Back-to-back wins vault Chase Briscoe back into title contention, but is it too little, too late?

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — Chase Briscoe’s hero in auto racing has always been Tony Stewart.

Now, the driver of the No. 19 Toyota is hoping to replicate what “Smoke” accomplished in 2011 when he stunned the racing world by rallying to win the NASCAR Cup Series championship by winning five of 10 playoff races, including the season finale at Homestead to register one of the sport’s biggest comebacks.

“He made a pretty unbelievable run, and hopefully we can do the same thing,” Briscoe said of Stewart.

Briscoe is certainly giving it his best effort after winning back-to-back playoff races.

That included Sunday when he edged out Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Christopher Bell by .029 seconds to win the second closest race in Charlotte Motor Speedway’s 66-year history.

He also won the previous week at Las Vegas.

The wins have vaulted Chase back into the “Chase.”

Two weeks ago Briscoe was 123 points behind playoff points leader Kyle Larson. He’s since trimmed that deficit to 65 with four races remaining before a champion is crowned.

Denny Hamlin, at 49 points back, and Bell, 51 back, also remain ahead of Briscoe heading into the stretch run.

Now it’s just a matter of whether it’s too little, too late for Briscoe.

“I think we are certainly in contention,” Briscoe said. “We probably need to win another race or two, but we at least put ourselves in the ballgame. That’s all you can ask for.”

Briscoe lamented four laps in the playoffs which he said have cost him 75 points due to miscues.

But he added the focus is on next week when the circuit heads to Phoenix.

“We never know how it’s going to look in four weeks from now but just have to go to the racetrack and keep winning races ultimately, and if we can do that, the points are going to be what they’re going to be at the end,” he said.

Briscoe’s crew chief James Small is hoping to seize on the momentum from the two wins.

“I think we’ve got to step on their throats while we can,” Small said. “I’m not going to let off the throttle pedal right now.”

When asked if the mild-mannered Briscoe was the type to step on someone’s throat, Small laughed and said, “Definitely not.”

But then Small added, “When he puts his helmet on and he’s silent, but he’s like a silent assassin.”

Briscoe got a chuckle when informed of Small’s comments after the race.

“You can be a nice guy outside of the race car, but in the race car I think you have to be a killer,” Briscoe said. “For us, that’s the whole approach.”

Briscoe is expected to continue his “ultra aggressive” approach next week.

“The only way you’re going to cut into the gap is by winning races,” Briscoe said. “If you just run second or third and Larson runs second or third with you, like you’re not going to gain 65 points in four weeks. Yeah, just have to go win races and just have to be ultra aggressive truthfully and try to do everything we can in our power, and if it’s enough, it’ll be enough at the end.”

Larson’s crew chief Cliff Daniels told reporters that Sunday was a good reality check for his team that the season isn’t over.

Larson finished sixth on Sunday, marking the first time he has finished outside of the top five in the postseason. Still, he was able to add nine points to his lead over the second place Hamlin.

But Briscoe is the driver that clearly has his attention.

“I won’t feel comfortable until it’s over,” Larson said. “Obviously, Briscoe winning and having a good day; you can take big chunks out of (the lead) if you win. We’re going to go to some tracks where others are really good coming up, so we just have to keep putting together days like (Sunday). We weren’t the fastest, but we got good points.”

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