NASCAR Cup Series

NASCAR: Five Lessons Learned From Dover

Updated Mar. 5, 2020 12:23 a.m. ET

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Here are five lessons Learned From Dover. Photo credit: Amanda Fisher

The final race of the Round of 16 is over, and here are 5 lessons learned from the Citizen Soldier 400 at Dover.

Dover was the last race of the Round of 16, and now 4 drivers won’t be moving on to compete in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship.

The race on Sunday saw only a few cautions, but the Monster Mile changed who was above the cutoff for the Chase.

Kyle Larson was going to move onto the next round if he was able to finish in a decent position, but car troubles sent him to the garage and in his place Austin Dillon was able to move on to the round of 12. But is Dillon really capable of winning the Sprint Cup championship, or does he still have a lot to prove?

The main story coming out of Dover though is how Martin Truex Jr. was able to dominate the Monster Mile, taking advantage of a mistake made by the 48 team on pit road. Johnson is known for his 10 wins at this track, but Truex but on such a dominant performance that there might be a new monster slayer at Dover.

Dover continued to remind fans why it is the best race to end the Round of 16, and with only 12 drivers moving on in the Chase, here are 5 lessons learned from the Citizen Soldier 400.

Kyle Larson looked like he was going to have a promising Chase run until he ran into car troubles at Dover. Photo credit: Amanda Fisher

Chip Ganassi Racing Cracked Under The Pressure

The Chase started off extremely postive for Chip Ganassi Racing. Kyle Larson won his way in, and Jamie McMurray was able to make it into the Chase once again on points.

Heading into Dover, Larson and McMurray were close to the cutoff line ,with Larson being right above McMurray. If you looked at how well Larson ran in the Spring race at the Monster Mile, it looked like he had a solid chance of advancing into the next round.

McMurray had to compete against his teammate, but if he had also run well there was a chance he could make the next round as well.

Instead something happened to both cars and now Chip Ganassi Racing is eliminated from the Chase.

Larson lost power in his 42 car and would go down laps, something he wasn’t able to make up. Jamie McMurray’s engine blew up on his 1 car and he was done halfway through the race.

For both Chip Ganassi Racing drivers to have issues could have been much more than coincidence. Did they try something new with the engines? Was it just a general malfunction or a bad part when the engines were constructed?

Whatever it was, it cost the organization a chance at the championship and now they will have to wait for next year to try and win it again.

Dover served as a reminder that it’s not only drivers that are under pressure in the Chase, whole organizations are feeling it too.

If the 48 team can work out their issues, they might be best team to compete against the 78. Photo credit: Amanda Fisher

Jimmie Johnson and The 48 Team Are Still Working On Their Issues

It was at the first race of the Chase, Chicagoland, were Jimmie Johnson was caught speeding in pit road and it cost him the race.

At the last race of the first round of the Chase though, it was the 48 pit crew that would cost Johnson the win.

Johnson had managed to get out in front early and had to car to beat. He was in charge of the race past the halfway point, but when he hit pit road at Lap 277, a crewman of the 48 jumped the wall to early and Johnson had to serve a pass through penalty.

Even with their issues, the 48 team will be moving onto the next round and the points will once again be reset.

But what will happen as the eligible amount of Chase drivers gets smaller and smaller? If the 48 team can’t get on the same page soon, they might not be lucky enough to make it out of the Round of 12.

Their mistakes cost them two wins in the Round of 16. Every time Johnson and the 48 team were on the verge of showing racing fans that they are the group to beat in the Chase, their own mistakes cost them.

They managed to get lucky this round, but if the 48 team can’t get a hold on the mistakes they’re making, they won’t last much longer in the Chase.

Austin Dillon ran well at Dover but still has a lot to prove. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Austin Dillon Survives First Round, But Still Has a Lot To Prove

Austin Dillon had the best finish of his Sprint Cup career at Dover this past Sunday, finishing the Citizen Soldier 400 in 8th place.

He managed to advance to the Round of 12 after being below the Chase cutoff line, but his advancement came at the hands of the problems both Chip Ganassi Racing drivers had to deal with at Dover.

Dillon hasn’t been great this season, and this is the driver that managed to win the Xfinity Series title without winning a single race, so even though he managed to survive the first round, he might not be as lucky in the Round of 12.

And if for some reason he does manage to make it through all the way to Homestead, Dillon has a lot to prove unless he can finally win. The further he moves in the Chase without a win the more he continues to show the flawed part of the post-season; as long as you finish well enough you can keep advancing without a single win.

If Dillon wants to prove that he really belongs in the Chase, the 3 team needs to step up and compete with the other top teams in NASCAR because right now it looks like both Dillon and the 3 team have a lot to prove.

Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Tony Stewart’s Championship Hopes Are Over

Tony Stewart had a rough start to his last season as a full time Sprint Cup driver. He injured his back riding a sand buggy before the regular season started and he was forced to miss several races at the start of the year.

He was able to win at Sonoma despite his setbacks early on in the season, and was able to make the top 30 in points. This is what helped him make the Chase, and luckily for Stewart once the Chase started the points reset, so Smoke, and all the other drivers who won one race this year, started with the same amount of points.

Unfortunately for Stewart and the 14 team, they weren’t able to handle the Chase. He won at Sonoma, but realistically Smoke hasn’t run well this season or some of the previous seasons of his Sprint Cup career.

He’s been eliminated from the Chase after Dover, and while this may not be what fans want given Smoke’s history in NASCAR, it’s something that realistically anyone could have seen coming.

He’s had one of the best careers in NASCAR. He’s won multiple championships in his career, but for his last full-time run as a Sprint Cup driver Smoke’s season ended at Dover.

Still, he’s been one of the best drivers in NASCAR and even though he couldn’t make it into the Round of 12, Smoke has had a fantastic career and will end his last season as a legend.

Martin Truex Jr. and the 78 team are ready to win a championship. Photo credit: Amanda Fisher

Martin Truex Jr. and The 78 Team Are Much More Than The Group To Beat

Martin Truex Jr. entered the Chase with two wins and was looking like he had a real chance at winning the championship with the 78 team and Furniture Row Racing.

Now as we get ready to move onto the Round of 12 not only does he look like he’s going to win the championship, the whole 78 team looks like the only ones who were ready for the Chase.

When the Citizen Soldier 400 started on Sunday, Truex had a strong car and was able to lead early. It was Jimmie Johnson though, that looked like the driver to beat.

When the 48 team messed up on pit road, Truex was able to take advantage and got out in front. He was so fast that he started lapping cars in the top 10. After leading for 187 laps, Truex went on to win his second race of the round of 16 and went from an underdog to the top driver in NASCAR.

The switched to Toyota has clearly benefited Furniture Row Racing and the 78 team. Truex himself had only three wins in his Sprint Cup career prior to this year. Now he’s got four wins under his belt in 2016.

The points reset for the Round of 12, but what doesn’t reset for all the Chase drivers is how well they are running. Unless another team can step up, the 78 team is going to runaway with this Chase and will be the champions at Homestead.

The 78 team and Martin Truex Jr. have been the best so far in the Chase and they’ve clearly become much more than the team to beat; they are the team that is dominating NASCAR right now.

What did you learn from Dover? Is Martin Truex Jr. the real deal? Let us know in the comments below. For all of your Chase news make sure to head over to BeyondTheFlag.com.