Chase Briscoe just admitted what the rest of the garage was thinking. A week ago, he and the pack believed they could fight Kyle Larson over the final three races. Then Talladega happened. Larson charged from 11th to 1st on the final overtime lap, and Briscoe watched it from the sidelines. Now Briscoe says nobody expected the No. 5 team to contend for a title, and he believes Larson and his team deserve to win it. That endorsement carries weight, especially from a rival who spent the week before Talladega believing the No. 5 could be beaten.

In conversation with NASCAR Journalist Kelly Crandall for SiriusXM NASCAR Radio and RACER on October 30, Chase Briscoe shared how the No. 5 team has achieved something special by turning the Chase season around for themselves and taking on the challenge of fighting for a back-to-back title win this year.

“Yeah, it’s an amazing thing what they’ve been able to do,” Briscoe responded. “To be able to go to the types of race tracks that we went to, and I think Talladega was the big difference maker, right? Like when you go and win Talladega and not have a 20 or 30 place finish, then it just changes a ton.”

Briscoe currently sits fourth in the standings after the YellaWood 500 round.

“But yeah, I mean, what the five group has been able to do if they can sustain that for the next two weeks, like they deserve to be the champion,” he continued. “You know, that is just an unbelievable thing to be able to do an to be able to sustain that for 10 weeks.”

Kyle Larson and his No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports crew took on the task of turning their regular season around by arriving at the Chase with a chance to go after their second consecutive title win. Larson was the No. 7 seed entering the format, with Denny Hamlin being the favorite to win the Chase.

But the HMS crew worked hard, ignored the external voices predicting their outcome, and went on to win three out of eight races in the Chase, with Larson finishing in the Top 6 in all races excluding his nightmare Phoenix run.

While Phoenix was the most championship-altering race and one that came with major implications for Larson, who saw his lead diminish to five points, Talladega helped him regain lost momentum by extending it to a 73-point cushion.

While the luxury of a points lead did not come without controversy and criticism, it is beyond a doubt that the YellaWood 500 has made his life a little easier, with just 59 points keeping him from clinching the title in Martinsville, irrespective of where the other contenders finish.

Chase Briscoe, who saw his championship hopes shatter after being caught in the stage 3 crash in the final laps, has expressed nothing but praise and kudos for the No. 5 team, who he believes deserve the championship win if they keep up their momentum.

Referencing his favorite basketball team, the Indiana Pacers, Briscoe shared how things can change a lot in the postseason.

“I mean, I am a fan of the Pacers, right? And at certain times, teams get hot, and that happened with the Pacers a couple of years ago, and they went from not being, kind of like the favorite, to all of a sudden, they are the favorite,” explained Briscoe, “I think, the best teams, and the best you know, athletes can turn it on in the post season.”

Briscoe turned to his hometown Indiana Pacers for an example of how quickly a team can catch fire and change the entire picture.

“And that five group is an amazing group,” he continued. “They’re obviously a championship organization and team, and yeah, they turned it on. And they’ve been unbelievable in the Chase, and if they can sustain it for two more weeks, then I think they’ve more than earned the right to be the champions.”

A native of Mitchell, Indiana, he knows the impact of a hot streak better than most.

“So yeah, it’s been an amazing thing they’ve been able to do,” he said. “Do I think that teams will be able to do this every single year? I don’t but what they’ve been able to has certainly been special.”

While Briscoe believes they are a worthy contender, he has not given up on his championship-winning dream. His switch to the Joe Gibbs Racing team has also seen a shift in his mentality, as he wants to fight for wins and battle with the top runners. But for now, Briscoe, on a light-hearted note, believes he may need to have Tony Stewart-esque final two races to have a chance of winning.

Meanwhile, Kyle Larson is preparing to play an offensive strategy at the upcoming Martinsville race. Hendrick Motorsports has achieved record-breaking success at the paper-clip layout short track, and the driver himself has a win at the venue; Larson wants to make no errors.

While the last two races have delivered two very different standings results, Martinsville could turn out to be a challenge of its own for the title contenders. But with the job yet to be finished, it isn’t over until it is truly over this Chase 2026 season.

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