NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Grid After The Charlotte ROVAL

Shane Van Gisbergen was able to park his No. 88 WeatherTech Chevrolet in Victory Lane on Sunday at the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL, and even though it had absolutely no impact on the post-season picture, that’s not to say there wasn’t still some drama.

Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott had already locked into the ‘Round of 8’ with victories at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and once the first two stages of Sunday’s 109-lap contest were complete, Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell joined them with guaranteed spots.

So, in the final 59-lap stage of the event, that left eight drivers to battle for the final four positions in the semi-final round of the Playoffs, and with that, came some significant drama.

RACE RESULTS: 2025 Bank of America ROVAL 400 at the Charlotte ROVAL

Austin Cindric entered the weekend in a must-win situation but struggled with raw pace for the early portion of the event. Then, after missing a couple of chicanes, the Team Penske driver got slammed into by Carson Hocevar, busting a couple of control arms and sending the No. 2 Ford Mustang to the garage – effectively ending his post-season hopes.

With Shane Van Gisbergen being so dominant, that also made it hard for 23XI Racing to find a path towards making the ‘Round of 8’ in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs. Tyler Reddick ended up 10th and Bubba Wallace 15th, which didn’t allow either to advance forward in the post-season.

The final spot came down to Ross Chastain and Joey Logano. Starting the afternoon separated by 13 points, Chastain earned stage points and drew himself within four points of the three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion by the time the final stage rolled around.

Logano chose to make an extra pit stop in the race’s final stage, putting him in a position needing to gain spots, while Chastain stayed out on old tires, meaning he needed to hold drivers off. Things were looking good for the Trackhouse Racing driver until the final lap, when Denny Hamlin got around him for the position – putting both drivers tied at the cutline, with Logano having the tiebreaker.

Channeling his inner ‘Hail Melon’, Chastain lunged into Turn 17 to try and get to the right side of Denny Hamlin and wrecked them both, costing the Busch Light Chevrolet several positions and any chance of advancing in the postseason.

Thus, the ‘Round of 8’ was set: Kyle Larson, Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Ryan Blaney, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell, Joey Logano, and William Byron, and the cutline, heading to the round opening in Las Vegas, is nail-biting.

Denny Hamlin leads the Playoff Grid with an eight-point advantage on the cutline, with Ryan Blaney (+6), Kyle Larson (+4), and William Byron (+4) in tow. Christopher Bell (-4), Chase Elliott (-4), Chase Briscoe (-14), and Joey Logano (-24) all sit chasing those in the top-four.

The semi-final round of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs includes races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (October 12), Talladega Superspeedway (October 19), and Martinsville Speedway (October 26).