Ross Chastain's only path to the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 race in Phoenix was to finish ahead of Denny Hamlin on Sunday in the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville. Halfway through the final lap, that seemed improbable.
With nothing left to lose, Chastain pulled off an improbable move, going full speed along the wall around Turn 3 and riding the speed and curve of the barrier. Just yards away from the finish line, Chastain passed Hamlin to secure the fourth spot in the Championship 4. He will join Joey Logano, Christopher Bell and Chase Elliott as the four drivers competing for the 2022 Cup Series title.
MORE: Updates, highlights from the Xfinity 500
"It was a video game move off of the Turn 3. He put the car against the wall, wide open all the way around Turn 3 and 4," Dale Earnhardt Jr. said on the call.
ABSOLUTELY WILD!
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 30, 2022
BELL WINS! CHASTAIN WITH AN INCREDIBLE MOVE! #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/aFW9YP6PUZ
This doesn’t even look real 😳
— Trackhouse Racing (@TeamTrackhouse) October 31, 2022
Ross fan, @caleb_matthew21 captured it perfectly…we all had the same reaction!
pic.twitter.com/fVnhoPIXxV
Chastain's final lap clocked in at 18.845 seconds, per NBC Sports' Dustin Long, nearly two seconds faster than the next-fastest time on the lap and roughly a second faster than the qualifying time that earned the pole position Saturday.
How much of an advantage was Ross Chastain's move along the wall?
— Dustin Long (@dustinlong) October 30, 2022
His final lap was 18.845 seconds. The next fastest time on the last lap was 20.508 seconds by Kyle Larson.
Larson won the pole Saturday with a lap of 19.709 seconds. https://t.co/EYcTh7MlUl
Here are two more looks at the move from inside the car.
THE MOVE THAT SENDS ROSS CHASTAIN TO THE #CHAMPIONSHIP4! pic.twitter.com/67Ku712XZf
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 30, 2022
Chastain last lap synced with his scanner audio. Heard he was two out and gassed it up! This is sick. https://t.co/y4sGU1LpEu
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) October 31, 2022
And as would be expected, the car sustained heavy damage to the right side.
— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) October 30, 2022
"Played a lot of NASCAR 05 on the GameCube with [brother] Chad growing up and you can get away with it," Chastain said, per Yahoo News. "And I never knew if it would actually work. I did that when I was 8 years old."
Chastain was still shocked by his feat when he was leaving the track.
"I can't believe that that worked," he said.
I can’t believe it! Thank you @TeamTrackhouse and all our amazing partners! #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/fotS0x8Nff
— Ross Chastain (@RossChastain) October 31, 2022
Chastain and Hamlin had a bit of a rivalry all season, with Hamlin often calling out Chastain's tendency to be involved in crashes and hinting at retaliation.
Hamlin said after the race that he wasn't looking in his rearview mirror and that he didn't think there was anything one of his spotters could have told him to help him avoid the oncoming Chastain.
"It's funny, but not for me," Hamlin said.
.@dennyhamlin’s thoughts on being eliminated by Chastain’s move.
— Peter Stratta (@peterstratta) October 30, 2022
1/2… #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/aYCunYMUkq
Kyle Larson criticized the move and said that he felt bad if he was the one who introduced it to NASCAR last year
"That's not a good look for our sport," Larson said. "I think it's pretty embarrassing."
Kyle Larson wasn't a fan of what Ross Chastain did on the last lap.
— Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverRA) October 30, 2022
"That's not a good look for our sport. Maybe you guys think it's cool. I think it's embarrassing." pic.twitter.com/7CNzcTDkLC
Hamlin didn't call the move embarrassing. Instead, he said it was "brilliant" and "well-executed."
Other drivers praised the boldness of the move but called into question whether NASCAR should prohibit it moving forward in the interest of driver safety.
Joey Logano on Chastain's move: "As spectacular as it was, now the box is open. ... There needs to be a rule against this one. I don't know if you want the whole field riding the wall coming to the checkered flag."
— Kelly Crandall (@KellyCrandall) October 30, 2022
Chase Briscoe on Ross Chastain’s move, “I’m curious how this changes short track races. … We all could have did it.”
— Kelly Crandall (@KellyCrandall) October 30, 2022