{
"article": "Race fans, buckle up for your Auto Racing Daily Digest as we break down all of yesterday’s jaw-dropping action across NASCAR, IndyCar, and Formula 1.\n\nLet's start in NASCAR where the playoffs heated up at Talladega Superspeedway. Tyler Reddick pulled off a dramatic late charge to clinch victory in the YellaWood 500, threading the needle through a three-wide scramble on the final lap. The top five were separated by less than half a second, with Brad Keselowski, Ryan Blaney, Bubba Wallace, and Chris Buescher rounding out the top finishers. The pole went to Chase Elliott after blistering the field in Saturday’s session, but a pit road speeding penalty buried his race. Playoff implications were massive—William Byron maintains a narrow points lead, but the cutoff battle tightened with only one race left in the Round of 12. Denny Hamlin’s engine failure early in the event shook the standings, while a wild multi-car crash at lap 143 saw Jo Logano and Austin Dillon tangle, triggering a red flag. The winning strategy? Reddick’s team nailed every pit stop, keeping him at the front through the final green flag run and opting for fresh tires with less than 20 laps left. Standout performer: Bubba Wallace, who led the most laps and rebounded from a near-spin in stage two. In the garage, Hendrick Motorsports teased a new technical partnership with HRE, hinting at big aero changes coming for the next round. After the race, Reddick called the finish ‘the wildest ride of my career’, while a clearly aggravated Kyle Busch said, ‘if you’re not aggressive, you’re left behind.’ Next up for NASCAR: the Roval at Charlotte, with wet weather in the forecast and only eight playoff spots up for grabs— expect chaos.\n\nSwitching to Formula 1, Suzuka delivered classic Japanese Grand Prix drama. Max Verstappen dominated, starting from pole and never looking back, clinching his 14th win of the year. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton battled for second, with Leclerc narrowly holding him off. Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz completed the top five after a strategic game of undercuts and tire gamble on softs. Verstappen’s Red Bull led every practice session and qualifying set a blistering 1:28.612 lap, while Oscar Piastri’s early crash on lap 10 brought out the safety car and reshuffled mid-field tactics. Verstappen’s technical edge: Red Bull’s new floor and diffuser package, squeezing extra grip through sector one’s tricky S-curves. Driver of the day: Lewis Hamilton, fighting back from seventh to third with aggressive overtakes and late braking masterclasses. In the championship, Verstappen stretches his stranglehold to nearly 70 points over Perez; McLaren edges closer to Ferrari for second in the Constructors. Off-track, Ferrari confirmed Carlos Sainz’s contract extension through 2027, squashing months of rumor. Next race heads to Austin’s Circuit of the Americas, known for its high-speed esses and unpredictable Texas weather. The title may be nearly locked, but every spot counts in the midfield wars.\n\nIndyCar wrapped its season with the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey. Alex Palou claimed the win and reinforced his champion’s status, leading 58 of 95 laps and holding off a late charge by Pato O’Ward, with Josef Newgarden, Scott Dixon, and Colton Herta rounding out the top five. Rookie Linus Lundqvist stunned with a third-place qualifying spot, while pole went to the ever-confident Will Power. Race-defining moment came with a three-car incident on lap 54—Felix Rosenqvist, Romain Grosjean, and Alexander Rossi colliding at Turn 2, sparking the only full-course caution. Palou’s secret? Exceptionally long first stint on primary tires and razor-sharp fuel saving in the closing laps. Driver of the day: Scott Dixon, charging from twelfth to fourth with a bold two-stop strategy. In post-race comments, Palou praised his Ganassi crew for ‘flawless calls and world-class pit stops’, while O’Ward reflected, ‘we pushed as hard as humanly...