3 winners and 2 losers after NASCAR's Monster Energy Cup Series playoff race at New Hampshire

Stenciled above the door of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota is not Kyle Busch’s name, instead his nickname, “Rowdy,” in honor of “Rowdy Burns” the main antagonist in the film Days of Thunder.

On Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Busch pulled off a very Rowdy Burns-esque moment at the ISM Connect 300 when a multi-car wreck just ahead left little means to safely maneuver and with heavy smoke impeding his vision. In the vain of the character he’s nicknamed after, Busch deftly drove through the cloud of smoke and around several damaged cars stopped on the track, including race-leader Martin Truex Jr., whose Toyota sustained damage.

"That was pretty intense," Busch said. "That was some Days of Thunder stuff over there. You couldn't see anything."

Busch’s ability to get through unscathed vaulted him into the lead, and from there he never looked back. Rarely challenged, he took the checkered flag by nearly three seconds over second-place Kyle Larson in collecting his third win of the season and clinching himself a spot in Round 2 of the Monster Energy Cup Series playoffs.

In a season where Busch frequently saw wins slip away via self-inflicted mistakes or circumstances beyond his control, Sunday was him capitalizing on others mistakes and misfortune. Before getting a piece of the multi-car pileup triggered by Austin Dillon getting into Kevin Harvick, Truex was every bit Busch’s equal if not outright better leading 109 of the first 149 laps.

But with Truex’s car damaged and the not the same afterward (he rallied to finish fifth), Busch asserted himself leading 148 of a possible 151 laps. And even when his lead was erased by three cautions over the final 36 laps, it still wasn’t enough. On each subsequent restart he quickly pulled away and distanced himself from the field.

"We're supposed to do these things and it feels even better when we can do those things,” Busch said. “We've missed out on a lot of opportunities I feel like this year, but today we were able to execute all day long.”

Winner: Toyota

The unquestioned dominant manufacturer flexed its muscle again Sunday, winning for the eighth time in 11 races. Busch and Truex combined to lead every lap but one and would’ve likely finished 1-2 had Truex not had his troubles earlier. Matt Kenseth in third and Erik Jones in sixth gave Toyota four of the top-five positions.

But it is Busch and Truex who are carrying the Toyota banner, and there is no indication either will slow down anytime soon. Both have clearly separated themselves from the other 14 title-eligible drivers utilizing speed and consistency that no one has been able to keep up with over a prolonged period, and there is no style of track where they’re at a disadvantage.

Loser: NASCAR

Coming into the middle race of Round 1 the attention had largely been on everything but what was transpiring on the track. Whether it was Danica Patrick announcing her impending departure from Stewart-Haas Racing, teams employing creative ways to skirt technical regulations, or other assorted other topics.

What NASCAR needed was a race that returned the spotlight to where it needed be and away from the extracurricular stuff. That didn’t happen at New Hampshire. Not only was the race itself a dud with Busch and Truex having a stranglehold on the lead and little on-track excitement, but NASCAR found itself thrust into the hot button conversation surrounding athletes kneeling during the national anthem thanks to decisive comments made by Richard Petty and Richard Childress prior to the race.

In separate interviews, Petty and Childress each said they would fire any of their employees who didn’t stand for the playing of the national anthem. While the team owners are entitled to their opinions and can run their organizations as they see fit, it was a bad look for the sport; a jarring shift in tone of the unity expressed by NFL owners and players throughout the country.

“Get you a ride on a Greyhound bus when the national anthem is over,” Childress said on how he would deal with an employee not standing. “Anybody that works for me should respect the country we live in. So many people gave their lives for it. This is America.”

NASCAR has long struggled with diversity and being viewed as welcoming to minorities. And although there have been significant strides made, NASCAR CEO Brian France publicly endorsing Donald Trump as president at a rally in February 2016 and NASCAR’s reluctance to ban the Confederate flag cast a negative light on the sport. Petty’s and Childress’ respective remarks only provided the latest evidence that NASCAR still has a ways to go to be inclusive as other sports leagues.

Winner: Kyle Larson

As he so often has been throughout the season, Kyle Larson was again the best non-Toyota driver at New Hampshire. His runner-up finish marked the eighth time he’s finished second and even though he doesn’t have a playoff win, he’s already tallied enough points to secure his advancement to the second round with one Round 1 race remaining.

“That’s a lot of second-place finishes this year, but I’m fine with second,” Larson said. “Top fives will get us to (the championship race).”

Loser: New Hampshire

Sunday represented the final fall race at New Hampshire, with its September date being shifted to Las Vegas Motor Speedway next season. It will be a welcome change.

New Hampshire’s one-mile layout with little banking isn’t conducive to side-by-side racing, nor does it create many passing opportunities during the frequent prolonged periods of green-flag racing; evident by Busch and Truex steamrolling the competition to the tune of just six lead changes on the afternoon. And not surprisingly, ticket sales have waned.

One visit each July is more than sufficient to cater to the New England market. In fact, having only single date may help the track spur a revitalization in popularity much like other tracks that lost a second race experienced.

Winner: Brad Keselowski

Like Larson, Keselowski is assured a berth in the second round thanks to a fourth-place effort Sunday. And like Larson, Keselowski isn’t focused on winning as he knows his Team Penske Fords don’t possess the necessary speed to beat the Toyotas. Keselowski’s goal is to finish as well as he can each week and maximizing his points total.

It’s not an approach that’s going to grab headlines. It is, however, an effective strategy, especially in the early rounds where one cannot win the championship, though certainly can lose it.