NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Seeds Set for 2025 Post Season

Denny Hamlin, tied for the most wins this season with Shane van Gisbergen, holds the third seed, just three points behind Larson and Byron. Blaney’s victory moves him up two additional spots to the fourth seed. Christopher Bell, Hamlin’s teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, sits fifth in the Playoff grid after his three consecutive wins at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Circuit of the Americas and Phoenix Raceway. He also won this year’s All-Star Race, though as an exhibition race, did not contribute any championship points.

Van Gisbergen won four of the five road courses this year, most recently at Watkins Glen Int’l. He earned 22 Playoff points in total and has a 16-point margin above the cut line for the first round. Chase Elliott will claim the seventh slot over Chase Briscoe, both securing their Playoff berth from wins in June at Atlanta and Pocono Raceway respectively.

Bubba Wallace’s biggest win of his career at the crown jewel Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway locked his 23XI Racing Toyota into the Playoffs. He and Austin Cindric are tied in points, just two marks above the cutoff. Ross Chastain and Joey Logano complete the top dozen spots set to advance into the next round, only a single point above the elimination point.

The four drivers starting the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs below the cutoff line are Josh Berry, Tyler Reddick, Austin Dillon and Alex Bowman. Berry earned his first career Cup Series victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He is tied with Tyler Reddick in Playoff points, both just a single mark below the cut line. Austin Dillon’s redemption victory last weekend at Richmond advanced his Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet into the Playoffs, and got to keep it this year after being disqualified from the postseason last year.

Finally, Alex Bowman survived the mayhem of the final lap at Daytona in a different way. Despite a DNF after an early race crash, no new winners at the World Center of Racing meant his No. 48 Chevrolet would be the final seed in the Playoffs. He finished ninth in the regular season championship.

Chris Buescher would officially be the first driver out of the NASCAR Playoffs, despite finishing 10th in the regular season points standings.

The first of three races in Round 1 of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs begins next weekend at the final crown jewel event of the year, the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway on Aug. 31.

2025 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Grid
Bold denotes elimination position

1. Kyle Larson, 2032 pts. (+26)
2. William Byron, 2032 pts. (+26)
3. Denny Hamlin, 2029 pts. (+23)
4. Ryan Blaney, 2026 pts. (+20)
5. Christopher Bell, 2023 pts. (+17)
6. Shane Van Gisbergen, 2022 pts. (+16)
7. Chase Elliott, 2013 pts. (+7)
8. Chase Briscoe, 2010 pts. (+4)
9. Austin Cindric, 2008 pts. (+2)
10. Bubba Wallace, 2008 pts. (+2)
11. Joey Logano, 2007 pts. (+1)
12. Ross Chastain, 2007 pts. (+1)
13. Josh Berry, 2006 pts. (-1)
14. Tyler Reddick, 2006 pts. (-1)
15. Austin Dillon, 2005 pts. (-2)
16. Alex Bowman, 2002 pts. (-5)