The NASCAR Cup had an intense day at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway, where Denny Hamlin has emerged with a strengthened lead of 77 points over the race winner, Ryan Blaney. This difference secures Hamlin the first position for the playoffs, with the top thirteen drivers already qualified for the Chase.
Before heading to Daytona, Bubba Wallace holds the fourteenth position with a 75-point advantage, a comfortable situation considering it is possible to earn a maximum of 76 points in a single race. Austin Cindric is in 15th place, 44 points above the cut line.
Shane van Gisbergen remains in a delicate position, and Ryan Preece has narrowed the gap with him at New Hampshire. Currently, there are 31 points separating them, with a difference of just six points in the owners’ standings.
The two drivers, Preece and his teammate Brad Keselowski, are the only ones with a chance of surpassing the cut line at Daytona, as Ross Chastain, with his last-place finish in the race, is out of the competition.
Drivers Standings
1. Denny Hamlin – 1001 points
2. Ryan Blaney – 924 points
3. Ty Gibbs – 880 points
4. Tyler Reddick – 860 points
5. Christopher Bell – 738 points (+2)
6. Chase Briscoe – 727 points (-1)
7. Kyle Larson – 708 points (+1)
8. Chase Elliott – 707 points (-2)
9. Joey Logano – 682 points
10. Chris Buescher – 676 points
11. Carson Hocevar – 672 points
12. William Byron – 644 points
13. Daniel Suarez – 638 points
14. Bubba Wallace – 630 points
15. Austin Cindric – 599 points
16. Shane van Gisbergen – 586 points
17. Ryan Preece – 555 points
18. Brad Keselowski – 520 points (+1)
19. Ross Chastain – 505 points (-1)
20. Erik Jones – 490 points
21. Michael McDowell – 484 points
22. AJ Allmendinger – 456 points
23. Todd Gilliland – 444 points
24. Zane Smith – 442 points
25. Austin Dillon – 405 points
26. Riley Herbst – 402 points
27. Ricky Stenhouse Jr – 398 points
28. John Hunter Nemechek – 394 points
29. Josh Berry – 386 points (+1)
30. Alex Bowman – 362 points (-1)
31. Noah Gragson – 334 points
32. Cole Custer – 302 points
33. Ty Dillon – 294 points
34. Connor Zilisch – 259 points
35. Cody Ware – 199 points
36. Casey Mears – 12 points
37. Kevin Magnussen – 11 points
38. Jimmie Johnson – 9 points
39. Katherine Legge – 8 points
40. BJ McLeod – 4 points
It is worth noting that Kyle Busch has accumulated 217 points before his tragic outcome, and for this reason, NASCAR has decided not to classify him in the weekly standings.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
