2022 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Preview at Phoenix

For the first time since 2018, there are no teammates in the Championship 4 round. Four different organizations are represented, as are all three manufacturers. Three of these drivers have won a race in the last four weeks, but one has not been to victory lane since Talladega in April, 25 races ago. Here are how the four drivers stack up heading into the desert.

Joey Logano, Team Penske

Logano has had an up-and-down season overall, but this team showed their strength towards the end of the year, right when the playoffs began. He comes into the finale with three race wins, three poles, ten top-fives, and 597 laps led. His team has had the advantage of extra time to plan and strategize for this race.

The Penske driver is making his fifth Championship 4 appearance, all coming in even-numbered years. In addition to winning the title in 2018, Logano has finished 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. Logano has two wins at Phoenix, and finished 8th in the spring race earlier this year.

If Logano wins: Would become the 17th driver with multiple Cup titles, and the first Penske driver with two championships.

Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports

Elliott used his massive points advantage to guide him to the Championship 4 for the third year in a row. That isn't necessarily a good thing, as the Hendrick Motorsports driver has struggled to execute in most of these playoff races. He has finished 14th or worse in six of his last ten races.

Chase still has the most race wins (five) this season, to go along with three poles, 12 top-fives, and 857 laps led. He won this race in 2020, which earned him the title that year. He finished 5th in the two Phoenix races last season and was 11th earlier this year.

If Elliott wins: Would become the fourth driver to win the title in the same year that he won the regular season championship.

Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing

Bell's second consecutive must-win victory in an elimination race was overshadowed by the banzai move that Ross Chastain made at the end of the Martinsville race. What that should signal to everyone is that this young driver can perform under pressure, when his team needs him the most. While he has never led a lap or finished inside the top-five at Phoenix, Bell is certainly capable of getting the job done on Sunday.

Bell has three wins this season, to go along with his four poles, 12 top-fives, and 573 laps led. His 26th place finish at Phoenix earlier this year doesn't offer much confidence, but this race will be much different. Bell has arguably been the most consistent driver in the playoffs, but some bad luck always seems to find him.

If Bell wins: Would become the sixth driver to win the title in his first Championship 4 appearance, and it would be the fourth title for Toyota.

Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing

It is safe to say that Chastain is easily the dark horse going into Sunday. The Trackhouse Racing driver wouldn't have it any other way. His breakout season includes two wins, 14 top-fives, and 692 laps led. Often overlooked and dismissed, Chastain has quietly avoided all of the noise that followed him throughout the season. Is this the time one of his rivals cashes in on their payback?

Chastain's first seven starts at Phoenix in lesser equipment don't really tell the story of his performance here. He finished runner-up in the spring race earlier this year and could very well improve upon that this weekend. Trackhouse has been particularly good on the one-mile ovals, which sets up well for a Cinderella story on Sunday.

If Chastain wins: Would become the eighth different driver to win the championship in the last nine years.