Monday Morning Pit-Stop is a weekly NASCAR column that runs on OutKick.com and Fox News Digital. If you’re looking for a normal NASCAR recap, go check out insufferable ESPN … assuming they still know NASCAR exists.Stop the presses! We got a good NASCAR finish in what seems like the first time in forever.
Boy, did NASCAR need that, huh? It’s been a rough few months in terms of the actual racing. It just feels like we’ve been in a rut, and going from summer to fall doesn’t help.
NASCAR owns Sundays during the summer. There’s no real competition in terms of network TV. But once Labor Day hits and football takes over, it’s a grind to stay relevant.
Some weeks, they get lucky and a major fight breaks out after a race. Other weeks, an entire team attacks a driver by a hot dog stand and beats the snot out of him.
And then there are some Sundays when we actually get a good finish on the track. That was yesterday at Charlotte. Well done, Chase Briscoe.
We’ll get into it here in a bit.
What else? I’ve also got Bubba Wallace and Alex Bowman getting into a violent wreck during the actual race, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Michael McDowell getting into one after it, Hooters making a DISGUSTING decision in Daytona, and Kyle Busch’s Celebration of Live Friday night was quite the scene.
How about Brexton Busch nailing this burnout, too? Stud. You’ll see.
Four tires, enough fuel to get us through these final four races, and maybe an ice pack for Bubba and Alex today … Monday Morning Pit-Stop — the ‘Buzzer Beater In Charlotte’ edition — is LIVE!
There it is — the second closest finish at Charlotte in NASCAR history. Not bad for a terrible Next Gen car that makes it nearly impossible to pass!
Chase Briscoe, who waited 19 weeks to win his first race of the season back in July, has now won back-to-back races to cut Kyle Larson’s championship points lead down to 65 with four races to go.
He did it yesterday by nosing ahead of teammate Christopher Bell at the very last second, making it the closest Charlotte finish since …
Any guesses? Any takers? Nothing?!
Bueller??
Since Jimmie Johnson beat Bobby Labonte (!!!) in the 2005 Coca-Cola 600!
Look at that race. Man, we had it so good back then, and we just pissed it all away. Look at those cars! Listen to those announcers.
That was peak NASCAR, at least for me. Can’t believe it’s been 21 years. And somehow, Jimmie is still racing. Not on a full-time basis, of course, but he’s already locked in for next year’s Daytona 500.
Amazing.
Anyway, let’s head back to the year 2026 and stay on track …
Again, NASCAR needed that finish yesterday. The racing in this Chase has stunk so far. The storylines have been … pretty blah. Beyond a couple fights, there’s just been no juice. Eliminating the elimination race every three weeks will do that, by the way. But you all aren’t ready for that conversation yet.
But yesterday was a nice, solid bounce-back for the series. Charlotte gave us some decent racing, and a finish that made it worth the wait.
No complaints here.
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For those wondering, Kyle Larson finished sixth to maintain a pretty decent points lead (49) over Denny Hamlin with four races to go.
And also for those wondering just how dominant Larson’s been during these playoffs … yesterday’s sixth-place finish was his worst of all the Chase races. That’s right.
His finishes, starting with Darlington on Labor Day Sunday: 5,1,2,1,2,6.
Not bad! That’ll work.
We’ve got four races left in this 2026 season, by the way, and they’re four of the better tracks on the schedule.
I think we’re in for a big finale. I can feel it in my plumbs. Stay tuned.
Speaking of feeling things in your plumbs, let’s go ahead and check in on Alex Bowman and Bubba Wallace after yesterday’s surprisingly violent wreck:
Lordy. You get numb to these hits when you’ve done this for as long as I have, but that wreck even caught me off guard. I didn’t see it coming, and neither did Bubba.
Bowman, for what it’s worth, took full responsibility for the wreck … in the only way he could.
“I overcorrected and just did a s–t job,” he said.
Fair enough, Alex! Thanks for owning up to it.
OK, let’s put the pedal to the floor and get to a couple quickies on the way to Phoenix. First up? Let’s go from one violent wreck during the race to a not-so-violent-but-way-funnier wreck after the race!
Amazing. No clue wha the deal was with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. or Michael McDowell, but what a random two drivers to have beef with one another.
I do agree with the broadcasters on one thing, though … Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is probably one driver I’d steer clear of in that garage. He’s sort of a lunatic. He’s got crazy eyes. Remember the Kyle Busch fight a few years back?
Psycho. Head on a swivel, McDowell!
Next? Speaking of Kyle Busch, NASCAR had his official Celebration of Life at Charlotte Friday night, complete with Brexton Busch riding in Kyle’s No. 8 Chevy and giving the crowd the most pressure-packed burnout of all time.
He nailed it:
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Yeah, it just feels like we’re only a few years away from seeing Brexton in NASCAR — at some level. For those wondering, you can start racing in the Truck Series at just 16. He’s 11 right now. My calculator tells me that means we should be circling 2030.
Can’t wait.
OK, that’s all I got for today. Good race. Fun finish. Final four races of the season on deck.
On the way out, let’s pay proper respect to the greatest Hooters in America — the one directly across from Daytona international Speedway.
Unfortunately, that majestic palace closed its doors last week for the final time, which should show you how broken we are as a society right now. Disgusting behavior. I can’t believe it’s gone.
We deserve better.
Farewell, ladies.
Thank you.
