Halfway home: What we've learned through five Chase races and what's to come

Five races ago, Kyle Larson was 55 points behind Denny Hamlin. Five races later, he leads him by 40.That’s a 95-point reversal, built piece by piece over five races.If one number captures the first half of The 2026 Chase presented by Mobil 1 as the heralded postseason format makes its refreshed return this season, it might be that.The defending champion Larson entered as a wayward No. 7 seed and has since flipped the entire season on its head, finishing fifth, first, second, first and seco