NASCAR Cup Series

Chase contenders fall short in Federated Auto Parts 400

Published Sep. 10, 2016 11:45 p.m. ET

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The last chance for drivers to race their way into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup fizzled way before it even really started.

By the 50th lap of Saturday night's Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond International Raceway, the Toyotas that had dominated the entire season were running 1-2-3-4 and it was obvious that there would be no miracle charge tonight, no racer who would come out of nowhere to score an upset victory and crash the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

No, tonight was a night for Goliaths, not for the Davids, as all 16 drivers who were Chase eligible before the race held sway, with all 16 set to start the championship hunt next weekend at Chicagoland Speedway.

And that's how it ended, with Denny Hamlin winning over Kyle Larson.

None of the bubble drivers like Ryan Newman, Kasey Kahne and Ryan Blaney ever came close to pulling off a Hail Mary.  None led a lap, none ever threatened doing anything spectacular. Kahne got a top 10 but he still has yet to lead a lap at all this season.

In a race marred by a record barrage of 16 cautions, tire shortages and mixed strategies, at Richmond, the Big Dogs showed exactly why they're the Big Dogs.

Not surprisingly, there are already clear favorites to win the 2016 title.

With the 26-race Sprint Cup regular season in the books, the five affiliated Toyota drivers — Truex  of Furniture Row Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards — have won 13 races, exactly half of them.

And that makes them the favorites to win it all.

Sure, there are legitimate challengers — Kevin Harvick, Larson and Brad Keselowski come readily to mind — but at the moment, the Toyota armada looks pretty much unstoppable.

We'll know for sure starting next weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, but for now, it's looking like 2016 will be a Toyotathon.

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