Close but no cigar

Although they won’t have a car in the Chase, Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates had two drivers make a lot of noise at Richmond.

Needing a win to get in, Jamie McMurray spent much of the night in the top five and finished fourth. Rookie Kyle Larson was in the top 10 most of the race but slipped to 11th and finished 16 points behind Greg Biffle for the final spot on the Chase grid.

“When the race started tonight, I thought we had a car capable of winning,” said McMurray, who charged into the top three from a 15th-place starting position. “I got a little nervous when it seemed like the car went away on one run, but we battled, got it back, and in the end had a third-place car.”

Larson showed no quit. He was 14th when the race’s third caution occurred on Lap 263. By Lap 275, Larson was back up to sixth.

“We were really good on restarts,” said Larson, who also advanced from 12th to eighth on the race’s previous caution. “We were good on the short runs but I would fall back on the long runs.

“Wins are important (in making the Chase). We’ve got to work on that next year. We didn’t have a car quite capable of winning, so I was hoping Jamie would get a shot there at the end.”

Though he won’t be in the Chase, Larson is stating his case for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors. He extended his lead to 39 points over rival Austin Dillon, who finished 20th at Richmond.