How the NASCAR Truck Series playoff fight went down at Richmond

Going into Saturday's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Richmond, Daniel Dye and Tanner Gray knew that their 2024 seasons were on the line.

At the end of 250 laps around the Richmond Raceway, both drivers knew their fate.

Dye's conservative, easygoing eighth-place run ended up being enough for him the make up the five-point deficit he previously had to Gray, and while Gray's 12th-place effort was commendable, Dye's litany of stage points ended up being the death knell of Gray's season.

"We just weren't good enough," Gray said to Fox Sports' Amanda Busick. "All day, we just didn't have the speed, didn't have the balance, and I didn't do a good enough job. Really frustrated. When you come into a race like this, you have to be better, and we weren't tonight. Congrats to Daniel, they were better down the stretch when it mattered. We were too sloppy."

Gray's 12th-place finish marks his seventh consecutive finish outside of the top-10, while Dye's top-10 finish is his first since Nashville on June 28. Neither driver could be considered "hot" going into the regular-season finale, but in the end, Dye's clutch performance was all he needed to clinch a postseason bid.

Defending Truck Series champion Ben Rhodes locked up a postseason berth with a seventh-place finish, while Taylor Gray's third-place effort was enough to lock one of the Gray brothers into the 2024 postseason.

The Truck Series playoffs will begin at the Milwaukee Mile on Sunday, Aug. 25.