Martin Truex Jr. wins 2017 NASCAR Championship; Dale Earnhardt Jr. finishes 25th in last race

Today is the final day of the 2017 NASCAR season, as the Ford EcoBoost 400 results in a new champion; it's also the day that fans say goodbye to favorite Dale Earnhardt Jr. on a NASCAR racetrack.

FINAL: Martin Truex Jr. wins his first Monster Energy Cup Series Championship after winning Sunday's finale race of the 2017 NASCAR season.

"This is a dream come true," Truex Jr. said in victory lane.

"I was a wreck thinking about all the tough days, times when I didn't think anyone believed in me," he said of the moment he crossed the finish line. "But the people who mattered did. The fans, the family, my team."

"Tonight's gonna be a hell of a party," he said.

Not only was it Truex's first Championship, it was also the first title for the Denver-based Furniture Row Racing as well. It was the second Championship 4 appearance for Truex and the No. 78 team; he finished fourth in 2015.

Busch, Harvick and Keselowski were each gunning for a second series championship, the three having won previous titles in 2012 (Keselowski),Β 2014Β (Harvick) and 2015 (Busch).

Truex Jr.'s title capped an incredible run for the No. 78 team that also endured bouts of heartbreak this year. Among them were the recurrence of cancer in Truex Jr.'s longtime girlfriend Sherry Pollex; the death of team member Jim Watson during Kansas race weekend; and most recently, team owner Barney Visser's heart attack that kept him away from the track for the final two races of 2017.

Read below for all the updates as the race happened.

There are plenty of storylines at the 2:00 p.m CT race from Miami; the most important is the crowning of the Monster Energy Cup Series Championship winner.

Four drivers remain in this last championship round--Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr.

Whichever of those four drivers cross the finish line first is your 2017 champion.

I'll be following along with the race all afternoon, and will capture all the lead changes, wrecks, drama and celebrations.

5:22 p.m: The final top five were:

Martin Truex Jr.

2. Kyle Busch

3. Kyle Larson

4. Kevin Harvick

5. Chase Elliott

Busch and Harvick were oh-so-close themselves to getting the Championship win; the other Final 4 driver, Brad Keselowski, finished the race not far behind in 7th place.

5:19 p.m: Martin Truex Jr. does it! He gets the 2017 trophy...and it's the first Championship of his career! Truex raced great all season long, and this is a fitting conclusion to his year.

5:17 p.m.: Is Martin Truex Jr. gonna hold on for his first Championship?

5:15 p.m.: Three laps to go!

5:08: This race is going to go down the wire, and ALL the Championship 4 are in it to win it. Leading still is Martin Truex Jr., but Kyle Busch is making moves. Behind the top two are Harvick and Larson Keselowski isn't far behind in 7th.

4:53 p.m.: We're in caution and drivers are heading down pit row. But, Martin Truex Jr. leads the race and the Championship 4. He looks to be in a good spot!

4:50 p.m.: 40 laps to go!!

4:27 p.m: If you're a Dale Jr. fan, where will your allegiance switch next season? It's going to be interesting to see where fans go to, or if they'll become less attached the sport. Dale Jr. has been great for NASCAR.

4:21 p.m.: Kyle Busch is back in the lead, with 89 laps to go.

4:16 p.m.: We're under 100 laps to go, and Martin Truex Jr. sits in the lead. Behind him are Busch, Harvick, Logano and Larson. Keselowski has dropped to 9th temporarily.

3:55 p.m.: Danica Patrick sustained heavy damage to her car, and is out for the day. Kasey Kahne was also involved in the wreck, when he ran into Patrick after she hit the wall.

3:48 p.m.: And Danica Patrick's out, with her front tire burning hard and smoke everywhere. Patrick certainly didn't want to end her last full NASCAR season like this (she's already said she'd race at Daytona and in the Indy 500 next year).

3:41 p.m.: How's Dale Earnhardt Jr. doing? He's currently driving in 23rd place on lap 127.

Dale Jr. talked this week to ESPN's Marty Smith about how he sees his legacy, and what he regrets. Not surprisingly, he said he wish he'd won a Championship.

3:35 p.m.: Kyle Busch leads the race and also the Championship 4 at lap 123.

3:12 pm.: At end of the Stage 1, you've got Larson, Keselowski, Harvick, Busch, Hamlin and Truex Jr.

3:03 p.m.: Kyle Larson leads the race with 6 laps to go to the end of the first stage, but all four of the Championship finalists--Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch--are all right behind him. They're gonna give it ALL today and should be a close race all day long.

2:58 p.m.: We're approaching the end of Stage 1 at Miami. Who will take that first lead?

2:50 p.m.: Wondering how to track the race online (along with my updates)? You can check outΒ lap-by-lap updates via NASCAR.

2:32 p.m.: Brad Keselowski is making some moves here after the restart. Keselowski should be considered a real favorite for today. Despite not having a win during the playoff's Round of 8, he's got the fire and motivation to win.

2:25 p.m.:Β Coming out of a caution, on the restart on Lap 10, leaders are Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin, Matt Kenseth.

2:19 p.m.: Martin Truex Jr. didn't waste much time getting to the front of the pack. Truex has got to be a favorite today to win the title; he's been hot, especially at the end of the season, and does great on 1.5-mile tracks.

2:15 p.m.: Green flag means go!

1:26 p.m.: A big story today, quite obviously, is that today is Dale Jr.'s final NASCAR race. Even though he's not in the hunt for the championship, eyes will be on him. It should be an emotional race for him and his fans.

1:15 p.m.: Wondering how this last playoff race works?

And check out the four Championship drivers left in the hunt--and reasons why each of them might win.

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