The sports documentary series has taken over streaming networks in recent times. Football has Hard Knocks. Soccer has Welcome to Wrexham. Formula One saw a massive increase in interest with the launch of Drive to Survive. NASCAR jumped on the bandwagon last year with NASCAR: Full Speed on Netflix.
Start your engines! 🔥
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 7, 2025
An all-new season of Full Speed is now streaming on @netflix! pic.twitter.com/Xukttc6ULU
The series focuses on the 2024 NASCAR playoffs, highlighting both the on-track action and the lives of the drivers and their families away from the track. In fact, a significant portion of the show revolves around the spouses of the drivers – a unique look at how much the on-track action plays a role in day-to-day lives.
***SPOILERS AHEAD***
NASCAR: Full Speed – Season Two’s Biggest Moments
Season One of NASCAR: Full Speed felt like we saw more focus on the moments around the race track rather than what happened on the race track. Season Two definitely feels like they placed a greater emphasis on the actual on-track action.
That’s not to say we didn’t get looks at the off-track happenings (hello to Ryan Blaney getting a new pool), but it definitely feels like the moments to talk about are the moments we talked about as they happened last year.
Stewart-Haas Shutdown
Episode two spends a lot of time with Chase Briscoe. Briscoe made the playoffs at the last second with a win at Darlington, the last regular season race of the season. The significance of the moment was only added to by the fact that Stewart-Haas Racing would be closing its doors at the end of the season.
In the midst of Briscoe dealing with the fallout of the shutdown of SHR, Briscoe also has to try to advance in the playoffs. If that wasn’t enough for a driver to deal with, Briscoe’s wife, Marissa, was also pregnant with twins at the time.
Full Speed out of context 📸 pic.twitter.com/XGJGhYShtk
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) May 7, 2025
The SHR shutdown also impacted playoff driver Harrison Burton. Burton would be replaced at the end of the season by Josh Berry, who was departing from SHR to join the Wood Brothers, taking over the #21 car. Burton punched his playoff ticket courtesy of a massive win at Daytona after receiving the news. One of my favorite moments of the season happened with Harrison’s father, Jeff Burton, talking about the moment. Totally worth watching this season for his “I don’t feel bad for him” speech alone.
NASCAR: Full Speed did a fantastic job of underscoring the moment while also showing how much the SHR shutdown impacted the trajectory of the sport.
Alex Bowman DQ
In the finale of round two at the Roval, Tyler Reddick made a mad dash up through the field in the final stage. The resulting points from his charge put him four points above Joey Logano and eliminated the #22 from the playoffs. Logano’s raw emotion was easy to see in the aftermath of the race.
Then, in post-race inspection, Alex Bowman’s car was too light. The #48 was disqualified. Just like that, Joey Logano was back in the playoffs. The moment possibly played more of a role in the 2024 season than any other incident during the year, with Logano going on to win the first race in the third round and eventually the championship.
I would have preferred to get a bit more from the #48 team after the DQ but seeing the quick shift in mindset for Logano in real time is part of what makes NASCAR: Full Speed such a great behind-the-scenes look.
Martinsville Madness
The final race that sets the championship four tends to produce some wild moments. Whether it’s Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano’s incident here in 2015 or Ross Chastain and the “Hail Melon”, Martinsville consistently creates chaos. 2024’s round three finale was no different.
Christopher Bell had a series of issues, as did Denny Hamlin. Meanwhile, Ryan Blaney, in a must-win situation, found his way to the front of the field. This set up a desperate dash to secure points between William Byron and Bell for the final championship spot.
NASCAR rules that William Byron will advance to the Championship 4 over Christopher Bell for a safety violation (wall ride).
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) November 3, 2024
Here is what happened on the last lap at Martinsville: https://t.co/lH1WDUkRem pic.twitter.com/drhRKLvdbD
Christopher Bell, in the final corner, ended up hitting the wall and completing a pass necessary to secure the points for the final championship spot. A move not unlike Chastain’s legendary final lap at Martinsville. However, that move was outlawed after NASCAR deemed it unsafe, and so Bell found himself disqualified. Byron got the final playoff spot. The show did a fantastic job of showing the suspense between Bell and Byron as they waited to hear NASCAR’s final decision.
There was even a great moment with Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney celebrating Blaney’s win in Victory Lane while they wait to hear who gets the fourth and final spot in the championship race.
Thoughts on Season Two of NASCAR: Full Speed
Ultimately, the documentary provided a great look at the drama inherent in motorsports. While the championship race itself didn’t necessarily see a ton of chaos, the rest of the races in the playoffs delivered. I enjoyed getting a look back at Tyler Reddick’s dramatic closing laps to win at Homestead. I also enjoyed the reminder of just how hard Blaney pushed at Martinsville to win.
The off-track looks were great as well. Especially, with everything surrounding Stewart-Haas Racing during the playoffs. The series does a magnificent job of humanizing these drivers and showing the emotions they go through during races, as well as how their families experience those emotions. I also loved getting to see William Byron dealing with the mental side of the sport and talking about sports therapy.
What’s Missing?
However, there were a few gaps in the series as well. While the show did a great job with the wall ride and Bell’s disqualification, it completely missed some additional circumstances in that race. Ross Chastain and Austin Dillon’s teams were both penalized in the aftermath of Martinsville after essentially serving as blockers to help Byron maintain position.
The radio communications for both teams, as well as the #23 of Bubba Wallace, eventually led to rule changes over the offseason, something I think ought to have featured prominently in the show.
Additionally, while the 23XI lawsuit did briefly get mentioned, it ended up serving as more of a footnote. I reckon NASCAR’s input on the show limited how much Netflix could showcase. However, I think it’s a much bigger story than the show suggests.
I also hope that in future seasons we get more time with the pit crews, engineering teams, and support staff that make the series tick. I would love to get an episode solely focused on the crews and their families, though I recognize the drivers as the stars of the show makes that hard.
Final Verdict
Ultimately, I enjoyed the season. I love these deeper dives into the weekly goings-on of NASCAR. I also think NASCAR: Full Speed serves as a fantastic intro to the sport.
Per a tweet from Adam Stern, while NASCAR beat F1 on numbers in the U.S. this past weekend, F1 captured more of the key 18-49 demographic. NASCAR’s core fan base is undeniably aging. To capture younger fans, you have to meet them where they are. Enter Netflix.
NASCAR: Full Speed represents a key piece of the puzzle when it comes to getting the sport in front of younger audiences. While the second season may not capture as much of the magic as the first season, I do think this will help build momentum moving forward.
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