Toyota Has Two Shots at the NASCAR Title and One Race Left

After the Martinsville race on November 1, Toyota drivers Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin are the only two who can still beat Kyle Larson to the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series title.

Bell sits second in the standings, 67 points behind Larson, and Hamlin is third, 70 points back. Neither gained much ground at Martinsville, where Bell finished 10th and Hamlin sixth, but both kept their names in a title fight that now comes down to the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway on November 8.

Ty Gibbs was Toyota’s best finisher on Sunday in third place, according to Toyota Racing’s race recap, and four Camry XSE race cars finished inside the top 10, with Bubba Wallace eighth alongside Gibbs, Hamlin and Bell. Gibbs described a race with little passing and a tire that was sensitive to wear, saying his No. 54 Toyota "was really fast but not fast enough."

Toyota’s two other national series had their own Martinsville weekends. In the Truck Series on Friday, Gio Ruggiero finished eighth and William Sawalich ninth for TRICON Garage, and Toyota development driver Kaden Honeycutt left with a 20-point lead over Layne Riggs. Those two are the only drivers still eligible for the Truck title, and Honeycutt said he was "definitely not comfortable" with the margin despite his confidence going to Homestead. In the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series on Saturday, Brandon Jones climbed from deep in the field to finish fourth and led five GR Supras into the top 12, with Sawalich eighth, Brent Crews ninth, Taylor Gray 10th and Harrison Burton 12th.

The manufacturer side of the season is already settled. Toyota clinched its fourth Cup Series manufacturers’ championship in October, so the Homestead weekend is about the drivers’ titles alone.

All three series finish their seasons at Homestead-Miami. The Truck Series races on Friday, November 6 at 6:30 p.m. Eastern on FS1, the O’Reilly Series on Saturday, November 7 at 5:00 p.m. on the CW, and the Cup Series closes the weekend on Sunday, November 8 at 3:00 p.m. on NBC.

The Toyota Report Take

Sixty-seven points is a lot to make up in one race, and Bell and Hamlin will need Larson to have a bad day as much as they need a good one of their own. The better bet for a Toyota driver title this weekend is Honeycutt in the Truck Series, where a 20-point cushion over one rival is something to protect rather than chase. Toyota has already won the trophy that matters most to its marketing department, but a Cup drivers’ title would be the prize its fans remember.