Okay so last week my buddy texted me like “Hey who even won NASCAR last year?” And I realized… crap, I actually don’t know. Watched some races early season, then life got busy. Totally dropped off. Decided to dive back in and figure out the whole 2023 championship mess, step by step. Here’s how it went down.
The Setup Hunt
First thing? Fired up my laptop. Figured NASCAR’s official site would be obvious. Typed it in, boom, homepage loaded. Looked around… tons of sponsor stuff, driver photos, merch… but where’s the dang championship standings? Scrolled down, clicked “Standings”. Saw like 15 names. Ryan Blaney, Chris Buescher, Kyle Larson… okay cool but which one won the whole thing? Wasn’t screaming at me.
Clicked Blaney’s name since he was near the top. Big photo, bio, stats… still didn’t say “2023 CHAMPION”. Got annoyed. Said screw it, opened another tab. Went to ESPN’s NASCAR section. Scanned headlines. Saw “2023 Cup Series Playoffs” – clicked that fast. Saw Blaney, Larson, William Byron listed as finalists. Getting warmer!
The Video Deep Dive
Remembered NBC covered the final race. Headed to YouTube, searched “NASCAR Championship race 2023 Phoenix”. Found a 10-minute highlights video from NBC Sports. Slammed play. Watched trucks, Xfinity race clips… skipped ahead. Finally saw Cup Series start.
Phoenix race action was intense. Larson spun out early! Heart dropped for him. Byron was leading for ages. Blaney hanging tough, like third or fourth. Video kept cutting to Larson stuck in traffic fighting back. Felt tense! Last laps, Ross Chastain was pushing hard, Byron started fading… then BAM! Blaney made this slick move. Video didn’t show the pass clear, just the finish: Blaney crossing first! Commentators yelling “RYAN BLANEY IS YOUR 2023 NASCAR CUP SERIES CHAMPION!” Finally! Got my answer.
Putting the Season Back Together
Wanted context. How’d Blaney even get there? Went back to * standings, now knowing what to look for.
- Blaney won the “Round of 8” race at Martinsville. Huge win to lock into the final four.
- The Championship 4 were him, Larson (regular season champ), Byron (led in wins), and Chris Buescher.
- Blaney didn’t win the most races (Byron had 6!), but was crazy consistent in playoffs.
- Season long storyline was the new Gen 7 car still causing issues.
- Rick Hendrick got his 300th team win.
- RFK Racing (Keselowski/Buescher) had a huge comeback year.
Cross-referenced a couple racing news sites. Basically confirmed it all. Season felt like a wild rollercoaster – Larson’s dominance early, Toyota struggling then finding speed, Ford getting Blaney that title.
Wrapping My Head Around It
Took longer than expected, honestly. Finding a clear answer on * wasn’t instant. Needed that video footage to see the win happen. Felt like fitting together puzzle pieces scattered across different sites. Kinda wish NASCAR just had a massive “2023 CHAMPION: RYAN BLANEY” banner somewhere obvious. Lesson learned: pay close attention during the playoffs, and bookmark a good highlights channel! So yeah, friend got his answer. Feels good to be back in the loop.
