NASCAR playoff projections, driver standings after Watkins Glen race
The NASCAR Cup Series playoffs are nearly upon us, with just two races remaining in the 2025 regular season following Shane van Gisbergen’s win at Watkins Glen International on Sunday, Aug. 10.
Van Gisbergen collected his fourth win of 2025 to tie Denny Hamlin for the most victories this season.
Sixteen drivers will compete in the 10-race playoffs, and only three berths remain available, with 13 drivers already locked into the postseason. Drivers clinch automatic spots in the playoffs with a victory in any regular-season race (not including The Clash and All-Star race) if there are not more than 16 different winners in a season – which there won’t be this year.
If a winless driver takes the checkered flag at either of the next two races – at Richmond Raceway and Daytona International Speedway – he will gain entry to the playoffs. If not, the remaining spots will be allocated to the winless drivers with the most points this season.
Winless drivers currently above the cut line will have to weigh – along with their crew chiefs and owners – whether to prioritize points in the final two regular-season races to maintain their position in the standings or race for the win. For those below the cut line, Richmond and Daytona will be must-win situations.
Here’s a look at the top 20 drivers in the standings following Sunday’s race at Watkins Glen ranked by playoff seeding as of now:
NASCAR driver standings — Projected 2025 playoffs
A look at the top 20 drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series standings, ranked by projected playoff seeding with two races remaining in regular season.
Includes rank, driver, wins (playoff points in parentheses), regular-season points, and points above or below 16-driver cut line, where applicable:
- Denny Hamlin….. 4 (24) ….. 731
- Shane Van Gisbergen….. 4 (22) ….. 441
- Christopher Bell….. 3 (17) ….. 727
- Kyle Larson….. 3 (23) ….. 727
- William Byron….. 2 (17) ….. 812
- Chase Elliott….. 1 (6) ….. 770
- Ryan Blaney….. 1 (11) ….. 710
- Chase Briscoe….. 1 (7) ….. 674
- Bubba Wallace….. 1 (7) ….. 610
- Joey Logano….. 1 (7) ….. 583
- Ross Chastain….. 1 (6) ….. 571
- Austin Cindric….. 1 (8) ….. 502
- Josh Berry….. 1 (6) ….. 445
- Tyler Reddick….. 0 (1) ….. 701 ….. +117
- Alex Bowman….. 0 (0) ….. 644 ….. +60
- Chris Buescher….. 0 (-3) ….. 618 ….. +34
- Ryan Preece….. 0 (2) ….. 584 ….. -34
- Kyle Busch….. 0 (0) ….. 516 ….. -102
- Ty Gibbs….. 0 (0) ….. 493 ….. -125
- AJ Allmendinger….. 0 (0) ….. 489 ….. -129
Upcoming NASCAR Cup Series races
Here are the final two races in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series regular season. You can stream both races on Fubo, which is offering a free trial to new subscribers.
Watch NASCAR Cup races on Fubo
At Richmond Raceway
- Race: Cook Out 400
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 16
- Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Richmond, Virigina
- TV channel: USA Network
- Streaming: HBO Max and Fubo
At Daytona International Speedway
- Race: Coke Zero Sugar 400
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 23
- Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
- Location: Daytona Beach, Florida
- TV channel: NBC
- Streaming: HBO Max and Fubo
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