NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Grid After Bristol Night Race
Christopher Bell ended a 24-race winless skid as he held off a hungry Brad Keselowski over the final couple of laps in Saturday night's NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. As a result, Bell continued the winning streak for Joe Gibbs Racing, which swept all three race wins in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs Round of 16, and Bell moved on to the Round of 12.
Race Results: Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol
As has been the case throughout the Round of 16, Saturday night's race was an up-and-down one for NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contenders.
Josh Berry saw his Playoff aspirations come to an end after his No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford caught fire on Lap 76 of the 500-lap event. This led to Berry retiring from the race, which caused the driver to suffer his third last-place finish in the three Round of 16 races.
Alex Bowman was one of the five Playoff drivers who finished inside the top-10 on Saturday night, as he finished eighth, but he came up 10 points shy of advancing to the next round of the Playoffs. Additionally, Shane van Gisbergen, who finished 26th, and Austin Dillon, who finished 28th, also missed out on making it to the Round of 12.
Austin Cindric (-1 point), Ross Chastain (-2), Joey Logano (-2), and Tyler Reddick (-3) are the four drivers who will kick off the Round of 12 of the Playoffs below the cutline.
Here is the updated NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Grid following the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway (entering the three-race Round of 12):
Rank | Car | Driver | Points | +/- | Playoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | 3,034 | +26 | 34 |
2 | 5 | Kyle Larson | 3,032 | +24 | 32 |
3 | 24 | William Byron | 3,032 | +24 | 32 |
4 | 20 | Christopher Bell | 3,028 | +20 | 28 |
5 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | 3,027 | +19 | 27 |
6 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | 3,018 | +10 | 18 |
7 | 9 | Chase Elliott | 3,013 | +5 | 13 |
8 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 3,009 | +1 | 9 |
-- | -- | CUTLINE | ----- | -- | -- |
9 | 2 | Austin Cindric | 3,008 | -1 | 8 |
10 | 1 | Ross Chastain | 3,007 | -2 | 7 |
11 | 22 | Joey Logano | 3,007 | -2 | 7 |
12 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | 3,006 | -3 | 6 |
-- | -- | ELIMINATED | ----- | -- | -- |
13 | 48 | Alex Bowman | 2,056 | -- | 0 |
14 | 3 | Austin Dillon | 2,052 | -- | 0 |
15 | 88 | Shane van Gisbergen | 2,050 | -- | 0 |
16 | 21 | Josh Berry | 2,010 | -- | 0 |
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Toby Christie is the Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. He has 15 years of experience as a motorsports journalist and has been with Racing America since 2023.
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