Ryan Blaney celebrated his victory at Martinsville Speedway, a win that launched NASCAR’s defending champion into the title-deciding season finale.

Meanwhile, Christopher Bell and William Byron waited awkwardly alongside their parked cars for a ruling from NASCAR on who would be the fourth and final driver in the winner-take-all decider at Phoenix Raceway.

The issue was whether Bell had smashed into a wall on the final lap and rode along it for momentum to give him the final pass he needed to move past Byron for the last spot in the championship. The move was quite similar to one used two years ago at Martinsville by Ross Chastain — it was dubbed the “Hail Melon” — and subsequently banned the ensuing offseason.

Blaney was headed back to the championship finale for the right to defend his title against Team Penske teammate Joey Logano and Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing. The fourth finalist just waited for what seemed an eternity for a NASCAR ruling.

Bell riding the wall was ultimately deemed illegal and Byron saved Hendrick Motorsports from a humiliating third round of the playoffs. Three Hendrick drivers were vying for the four spots in the finale and only Byron qualified — and only because Bell was deemed to have committed a safety violation.

Bell argued he didn’t have a choice as he hit the wall trying to avoid fellow Toyota driver Bubba Wallace, who claimed he had a tire going down. Bell rode a portion of it for momentum and it got him the pass he needed to tie Byron in points for the final spot next week at Phoenix Raceway.

Blaney, meanwhile, passed Hendrick driver Chase Elliott with 15 laps to go to win at the Virginia track for a second consecutive year. His victory last year propelled him to his first Cup title.

“To have another shot at the championship is really special,” Blaney said. “Try to go back-to-back next week. I’ve got nothing left. Oh my God, I’m tired.”

Elliott finished second at Martinsville, Kyle Larson finished third, and Penske driver Austin Cindric was fourth but not eligible for a championship berth.

Denny Hamlin drove from last to fifth but was eliminated from the playoffs and Byron was sixth.

FORMULA 1

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen took a major step toward securing his fourth straight F1 title by winning the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo, despite starting 17th, and increasing his lead over McLaren’s Lando Norris with three races to go.

Verstappen overcame punishments before the race as well as the wet weather at Interlagos to earn his first victory since June, and his eighth Grand Prix win of the year.