.

He's had an incredible career.

But just because he
has the longevity,

he then has the ability to create
a podcast to talk about everything.

It's like he just copy and pasted
what the older guy said about him

and now he read it
right off the playbook.

Denny's not wrong,
our performance has not been there,

but I like where I'm at
in the sport way better

than the competitor
that drives the 11 car.

[Mike] We've got the ROVAL
at the end of the round of 12.

It's so tricky.
Half oval, half road course.

There's so many drivers that are
uncomfortable on this racetrack

and Denny Hamlin is
definitely one of them.

Denny's above the cut line.
He's in solid shape for now.

But Sunday could be a very,
very tricky day for him.

[Denny] There's probably three or
four elite road course racers.

There's about 10
that are pretty good

and then you probably got
everyone else.

This year, I've moved myself
into the "pretty good" category.

But yeah, it's gonna continue
to take more work, more reps.

When you lead
into the ROVAL plus 50,

honestly, it would just take
an apocalypse of situations

for us to, you know,
not make it past this round.

These are my first-ever
designed Jordan shoes

and it has the date
of my very first win at Richmond.

The shoes have gotta be
12-years-old at least.

Oddly enough, it's probably
the most comfortable.

I just saw that sign. "Please do not speak
when the driver is speaking."

Words to live by.

Short-track racing is
what I've always done.

I understand how to
superspeedway race.

Intermediate tracks, I'm honed in on it.
I know what I need to do.

But the road course racing
is what I never grew up doing

and never did until
I got to NASCAR.

Can I request a drink holder
and a phone holder?

That'd be fantastic.

Listen, I always
have doubt in myself.

I've said from the
very beginning,

I'm not the most talented.
I just worked my way there.

-[upbeat music]
-[training car roars]

The technology keeps
getting better.

All the young guys coming up,
I hate to say it,

they're better than the old guys
that we're used to competing.

It doesn't matter that you've been
in the sport for 15 years. Figure it out.

I'd almost rather
just stay static,

gimme the bumps and shit,
but not the side to side.

What do I need to work on
to be a better race car driver?

What are your faults?
Where's your weaknesses?

And you have to be willing
to go to work on 'em

and I think that's
what makes you fast.

[phone ringing]

I'm working.

[Jordan] I know. I just wanted to say hi.

Oh, that's nice.
Hi, I gotta go to work now.

Okay, bye, love you.

Bye. Love you.

All right, let's go.

[Mike] Coming up this
weekend in Charlotte,

it's the final race of the round of 12
at the Charlotte ROVAL.

And by the way, it's a home game
for pretty much all of NASCAR.

That commute to the racetrack?
It's gonna be a piece of cake.

It couldn't be more convenient for all the
locals who live just a short drive away.

[Tyler] I've been through these situations
before and made it through it.

Days like this
you feel a lot better about.

It's not as stressful when
you know you have a good team,

your confidence is high.

[producer speaking]

I do notice sometimes I...
I do come off almost too,

you know, emotionless.

Sometimes I just try and save it
for the track a little bit.

You have to be able to
perform under pressure.

We have to perform perfectly and that's
okay, it's a realistic expectation.

If we do our part every weekend,
we're gonna be where we wanna be.

[Steve] It's elimination day as the NASCAR
Cup Series cuts the playoff field from 12

to eight in the sports
hometown at the ROVAL,

half road course, half oval.

Add them together and you get one of
NASCAR's most challenging racetracks.

[JR] Taking points. What we think we need
to get for points for the 23.

I mean, we just need to score
what we think is about 40 points.

Forty points is how many
points you get for winning.

[Ross] Racing for me is indescribable.

I mean, like driving a vehicle
to its limit, overstepping that limit

and then crashing or not,
that moment,

nothing else in
the world matters.

Proud of you, man.
You've come a long way.

[Bubba] Thanks, brother.

Whatever happens, I'm proud of you guys.
Appreciate it.

[Rick] Racing at the ROVAL is underway.

[Steve] Tyler Reddick with a big jump.

Pretty good battle shaping up for third.

Bubba Wallace hanging
onto that spot for now

but Daniel Suárez
all over the rear bumper.

[Bubba] Road courses are not my forte.

You know, we were fighting
and clawing our way

back up through the field.

Really good laps, buddy.
Keep it going.

[Steve] Tyler Reddick sailing down
the back stretch all alone.

So far, it's been
the Tyler Reddick show.

[Rick] And Tyler Reddick,
he wins stage one here at the ROVAL.

[Tyler] We'll go for those stage points
and that our speed has been good

for the road courses
all year long.

Put us in a good spot to get
out of the round of 12th.

[Freddie] Keep rocking, man,
you're doing good.

[Steve] Every point may count here
at the end of the day.

Bubba Wallace, but still minus 17 in 10th.

Minus 19 and 11th is Ross Chastain.

Kyle Busch is 12th now, minus 22.

[Bootie] I'll let you know
the point situation right now.

Basically, you and the 1 are heads up

and we're about eight points
behind the 17.

[Bubba] 10-4, I don't need
to know that anymore. We're good.

It's a race.
Whatever happens, happens.

This is where we start to see a bit
of a shitshow, let's be ready.

[Rick] Falling into that
must-win situation.

Ross Chastain is probably
in it now as well.

-[Steve] Whoa, 11 car spinning.
-[Chris] Watch that one up ahead.

Got up ahead,
coming back across the track.

[Rick] Oh, contact.

[Steve] That's what all these playoff guys
are afraid of.

That kind of problem
and you are done making points.

[Denny] The points reset after
that race anyway.

So whether we finish second or 32nd
would've been no different.

[Rick] Denny Hamlin has locked
himself into the next round.

That's the good news.

This is not gonna be the result he wanted,
but he will race for the championship

when we start
the round of eight next week.

[man] Thirty-one to go with the line.

[Steve] Driver Tyler Reddick wants to
continue to move up through the field.

He's in fifth right now, right on the back
bumper of William Byron.

And we have a couple of cars spinning
through the back stretch chicane.

One of those is Bubba Wallace.

That is a lot of spots he lost.

Fuck!

[Bootie] Didn't see who it was
but somebody launched him into you.

[Steve] And Bubba Wallace's playoff hopes
probably disappearing here.

[Bubba] Obviously bummed,
devastated and frustrated.

[Bubba] It's always something, baby.

Always something.

[Rick] Again side by side
through the back stretch chicane

and Chastain takes the spot back.

[Ross] The car was good
to get by some guys

and I thought we
were close enough

to have a shot, but we never
had the raw speed to win.

[Steve] Checkered flag
for A.J. Allmendinger,

as he wins at the ROVAL,

bettering William Byron
by about three car lengths.

Brad Kozlowski, Ross Chastain,
Bubba Wallace,

and Kyle Busch will not move on
to the round of eight.

[Freddie] I know the result ain't what we
want, but that's a really good day.

[Bootie] Great job, man.
You did everything you could.

[Bubba] Yup, wasn't meant to be.

We'll learn from it and get stronger.

I look forward to the other races, too.
Let's go get us one.

[reporter] With not getting into
the round of eight,

is that kind of a bit
of an empty feeling for you?

-'Cause you wanted to win a championship.
-Of course.

[Ross] Just a few years ago,
I was the guy in the slowest car

getting paid hardly anything,
no contract.

Just making enough to pay my
bills, and I was happy then

and I'm even happier now
because I'm right where I want to be.

But that will end one day.

So what people think of me
or remember me as,

they won't
forget the watermelons.

We've got that covered.
Let's all watch and see.

[reporter] Beau, Dad made it to
the round of eight. How do you feel?

Good job, man.

Oh, no, no, no.

You just gotta go sometimes,
it's what happens.

I don't know,
like, you don't wanna hold it.

[Byron] All we needed to do
in the first round was just advance,

not have any major issues.

We knew in the second round we need
to turn up the wick a little bit.

We seem to be able
to answer that.

[Ryan] You get to the playoffs,
anything can happen.

Get you to the round of eight,
that's a shot in the arm.

Those little things
that can build up,

and get momentum rolling to where
you can do some great stuff.

I know, disappointing.
You did everything you could.

-Yeah.
-Other than the 99 getting in your ass.

-That's part of it, though, right?
-Yeah. We ain't got shit to lose.

Let's have fun the rest of the four races.
I'll see you in Vegas.

Okay, thank you, bro.

It's a bummer because you have one goal
at the beginning of the season.

To win a championship.
You get knocked out. That's it.

But this is a good season.
I try to hear the people around me,

"Hey, you've made into playoffs,
you weren't supposed to be there,

in the round of 12."

So I always say, "Never let the highs get
too high, or lows get too low."

[Bootie] You have to do everything
right just like bourbon.

You gotta do the best grains,
the best process.

Just like racing.
The best people, the best process.

Put yourself in position

and if it's your time,
you need to capitalize.

We did well, but there's
unfinished business...

for sure.

[country music playing]