[Rick] Well, it's finally here. NASCAR'S Championship Week.
The Championship 4 is set.
This time next week, we'll crown a new king
after 312 miles at Phoenix Raceway in Arizona.
[objects clattering]
[William] Oh, I can't get it open.
We've worked to get here. Now the reward... we get to race.
Looks fairly complicated.
The competition's tougher. It will take our best.
We're building.
We're more capable than anyone we race against.
I feel like the muscle movements in my hands is kind of like driving.
Once I get in a rhythm with it, it flows pretty naturally.
- [Erin] How's it going? - It's going.
- You've done a lot so far. - Yeah.
Erin felt I needed something to get my mind off racing
and do something different, but I took it to a new level.
It fits my personality. It's very analytical.
The foundation's usually a lot of small pieces.
Lego takes a lot of fine details and it is very quiet.
[Erin] It's his time to escape.
I try to let him be most of the time when he's doing this.
[Marty] William Byron has really proved a lot of people wrong.
He has become an elite driver. It would be a season of destiny for him.
The expectation at Hendrick Motorsports
is winning a championship,
and William Byron would love to add his name to
all of those amazing names.
[William] It's everything I worked for, everything I dreamed about
when I was watching racing as a kid,
when I was trying to become a race car driver.
The opportunity's right in front of us.
Make sure the wheel isn't loose, it doesn't go flying off.
We have one of the best teams.
That's why I feel so confident in Sunday.
It's one race, winner-take-all.
Like, now let's go do it.
It says that's it.
Boom!
See if it rolls.
Cool.
[Katelyn] I didn't shut the gate the last two nights,
so there's feathers everywhere.
Look at all the feathers.
It looks like a damn massacre down here.
[Kyle] She's the farmer. I have nothing to do with these chickens.
- Katelyn's ate cow balls before. - Rocky Mountain Oysters.
You don't think I'm country now, though.
- You're not country. - Just a little bougie.
I ain't seen no girl wear Christian Dior on the farm.
I feel good.
I'm not nervous or anything like that.
Just excited for the opportunity to go try
and win another NASCAR Cup Series Championship.
You work hard throughout the season
to get to this point, so it's fun to have the opportunity.
Hey, now! See, he's protective.
He said, "Get off my girl." He's dominant.
[Jeff] When you have people praising you for your talent,
you feel you have to live up to that.
He wants to be one of the greatest of all time.
[Marty] It doesn't surprise me at all that there's
two Hendrick Motorsports drivers in the Championship 4.
Kyle Larson is in position to win a championship again.
He has car control. He is legendary.
He is maybe the most talented race driver on earth.
[Audrey] Mom!
[Kyle] Here, Audrey, our goal is that one.
I want to win a second championship.
I'm happy to have one
and will be buried someday knowing
that I'm a Cup Series Champion.
But it's hard to say
that this is just like any other weekend
because this race means more than the rest.
It would stamp ourselves even higher in the history books.
I'm hungry for that.
[Christopher] I think the key to a good signature is just being identifiable.
Kyle Busch has a great signature. Larson's is good.
If I see it, I'm like, "I know who that is."
Oh, wow. So we have a letter here.
"Christopher, I think you're talented, underrated
and have a great attitude.
We'd love to have you and Morgan to join us for our wedding."
Sorry, I didn't make it to your wedding, Brandy, but I appreciate the note.
Getting to Phoenix this year feels a lot more relaxed
than last year, knowing that I've been
in the final four of the championship race before.
I know what the pageantry's like. Ready for the challenge.
You know, what's funny? I remember this guy.
[Marty] Christopher Bell, he's not one you would look at
if you put a list of drivers down and go, "I would say he's got a real chance."
But, for the second consecutive year,
here he is and has put himself in a tremendous position.
He's not a young man that is gonna rock the boat.
He's not gonna say a lot. He's just gonna do it.
[Christopher] It's a high-pressure event.
I live for it. I love those moments.
I love knowing it's all on the line. It's now or never.
The guys who can manage that and come out on top are legends.
[Ryan] I don't particularly think any one
of the other three are gonna give us a problem.
The momentum we have,
none of those guys have shown the consistent speed
the last four weeks that we have.
[ATV engine turns]
[Ryan] Our group has been the best. That's what stands out the most.
That's when you judge who's gonna be tough.
It's not a coincidence we've been peaking at this time
and getting better.
This is gonna suck.
It's a lot of hard work over months to get here.
[Marty] Ryan Blaney is in a season of his life
where he's really figured out who he is.
There's this expectation from his youth that he was going
to be a championship-caliber driver.
He raced smart, he raced aggressive,
and he finally puts himself in position to have
the opportunity to be Cup Series Champion.
[producer speaking]
[Ryan] If I can win it? Win the championship?
It would prove I am one of the best.
This is the ultimate goal.
The best time to be at your best is now.
I think we're ones they might need to be worried about.
[tense music plays]
[presenter] This is your Champ 4 right here!
[audience cheering]
Y'all are having way more fun than we are.
Where do we start?
Kyle, you're having dinner with your wife. She's saying something important.
You look in your phone. Mr. H is calling.
Do you interrupt her or let her finish?
I probably hadn't been paying attention to what she was saying.
I thought there was a rule you couldn't do beards.
It might be behind closed doors, "Blaney needs to shave."
As long as you're winning races, you're okay.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
We have a set of teammates up here. Is that an advantage or a disadvantage?
You gotta continue to work together
to give Mr. H the best opportunity to get another championship.
Coming to the end of it,
they're gonna race each other for their own championship.
[reporter] What's your dynamic with William?
He referred to-- He was his brother-in-law last week,
so what has this week been like for Erin?
William and Ryan, any nerves this week?
Any pressure? Nothing different?
If Ryan pulls off a win and he's champion,
will you still sit near him at Thanksgiving?
[reporter] Who is Erin rooting for Sunday?
I'm getting that question a lot today.
I told Erin, "You got the best shot. You got a 50% chance."
"You got the best percentage."
That's a greater shot than I have or William has.
She's in a good spot.
Y'all should have broke-up for this week,
then after the season got back together.
We wouldn't have to answer so many questions about it.
[ominous music plays]
[Dale] Only a few drivers get to become a champion.
You don't know how many opportunities
you're ever gonna get to be in the final four.
It's just a trophy, but having that in your house every day
to remind you of doing the very best thing
you could possibly do in your profession,
would be pretty incredible.
Life goes on.
It does, but honestly, you don't forget that.
That final race, it comes down to four drivers.
Those are the only four that have a shot.
The one that finishes the best, no matter what happens
throughout the day, is champion.
He has to finish better than the other three.
In the NASCAR Cup Series, it's not just the four cars
on the track, there's the rest of the field.
They get to try to go out and win this race.
As a championship contender, you're hoping the other drivers
will cut you a break knowing that they don't wanna be
part of the storyline if they take out a championship contender.
[Marty] Qualifying is vital in this race
because you can't sit back and wait.
If you start up front, you have less opportunity
to get caught in somebody else's mess.
[Rick] It is Saturday afternoon at Phoenix Raceway.
Qualifying is about to start.
All eyes will be on the four championship drivers.
[engine revs]
[Jeff] Christopher Bell pulling onto the racetrack.
[Christopher] Phoenix is a place where the lap times are splitting hairs.
You're talking hundredths of a second.
[Jeff] Here he comes off turn four.
I would see a wiggle in the car in turns three and four.
[Christopher] I turned into the corner and the slip got loose.
It cost me probably a tenth of a second.
That was the difference between having a shot at the pole.
[Penske crew member] Alright, all clear. Do one lap here.
[engine revs]
[Rick] Ryan Blaney in the Ford Mustang for Team Penske.
Off four, checkered flag is out.
Ryan Blaney behind Christopher Bell.
[Ryan] We didn't qualify good.
Not been a strong suit for our camp this year.
I don't mind as long as we can move forward in the race.
It'll be all right.
[Hendricks crew member] Get a good run to the green. Remember what we talked about.
[Rick] Here goes Kyle Larson.
[Kyle] We qualified better than I thought.
We had a good shot at the pole.
That gives you an understanding of how easy or hard
this is gonna be, to try and win a championship.
[Rick] Six-time winner already. He wants the pole here.
William Byron goes to the top.
27.150.
[Jeff] William Byron will win the pole
for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race.
[Rudy] Got it. P1.
- Great Job. - [William] Hell, yeah. Let's fucking go.
Thanks, boss. Hell yeah.
Yes, sir.
How about that? Twenty-four.
That's pretty good stuff. Proud of you. Good job.
[William] This is exactly what we needed for tomorrow.
So, get to let my boys go to work on pit road,
and they're the best, in my opinion.
So it's gonna be fun to see them work.
[reporters clamoring]
[engines revving]
[Rick] Today is one of the biggest days of the year.
On a very hot but beautiful day for racing in Arizona,
where after a 35-race journey,
a champion will be crowned.
Three-hundred-twelve laps coming your way today
of the season-ending championship race.
[Rudy] We got everybody in here?
Okay, it's 312 laps.
Race the car, pit the car,
make decisions and spot the car to the best of your ability.
We're gonna be proud of the day. Y'all deserve to be here.
Real quick, just wanted to say I'm proud of this group.
We've come a long way. We got a lot of hungry people.
I can't wait to get in the race car and go kick their tail.
So, thank you, guys.
- Thanks, buddy. - Yes, sir.
[William] This year's tested us in a lot of ways.
I think my confidence took a big, big step this year.
I've put myself out there and shown a lot more than I ever have.
[Gianna] It's gonna be toasty today, so I'm going to be
back and forth between the pit box and suite.
- I'm leaving. Bye. - Love you.
See you in there.
- Bye. - Thanks.
[Ryan] I feel like I'm an incredibly fast race car driver,
and our group has been the best during this last month.
And I have full faith in not only me, but our group too,
especially the run we've been on.
[fans clamoring]
[Ryan] They're all great drivers. They're here for a reason.
I think all three of them are thinking about us.
[boy] Bell! I got your car.
Yeah, you do! You want me to sign it?
Awesome!
[William] There you go! Give me knucks.
I think we're all fairly equal,
but it's really hard to pinpoint one guy.
You could make a case for all of us why we could be the favorite.
Proud of these guys. I can't believe we got two in this.
That's amazing.
- Good luck, man. - All right.
Good luck.
- You guys ready? - Yeah.
You fucking look ready. We worked all year to get here.
- Hey. - What's up?
- Go get them, man! - Yeah, thanks.
I'm proud of you, man.
Don't hire him now! Will you, buddy?
- You're not a multi-time champion yet. - Yeah.
That's got to be motivating you right now.
That's right. Be you someday.
That's right.
[Rick] The title fight is down to four drivers.
Larson is going for his second championship,
while Bell will try for the second straight year to win his first.
Making their first Championship 4 appearance,
William Byron and Ryan Blaney.
Those four will battle
for the biggest prize in North American motorsports,
the NASCAR Cup Series Championship.
Let me give you a hug.
Love you, Mom.
- Bye, Dad. - Show time, baby.
[Christopher] It is show time.
Love you.
- Love you. - Love you.
- Love you. I'm proud of you. - [Ryan] Thank you.
I'm so happy you made it here.
- I love you. Be safe. - See you later.
[peaceful music plays]
[Shannon] These guys, they've been in cars or something,
racing something, since they could walk.
Winning a Cup Series Championship,
it's like winning a Super Bowl.
[Marty] This week is different than any other week.
It is more time in the seat. None of that matters.
They race cars. That's what they do.
What separates it is the stakes at hand
and the fact that there's no tomorrow.
You understand the magnitude of what's at hand.
I can win a championship.
I can fulfill a dream.
I can become historic.
Or I can screw it all up.
I can be nervous.
I can drive not to make a mistake rather than driving to win.
Those are not the same thing.
In this format, in this race,
you have to go win.
[announcer] Drivers!
- Start your engine! - [car engines revving]
[man] Fire in the hole.
Copy that.
Let's go, let's go!
- Let's go. - Proud of you guys, man.
This is what we worked hard for all year.
You got a great car. You guys deserve it.
Let's go out there and earn it.
[William] Yes, sir.
[Cliff] It's been a great year.
We're gonna hang tough. We're gonna battle hard.
[Ryan] Let's go win a championship, guys. Good luck.
[Steve] This is what these drivers have been waiting for.
[Rick] It's time to find out who the champion of 2023 will be.
Green flag is in the air!
[cars whirring]
[Steve] As this first lap finishes, the nerves will settle in for the drivers.
[Rick] Byron away with the lead.
You are the fastest car. Good job.
[Steve] William Byron has led 'em all so far.
The other guys are fifth, ninth, and tenth.
[Steve] Kyle Larson is backsliding back to fifth.
[Rick] The track is super slick. Do not panic at this point.
[Kyle] I just don't really have any grip. I'm gonna spin out.
[Rick] Christopher Bell continues
to try to make his championship dream a reality.
He may be having a mechanical problem.
[Christopher] FYI, I already got my brake fan. I had to do it lap ten.
Brake fans are just a way of cooling your brakes.
Copy that. Doing real good here.
[Christopher] While you're on the race track,
the team has no idea how hot the brakes are.
Really good last year. Good as anyone.
[William] But inside the car,
your brake pedal may get a little bit softer.
It may get a bit longer.
Your car might not slow down as much.
Those are signs your brakes are overheating.
My brake pedal started traveling further.
That's what cued me to turn my fans on very early,
earlier than they probably should have been turned on.
In my head, I'm like, "This is weird," but once I turned my fans on,
my pedal stabilized and I didn't really think anything of it.
[car engine downshifts]
[Rick] Ryan Blaney back here in traffic. This is what he has to deal with.
[Steve] Blaney seems to be having some challenges
getting going in the early part of this race.
[Ryan] The first run of the race, we weren't very good.
I just don't have grip, man. I'm not going anywhere.
10-4. Stick with it. We'll work on it.
[Ryan] My entry is so loose. My exits are so loose.
It's running terrible.
If we keep running like this, we have no shot.
[Rick] It's on the verge of spinning out, making the car extremely hard to drive.
He needs a trip to pit road, and he needs it now.
[Ryan] Pitting time.
[Jonathan] Bring it to us.
We'll tighten you up here.
Three, two, one. Hold.
[Ryan] Yeah, good stop, fellas.
[Rick] Here comes Ryan Blaney.
[Dale] Blaney on the outside of Bubba Wallace, trying to take his spot.
[Rick] This looks like a brand-new car for Blaney.
He's picked it up. That 12 car looks good.
[Ryan] Guys, it's smoother. Good job there.
[Rick] Bell and Blaney moving forward.
[Steve] Close call for Christopher Bell.
[Jeff] Look at him! He about wrecked that race car,
and I bet that surprised him.
[Rick] Championship 4, all getting closer to the front.
[Kyle] Ryan and I were battling.
[Rick] Kyle Larson wearing Ryan Blaney on his back bumper.
[Steve] They almost made contact.
[Kyle] I can look in my mirror and tell where he's running.
How much faster he is than me.
[Rick] It's very close there.
Oh, what a race!
[Kyle] I'm curious what his radio sounded like.
[Ryan] Fucking piece of shit, air blocking motherfucker.
He can sit next time.
[Rick] The frustrations coming out of the radio for Blaney.
[Ryan] When people say, "A pissed-off driver's a really good driver,"
I'm like, "Well, okay, to an extent."
But I think little bits of it motivate me
while racing the hell out of 'em.
But you make one little mistake, you wreck yourself.
[Steve] Championship 4 drivers right there, Larson, Blaney, and Bell,
nose-to-tail as they're running fourth, fifth, and sixth here.
[Rick] Byron has been dominant to start this race.
He has already been out front 85 laps.
Battle is on between championship contenders.
Christopher Bell on the back bumper of Kyle Larson.
[Christopher] I love the feeling of knowing it's all on the line.
It's now or never.
The 5, the 12, and me were all racing extremely hard.
[Steve] We got a great battle right now, Bell and Blaney.
[Jeff] With Kyle Larson, right together past start/finish, headed to turn one.
[Christopher] And whenever you're in those tight battles,
you're obviously using your brakes as hard as you can.
And then the brakes started getting worse and worse.
My brakes are hot.
I'm gonna need brake help here.
Brakes are overheating. That was like, "Uh-oh."
It's all on you now, bud. It's open.
Brake pit's open.
[Christopher] We're in a dogfight for the championship.
There's no adjustment that you can do to make the brakes cooler.
They're already cooked.
What am I gonna do, just slow down?
That's not gonna work.
[Rick] Bell is in the wall!
One of our championship contenders!
- Oh, we're on the wall. - Oh, we hit the fucking wall!
[Adam] Yep, we're fucked. Blew the tire.
[Rick] What a blow. And it comes out on Lap 108.
Christopher Bell, who had been running top five.
[Jeff] He's got a fire on the brake caliper.
[Christopher] Yep, that's all she rode.
[Adam] It's killed, it's killed.
[Rick] The first of the Championship 4 to be eliminated
is gonna be the 20 of Christopher Bell.
The brakes explode on the right front,
and Bell's championship hopes go up in fire.
[Kyle] He must have exploded a rotor.
[Jonathan] He said his brakes were getting really hot.
[William] Did he hit hard enough he's done?
[Rudy] I think he broke a brake rotor.
[Cliff] 20 is done, so down to three of us.
[Rick] A huge shot to Christopher Bell
and all of those pulling for the Toyotas here.
Yeah, we're done.
[Steve] An unfortunate ending for Bell, who will not finish today's race
in his hunt for his first career championship.
[Christopher] It stings to not have the shot at the end of it.
We were all four really close.
We all showed strengths at different times.
A disappointing way to end.
[Rick] Unfortunately, a part failure put him in the fence,
and he is done for the day.
[Christopher] Heartbreaking ending.
It sucks.
Sorry.
I'm hard on myself because that's my job.
You just kept saying, "I need help," and they're like,
"I don't know what to do to help you."
No sooner do you say you need help, and you were in the wall.
[Christopher] The way this championship works, it's one race.
If you win it, you win the championship.
If you don't, you don't win the championship.
So, hopefully, this isn't my last shot.
[Rick] So, now it's down to three.
William Byron...
Kyle Larson...
and Ryan Blaney.
Green back in the air!
[Steve] Take a look at this.
It's Ross Chastain in the number 1 car.
The Watermelon Man taking the lead here in Phoenix.
[Jeff] Byron, having to fight back in that outside lane,
trying to hang on to the two spot!
[Steve] Byron clear of the 19 of Truex.
Can he chase down that 1 of Chastain?
Blaney takes a look to the inside.
[Rick] Blaney picks off the spot from the 5 of Larson.
[Cliff] We're gonna dig deep from here, keep fighting every single lap.
[Rick] The 24 of William Byron leading the championship fight.
[Rudy] Doing good, buddy. Keep it up!
[Ryan] It's a lot better here. I let you know how it goes.
[Rick] Blaney, letting it ride to the outside. He's got a big head of momentum.
[Penske crew member] Still inside... door... corner. Clear, clear.
[William] As soon as the 12 got some track position up front,
I knew what it was gonna take, so I was just gonna dig deep.
[Rick] Things heating up now in the championship battle,
as Blaney has found something in this 12 car.
[Gianna] Watching them in the final four, it's stressful already.
[Steve] Blaney down to the inside on Byron!
[Gianna] Her having two to worry about,
it is stressful, but she handles it well.
[Rick] Blaney's gonna catch him on the end of the back straightaway.
Blaney looking low in three.
[Steve] Battle for second. This has championship implications all over it.
[Rick] Side-by-side into turn number one, Blaney by a wheel.
Let's see if Byron can rally back. He can't.
Put Blaney into the number two position.
But number one among the Championship 4
as he races back to the corner.
[Steve] William Byron is fading,
after having the once-dominant car in this race.
- [William] That's all I got. - Keep fighting for me.
[Steve] We have a battle for the lead.
[Rick] Here they come. Chastain, Blaney separated by a car length!
[Steve] Chastain runs that higher line,
Blaney, on that left rear quarter panel, has to get outta the gas.
- [Dale] Wow, that was close. - [Rudy] Be smart here, bud.
We'll get the one and the win.
[Rick] Ryan Blaney wants the lead.
He may get it at the start/finish line, but Chastain is there.
- They are side-by-side. - [cars whooshing]
[Dale] Chastain has proven he's not gonna give you
the lane you need to get by. He's trying to win a race.
[Steve] Chastain continuing to make it difficult for Ryan Blaney.
[Rick] Blaney in the back of the 1!
[Jonathan] He's got nothing to lose. Just gotta be smart here.
[Rick] Blaney just bumped Chastain in the bumper!
[Steve] Gotta be careful, guys. If that front splitter,
and start tearing it up, that car's gonna quit handling.
[Jeff] Chastain is not going to give this lead up easily.
[Rick] A reminder, you do not have to win the race
to win the championship.
The last thing Blaney needs to do is wreck his race car.
[Ryan] This jackass.
Take your time with him. Just stay cool. You're doing great.
[Rick] Spectacular racing with absolutely everything on the line!
[Ryan] Racing hard is one thing. I'm fine with racing hard.
But when you're going outta your way to screw me over,
when you're swerving three lanes, getting in the corner
'cause you're looking where I'm going, that's what frustrated me.
[Dale] Ryan Blaney feels like the 1 is holding him up.
It's gonna back him up into a battle with the 5 and 24 of Byron.
[Jeff] And Kyle Larson is behind Blaney in the number four spot.
[Kyle] I could tell that Ross was holding him up pretty hard.
[Cliff] 1 and 19 have been running 12 really hard.
His stuff is hot.
[Kyle] And I was catching him.
You've gained over a second on him in the last two laps.
[Roger] You're better than he is. Take your time.
[Ryan] Yep, yep, yep.
Just keep me updated on the fucking 5.
[Jonathan] Copy. I got you.
[Rudy] Keep digging, keep in the hunt. The 12 is melting down!
Stay in the hunt. He's only two ahead of you.
We get a caution, we're gonna kill him.
[Rick] Caution has come out as they go into turn three.
Caution start/finish line.
[Steve] Caution flag is out with 37 laps to go.
[Rick] These pit crews are gonna have to go to work
to try to keep this track position
and potentially help their driver get out in front.
[Steve] Pit road is open.
This could potentially be the final pit stop.
[crew member] Gotta have it. Gotta have it.
Let's go. Hey, let's go!
[Rick] The championship on the line.
[Steve] This is for all the marbles. This is the money stop.
This is what these pit crew members live for.
These teams have to be perfect right now.
[Rudy] Five, four,
three, two, one.
[Cliff] Go, go, go.
[Rick] Of the Champ 3 remaining,
Larson's team gets him out in front of the others.
[Steve] How about this now?
Kyle Larson and his pit crew got the job done.
[Kyle] Good job, boys.
- [dramatic music] - [clock ticking]
[Rudy] Two tires for the 11, two tires for the 43.
That's your 5th off of pit road.
Larson in third.
Then the 1, and then you,
- and then the 12, 5th. - [William] Copy.
[commentator] Ryan Blaney lost four spots on pit road.
Focus on what's in front of you.
[Ryan] It's like, "That kinda stinks."
Then, you just immediately shift to, "This is the task."
Like, "This is my new job."
[Cliff] You know what you gotta do here. Go in hard.
[Kyle] If we had a chance to win, this was going to be our opportunity.
[Rick] Green flag back in the air!
[Jeff] To the inside! Here comes Larson for the lead!
[Rick] They are three-wide to the back straightaway.
Larson on the bottom, Hamlin in the middle.
[Jeff] Who's gonna come out with the top spot?
[Rick] Gloves are off, championship on the line.
It's Chastain and Larson wheel-to-wheel for the lead!
[Steve] Chastain with the lead, Larson to second.
[Jeff] Blaney, on the outside of Byron back there, takes that spot away.
[Ryan] Getting around the 24 was huge.
Let me set my sights on Kyle.
[Steve] Byron looking on now, his competitors in front of him.
[Jonathan] Total focus, deep breaths.
Stay with us. Keep working.
Anything can happen. Go get 'em.
[Rudy] Go to work.
[Rick] Title is hanging in the balance.
Larson, the number one man in that department,
looks in the rearview mirror.
Ryan Blaney is there!
[Kyle] I look in my mirror and Blaney is already one position behind me.
You're just trying to, like, stay in the game.
You just race in my mirror and try to block.
[Rick] Larson, with that rear deck full of Ryan Blaney!
Blaney, just driving his guts out.
[Steve] The sold-out crowd on their feet.
Twenty-five laps left in the season. It's a heavyweight title fight.
[Kyle] I was trying to hold him off the best I could.
I got really sideways.
[engine humming]
[Rick] Larson drifts up the racetrack.
He gets a little loose!
[Kyle] I thought I was gonna spin out.
[Rick] Larson nearly lost it. Now he drifts up. Contact between the two!
[Steve] Twenty laps to go for the championship.
The advantage goes to Ryan Blaney!
[Rick] Blaney in front of Larson for the championship!
[Dale] That 12 car just so good all weekend.
And what does Larson do?
How does he bring the fight back to this 12?
[Cliff] You guys are running the same lap time. Just let him make a mistake.
Stay focused, you'll get it back.
[Dale] There's confidence in that 5 car. You got one of the greatest,
if not the greatest current race car driver behind the wheel.
It's not over yet.
[Cliff] Stay focused, you got this. Tough it out.
[Steve] Byron's a second back from these two.
[Rick] That's got to be frustrating after having a great car all day long.
[Cliff] Keep fighting, son.
Total focus, go get 'em.
[Rick] Chastain has pulled away.
Right now, Blaney's gotta be thinking big picture.
The championship is keeping the 5 behind him.
[Dale] This is what we wait for all season long.
And here we are with an incredible drive.
[Rick] Blaney, Larson, and Byron running second, third and fourth.
The title in the hands of Blaney. Can he keep it?
[Ryan] You just don't know how the race is gonna play out.
How many cautions are we gonna get?
Crazy things can happen, Let's don't have anything happen to us.
[Jeff] Blaney rising to the occasion.
White flag is in the air!
Ryan Blaney has one lap to be a champion.
[Ryan] This is what you dream of as a kid.
This is what you strive for,
to get to this moment.
It's way bigger than I am.
[drums pounding]
[Rick] Your 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion, Ryan Blaney!
[Ryan] I'm getting emotional.
Thank you, guys. What an awesome year.
Cannot wait to celebrate with you guys.
[Jonathan] Hell of a job. Proud of you for sticking with it.
Way to go, Team 12.
One hell of a job, man. One hell of a job!
[Ryan] Thirteenth grid. Thanks for giving me a shot.
To call myself a champion is so special.
That's what you strive for, what you enjoy watching as a kid.
Like, "I wanna be on that stage."
[Rick] Ryan Blaney is the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion.
[Gianna] I kept forgetting to breathe the last five laps.
I'm catching up on my breath.
I knew he could do it. I knew he could do it.
I knew it, I knew it.
I am so excited, I'm so proud of him. I'm so happy for him.
Am I gonna make it in time, or is he gonna go in Victory Circle?
- He's not gonna move. - I just wanna get to him.
It's such a tease, I can see him right there.
[Ryan] I'm so proud of this team. What an unbelievable year.
What an unbelievable playoffs for us. It's so special.
And to have my family here, winning my first cup title,
I got emotional. I'm not a very emotional guy.
Thank you for coming. I hope it was awesome!
What an amazing race.
He's a fighter. He knows how to kick butt.
Thank you.
Hey, Champion.
- How are you? - He's happy.
- How about that? - Well, I'll be damned.
- Can you believe it? - No. No, I can't believe it.
- Drove all day, you. - Yep.
Unbelievable. Great job.
Hey, what's up?
- I am really so proud of you. - Thanks.
How cool is that? You're gonna get emotional.
- I got emotional already. Yeah. - [Gianna gasps]
- That was fun. How 'bout that? - I'm so proud of you.
Thanks, appreciate it.
- I love you. - Love you, too.
[Kyle] Good job, guys. That was all... all I had.
Yep, 10-4, man. Great fight all year, team.
Even though we came up short, it was a good fight.
Really good fight. A lot to be proud of.
[Kyle] Your emotions when you see somebody else celebrating a championship,
it's obviously a bummer.
I feel like we did everything that we could
to win the championship, and it just didn't work out.
I appreciate all the effort.
- We just didn't bring it for you. - It's all good.
We didn't give you the car you needed.
We'll figure out whatever they figured out,
- and be better than they are. - That's it right there.
Thanks, Jeff.
[Rudy] Thanks, team.
Sorry, we didn't have enough there in the last one.
Dang.
[William] The feeling of not winning the championship sucks.
Getting to that point is awesome,
but not winning is definitely tough.
We love to win. We don't like to lose.
We're gonna take a lot from this.
It's gonna make us better and stronger
and pull together even more.
Congrats to those guys. They were good.
It's fine.
- That was all we had. - You still did good.
- You gave it all you had. - Yeah.
I felt like that was it. That was all.
- Sorry. - See you, man.
[Kyle] You're bummed, wanted to be the guy celebrating,
but it just gives you a little more fire
for next year to try and be better
and hopefully, be the one celebrating.
- Love you. - Love you.
Hey, man, love you.
I'll meet you guys over there.
In years past, I've questioned myself,
questioned if I was good enough.
And this year, it clicked to where I was not questioning as much.
Appreciate you.
- Hell of a job. - Thank you.
[William] I know we'll be champions.
- Great job, buddy. - Appreciate it.
[Christopher] I'm proud to make the championship race two years in a row.
And you know, at one point,
I need to win the championship race.
But there's a lot of guys that have been racing a lot longer than me.
I hope we're back next year. I think we can be.
I think you will be.
[somber music]
["Welcome to the Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance plays]
♪ When I was a young boy My father took me into the city ♪
♪ To see a marching band ♪
♪ He said, "Son, when you grow up ♪
♪ Would you be the savior of the broken ♪
♪ The beaten and the damned?" ♪
[Ryan] Y'all ready? Y'all ready!
♪ He said, "Will you defeat them? ♪
♪ Your demons And all the non-believers ♪
♪ The plans that they have made?" ♪
♪ "Because one day I'll leave you a phantom ♪
♪ To lead you in the summer ♪
♪ To join the black parade..." ♪
[announcer] I wanna present to you the Bill France Cup
and crown you
our 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion.
- [Gianna] Are you on cloud nine? - Still don't believe it.
- You did that thing. You did that shit. - Crazy, man.
[crowd chants] Blaney, Blaney, Blaney, Blaney!
[Ryan] I come from a family of racers.
My grandfather, dad, and uncle.
My dad is who I grew up watching and admiring,
so that makes it even more special.
[Dave] I saw at 14 that he had the talent to end up doing this.
I wish my dad was around to see it. Very cool, though.
[upbeat rock music plays]
[Bubba] You have one goal at the beginning of the season,
to win the championship.
You get knocked out, that's it. You can't win.
That is fueling me right now.
I'll win the next race.
[Ross] It still stings to know we didn't accomplish what we wanted to.
When we go back next year, we'll be better yet.
[Joey] It's in the past now. Nothing I can do about it.
You can live angry, if you choose to.
Or you can get your ass out of bed and go make it better.
[Bootie] That's why you never give up. Great job, man.
[man] You were awesome, buddy! That is awesome!
- Oh, my God! - [Ryan] Let's go, man!
[William] Hell, yeah, boy!
[Rudy] Let's go to Phoenix, boys.
[Tyler] You have bad days in racing. It sucks, you wanna forget it.
To a degree, I think we almost enjoy being slightly miserable
because you're not gonna win every race you run.
And the cat's not gonna stay out of every shot you take.
[Denny] Unfortunately, I haven't won the big trophy in the end.
That's certainly one that I want bad.
Even though I've accomplished everything I would've dreamed,
there's still an empty cabinet in the trophy case.
["Welcome to the Black Parade" continues]
♪ To carry on, we'll carry on ♪
♪ And though you're dead and gone Believe me ♪
♪ Your memory will carry on ♪
♪ We'll carry on ♪
♪ And though you're broken and defeated ♪
♪ Your weary widow marches... ♪
[Ryan] My dad, through the playoffs, was,
"I can see the path to the championship."
As we won Martinsville, he's like, "It's lit up now."
I think we drove through the gate tonight.
Path's lit up, huh?
You said it. I should believe you more often.
[Ryan] This tops everything.
This is what you run 35 races a year for.
I would never have thought ten years ago, I'd be here today.
- It's been a dream come true. - [drum pounds]
["City Slippin" by Jack the Radio plays]
♪ Echo's been screaming Inside of my head ♪
♪ Saying I need to break free ♪
♪ Rip rough rocking taking over the ship ♪
♪ Somebody's yelling at me ♪
♪ I'm alright, I'm alright ♪
♪ But I'm a star struck sailor Going out of my head ♪
♪ Sunken ship, severed seas ♪
♪ Was big city slippin tripping Over my bed ♪
♪ Somebody's still yelling at me ♪
♪ I'm alright, I'm alright ♪
♪ City slippin, yeah ♪
♪ We let go, let go Let go, let go, let go ♪
♪ City slippin, yeah ♪