Keselowski, who is not in the Chase, rallied to finish 23rd on the lead lap, while Hocevar came home 11th and left Darlington 89 points back of championship leader Denny Hamlin in 12th.
With WWTR’s flat surface and relatively slower corners followed by the half-mile bullring of Bristol Motor Speedway where beating and banging has been the norm over the years, there are certainly some opportunities ahead for Keselowski to exact some revenge.
Hocevar seemingly denied any wrongdoing after the race, but Keselowski fired a warning shot that Hocevar better “watch out.” He is far from the only driver to get ticked off by Hocevar, but the next two weeks, specifically, could be interesting to see if he backs his comments up.
Will Team Penske continue to master the shorter, flatter tracks like WWTR?
The Team Penske trio of Ryan Blaney, Joey Logano and Austin Cindric have struggled to find a balance on the intermediates this season. While all three came away with top-13 finishes at the 1.33-mile Darlington Raceway, they have clearly been a step behind the Toyotas.
That has not been the case when the series visits short tracks and similar layouts to WWTR’s flat 1.25-mile surface. Two of Blaney’s three wins this season came at a pair of flat, one-mile ovals (Phoenix, New Hampshire), while Logano found victory lane at the 0.625-mile North Wilkesboro Speedway and 0.75-mile Richmond Raceway.
Cindric has not won this season, but he and Logano have a win apiece at Gateway. Blaney, meanwhile, has three top-six finishes in the four races contested there. If any team can slow the Toyotas down momentarily on Sunday, its Team Penske.
How does Denny Hamlin respond to Darlington adversity?
Hamlin entered the Chase as the No. 1 seed and arguably in the best position he has ever been in going into the postseason to finally claim his first Cup Series title. Those expectations encountered some adversity on Sunday night.
Hamlin got together with Michael McDowell off Turn 4 and eventually fell a lap down before some strategy and timely cautions helped him salvage an 18th-place finish. He also scored a total of 16 points in the opening two stages, so it could have been much worse for the four-time 2026 winner.
Still, his 25-point lead entering the Chase was trimmed to 12 by Bell and his pursuit of that elusive title became much closer than he would have liked. Hamlin’s overall body of work this season suggests the title still runs through him over the next nine weeks, but the early setback at Darlington served as a reminder that he has some stiff competition more than capable of playing spoiler if he is not careful.