Final 2025 NASCAR Cup Series points standings
November 3, 2025
A dramatic overtime and a late strategy gamble saw Kyle Larson deny Denny Hamlin the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship title in a shocking twist as Ryan Blaney won Phoenix season finale.
Larson finished third behind Blaney and Brad Keselwoski which was enough to snatch his second NASCAR Cup Series title from a dominant Hamlin without even leading a lap at Phoenix Raceway.
“We had the right front go down (earlier), lost a lap,” Larson said. “Got saved by the caution. Did the wave-around. Was really bad that run. We took two tires. I was like, ‘Oh, God, here we go. We’re going to go to the back now.'”
“It had a lot more grip than I anticipated. We got lucky with the final caution. I was really hoping we were going to take two again. I felt like I learned a lot on that restart, bombing (Turns) 1 and 2 really hard. Thought I could do the same thing if we got another one.
“Just unbelievable. What a year by this Hendrick Motorsports (team). Cliff Daniels, everybody, his leadership, his complete leadership just showed that whole race. Keeping us all motivated. Always having a plan. All of that. That’s just the story of our season.
“Again, just unbelievable. I cannot believe it. This is insane.”
From the outset, the race featured a talented Championship 4 field with Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, William Byron, and Chase Briscoe all battling for ultimate glory.
Hamlin dominated the early and middle running, leading an impressive 208 of the 312 total laps, which initially gave an impression the 44-year old was ready to claim his maiden crown and finally drop the unsavory title of “most wins by a driver without a championship.”
Phoenix: 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race Results
Final 2025 NASCAR Cup Series points standings
In Stage 1, Hamlin encountered heavy traffic and found himself running third behind Blaney as Byron went on to claim the stage win.
However, Hamlin would later reclaim the top spot and take Stage 2 win despite a long clutch issue that has plagued his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota throughout the 2025 season.
He was followed by Blaney, Byron and Larson in fourth as Briscoe worked his way back up to seventh.
Tire chaos plagues 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship title decider
The final stage saw entire complexion of the race unfold on pit road with majority of Championship 4 contenders suffering tyre issues.
Hamlin was the first to call in a blown tire but suffered a slow pit stop that dropped him to eleventh, followed by Larson who endured a more disastrous stop as his crew struggled to get a wheel tight, falling back to 18th.
Byron took the lead away on the restart, followed by a slow Chastain who was outmuscled by Briscoe for second as the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota hounded the leading No. 24 Hendricks Chevrolet for the top spot.
However, chaos unfolded as Larson blew another tire with Briscoe suffering the same fate moments later, forcing both title challengers to fall a lap down as Carson Hocevar triggered a caution after crashing into the wall due to a blown tire as well.
With many lead drivers choosing to pit, Elliott took the lead before relinquishing it to his teammate Byron with 60 laps to go. Hamlin made his move past Elliott as well, before another caution flew following Austin Cindric’s crash.
Byron took the lead on restart but could not fend off Hamlin from taking the top spot before JJ Yeley triggered the eighth caution of the race after suffering a flat tire as well.
Larson and Briscoe both opted for two-tire stops, putting them out front for the restart as Hamlin and Byron followed, turning up the Championship 4 battle at the top.
Byron managed to pass all three but Hamlin overcame him a couple of turns later to take the lead which he proceeded to extend to 3s, looking poised to finally claim the championship that had eluded him
However, Byron suffered a flat tire and slammed into the wall with only four laps remaining, triggering a caution that wiped out Hamlin’s lead and bunched the field for a dramatic restart, forcing quick decisions in the pits that would define the race’s outcome.
During the caution pit stops, Hamlin opted swap all four tires to maintain grip and race pace for the final sprint, while Kyle Larson and Ryan Blaney took a gamble with only two tires aiming to gain track position in the closing laps.
The calculated risk placed Blaney in the lead on the restart as Larson took fifth with Hamlin dropping to a devastating tenth.
Blaney proceeded to win the Phoenix season finale ahead of Keselowski, while Larson finished third to seal the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship title.
Unfortunately Hamlin could not make up the lost ground and had to settle for sixth, falling short in his pursuit of the championship crown.
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