NASCAR
2022 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Preview: Ford
After a slow start to the season, Ford Performance put five drivers into the 2022 NASCAR Playoffs. Responsible for six wins, all of Team Penske and half of Stewart-Haas Racing are ready to contend for the championship. With title-caliber veterans including Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick, two Ford drivers also made their first postseason appearance. After being shut out of 2021’s Championship 4, the blue oval brigade aims for Phoenix again and a shot at the Bill France Cup. How do their drivers shape up heading into Playoff race one? Let’s take a look at each Mustang driver.
Joey Logano – Second Seed (2,025 points)
Ending the regular season second in points, Joey Logano has flown under-the-radar for much of 2022. With two victories at Darlington and Gateway, Logano is positioned well for a stress-free opening round as the second seed. The Penske 22 does not need an early Playoff win, expect them to still be up front. Daytona ended a streak of four-straight top-10s for the 2018 Cup Champion; he does have momentum heading into the Round of 16. Much like his title-winning campaign just four years ago, Logano could strike at just the right time to make the finale and take the big trophy from the favorites. At such a high seeding, Logano could have the easiest path to Phoenix of any Ford driver.
Ryan Blaney – Seventh Seed (2,013 points)
After making the Playoffs as the lone non-winner, Ryan Blaney is ready to play upset. Making the cut by just three points over Martin Truex Jr., Blaney’s had incredible consistency all year long. However, the 12 team has yet to execute a full race and find victory lane. Through 26 races, Blaney’s had 12 top-10s, an average finish of 13.7, and a best result of third at Nashville. The one knock against the 12 team this year has been their winless status; can that change in the next few weeks? The Round of 16 has a few strong tracks for Blaney, including Kansas and Bristol. To truly be considered a championship threat, the 12 may have to win one of the first few races of these Playoffs.
Kevin Harvick – Ninth Seed (2,012 points)
Four weeks ago, the championship chances of Kevin Harvick were next-to-none, let alone the 4 making the Playoffs. After back-to-back August wins at Michigan and Richmond though, Harvick may be a snake in the grass for competitors.
“I would say it’s been a very different route to get to this point,” Harvick said. “As we started the year with the new car, we were on the wrong side of the fence and trying to figure everything out. And as we’ve gone through the year we’ve become progressively better, and we figured some things out and got back to victory lane and really have some momentum as we start the process of these last 10 weeks and racing for a championship. The biggest thing is, we’re giving ourselves a chance to race for the championship – that’s the first goal. That looked bleak for a little while, but now we’re in a good position to get started.”
With the Round of 16 being at three of Harvick’s historically-best tracks, the sky truly is the limit for the 2014 champion. Expect the 4 team to be a strong winning contender out of the gate. Harvick has to be seen as a favorite to make the Round of 8 if not Phoenix.
Chase Briscoe – 12th Seed (2,009 points)
Entering his first Cup Series Playoffs, Chase Briscoe locked up his spot with a March Phoenix win. Since that maiden triumph though, it has been a very up-and-down year for the 14. Only scoring two top-10s since Phoenix, Briscoe has an uphill battle to make the Round of 12. While he is currently the last man ahead of the cut line, it is only by two points. In short, any issues at all in the opening round could send Briscoe to an early elimination.
“For us, we’ve had small glimpses of, truthfully, I feel like we’ve had speed every week, but unlike a lot of times we run anywhere from seven to 12th for a lot of the race and then we finish 18th to 23rd the last 60 laps, where other teams have kind of done the opposite,” Briscoe said. “They run 17th to 21st a lot of the day and then at the end they find themselves from seventh to 12th. For us, it’s kind of nice to have a little bit of a reset button. I know we have the speed, it’s just a matter of putting the whole race together. There are a lot of variables that determine that, but I definitely think it’s a bit of a second life to a certain extent and one I’m looking forward to having.”
“I think it’s not to eliminate ourselves in this first round,” Briscoe said on his approach. “Darlington, especially, the Southern 500 there are gonna be a lot of opportunities to tear your car up at some point in the race running up on the wall. I think, just for me, the regular season and, like I was saying earlier, I just haven’t done a very good job of finishing where our car had the speed for. And I think these next three weeks if we have an eighth-place car, just try to run seventh or eighth with it. Don’t try to win with it and then end up costing yourself with a 10-spot difference.
“You just have to be smart about it in the Playoffs and understand the bigger picture and that’s something I haven’t done a great job of this year. I think that’s my biggest focus these next three weeks is just limiting mistakes, doing all the little details right. I feel like as long as you do the little details right this first round, you should be able to point your way through because there are gonna be guys that eliminate themselves just by making mistakes and if you can limit your mistakes and not make them super detrimental, I think then you should be able to make it out of that first round. At least that’s what we’re gonna try to do.”
As a first-timer in these Playoffs, Briscoe does not have high expectations or pressure. If the 14 can just stay clean in this opening round, others should find issues that take themselves out. Briscoe’s chances at winning the championship may be slim. However, he could make noise if he gets to the Round of 12. Briscoe has asserted himself as a great road course racer; the Charlotte Roval could be another win for the 14. These first few races will be all about survival for this team.
Austin Cindric – 14th Seed (2,006 points)
The 2022 Daytona 500 Champion, Austin Cindric has had a respectable rookie year since February’s win. Ending the regular season 14th in points, the 2 car had five top-fives, eight top-10s, and an average finish of 15.7. Cindric was a few laps away from a Daytona sweep last week, before Austin Dillon booted him out of the way. As the 14th seed and a rookie, Cindric also has little if any expectations at making a big splash in the 2022 Playoffs.
Regardless of any Playoff outcome, Cindric has already secured 2022 Rookie of the Year honors, since no other rookie made the cut. With that in mind, the 2 crew’s main objective for 2022 has been achieved 10 weeks early. The next few weeks are Cindric playing with house money, going for a championship in his first season. While the 2 is not favored to make it past the first round, nothing is impossible.
To put it bluntly, Ford had a late-season collapse in the 2021 Playoffs. The Martinsville Round of 8 elimination race saw all three remaining Ford drivers fail to advance onto Phoenix. With five chances now at the Championship 4, can a blue oval race for the title again? Logano, Blaney, and Harvick are all top-tier championship threats, while Briscoe and Cindric enter unchartered waters. A healthy mix of veteran experience and youthful exuberance, the coming Playoffs could be very fruitful for Ford Performance.
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Sean Gardner/Getty Images for NASCAR
