In January, team owner Chip Ganassi said he expected McMurray to qualify for the Chase, something he had never done previously in a 12-year-career. And while it was by no means spectacular -- he's led all of 14 laps with only two top-five finishes -- McMurray completed Ganassi's request by finishing worse than 25th on just three occasions and accumulating the most points of any winless Chase driver.
McMurray's scores enough points to make Round 2.
The consistency that got him this far vanishes making a first round elimination all but guaranteed even before the bracket is completed.
Could McMurray be this year's Ryan Newman? A driver who avoids catastrophic finishes and quietly posts decent results every week to earn a surprise final four bid? It's possible and fits the template McMurray's employed all season. More likely, though, he's gone after Round 1.