While Ross Chastain has locked himself in the playoffs but his chances of advancing into the late stages of playoffs are not taken seriously by NASCAR analyst Nate Ryan.
Chastain is only two drivers in the 2022 Cup Series season to have two wins so far, along with Hendrick Motorsports William Byron. However, Ryan expects Chastain to not go as far as the last race of the season due to his lack of experience.
“I still think no, and I’ll go to what Justin Marks was saying post-race. He was very much saying, ‘Look, we’re still taking this race by race, week by week. We’re not even looking at the Playoffs, we’re not talking Playoffs’. Even though Ross Chastain is very much locked in. Now being one of two guys with two wins, he’s almost locked to advance through the first round.”
Is @rosschastain a #Championship4 contender?
No, according to @nateryan.
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) April 26, 2022
“I still think the lack of experience there and the fact that Trackhouse is still a relatively new team. We’ve kind of seen powerhouse teams kind of build towards the second half. I still feel like he’s not locked to make the Championship 4.”
The team only started operation as a full-time team in 2021 with Daniel Suárez as their sole driver. They added Chastain this season and he has already paid the faith with two wins. The win is not only big for him but also for the team who are trying to assert thier presence in the tier dominated by big teams.
In fact, it doesn’t matter whether Chastain reaches the Championship 4. He has already delivered beyond expectation and has a lot of races to add to the wins.
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