NASCAR Playoffs: Kevin Harvick, Erik Jones crash out at Las vegas

The first race of the 2018 NASCAR Playoffs was full of potential opportunity, but also hazards, and it was latter that found two of the 16 championship contenders.

It’s a good thing Kevin Harvick built up so many bonus points before the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway kicked off the 2018 NASCAR Playoffs on Sunday. Erik Jones did not, and his title chances may already be sunk.

Both drivers began the first playoff race right near the front, with Jones winning the pole and Harvick starting third and leading laps during the first half of the race. Unfortunately, Harvick blew a right front tire during Stage 2 and his No. 4 Ford quickly found its way up the track to the outside wall.

Even bigger problem: Jones was already running up there, and he simply had no chance to slow his No. 20 Toyota down before plowing right into the back of Harvick’s Ford.

As you can imagine, neither driver was particularly thrilled to take about their misfortune when they were released from the infield care center. Jones admitted that the wreck would force him to think about what needed to happen the next two weeks, since it temporarily placed him at the bottom among playoff drivers in points. Neither of the upcoming races are necessarily must-win for the 20 team, but they are close.

Harvick, meanwhile, alluded to having a problem even before his tire exploded, and he used some pretty pointed and colorful language to express his feelings on the tires. Unlike Jones, Harvick had a number of banked playoff points from his numerous victories and stage wins to rely on, and is in no real danger of not advancing to the Round of 12.

What this accident proved more than anything is just how one bad day can spell doom for the fringe playoff drivers and how regular season dominance is equally important in order to be able to shrug off a bad day. For all the criticism the current NASCAR Playoffs get from some corners, at least that part of the format feels right.