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We couldn’t have asked for a better regular-season finale, which finalized the playoff field. The onus was on non-winners to make the most of this opportunity, but no one saw Ryan Blaney pulling off a clutch win. Of course, there were some big crashes and heartbreaks along the way.

Alex Bowman turned out to be the Lucky Dog as he sneaked into the top 16 just by watching from the sidelines. From near misses to heartbreak, the Daytona race delivered multiple storylines and an opportunity to reflect on the 26-race-long regular season.

Stage 1: A total of 12 cars wrecked, causing a big one, and took out some of the prominent playoffs contenders like Kyle Busch and Alex Bowman. Kyle Larson won stage 1.

Stage 2: Ross Chastain clinched the Stage 2 win, adding bonus playoff points to his tally.

Final Stage: Joey Logano crashed from the lead, allowing his teammate Ryan Blaney to stage an insane comeback. From running 12th to finishing his regular season on a high with a win at Daytona.

The Coke Zero 400 was a roller-coaster ride. It started with chaos as Kyle Busch was forced into making repairs after the early crash, whereas Alex Bowman could only watch the action unfold after retiring his car.

After the early chaos, drivers methodically worked their way up the field, and for a brief moment, it felt like Richard Petty’s iconic STP color would end up in the victory lane with Erik Jones. But he just couldn’t withstand the aggressive pushes and bumps by Kyle Larson in the middle lane with 8 laps to go. Just like that, his hopes for playoffs vanished into thin air.

The final few laps couldn’t have been staged better. Ryan Preece, Justin Haley, and even Cole Custer ran up front, and it looked like one of them would win the ticket to playoffs. But there was a final twist in the tale, and Ryan Blaney had the final say, thanks to the dogfight between Custer and Haley on the last lap. In case you missed it, do yourself a favor and watch the crazy finish unfold here.

All Blaney needed to do was switch lanes with momentum heading into the final corner. The No. 12 Ford Mustang was first to the start-finish line. Daniel Suarez finished second, trailing Blaney by just 0.031 seconds. A victory by Suarez, Haley, or Custer would’ve knocked Bowman out of the playoff race. Thanks to Blaney’s last-lap heroics, he made it through.

With the field of 16 playoff drivers set, teams and drivers will have a reset, and the focus will now shift to tackling the Round of 16. Below, we have listed the seeding of the drivers heading into the knockout stages, and very few of them have enough bonus points to afford a bad race.

Only a handful of drivers in their rookie year have managed to reach the playoffs. For Shane van Gisbergen, he didn’t need a wildcard win at Daytona to see him through to the post-season. The Kiwi speedster has four wins under his belt, tying him with Denny Hamlin for most wins in the regular season.

Initially, there was a backlash against the Trackhouse Racing driver. King Petty himself took a stand against the road course event, claiming road racing isn’t NASCAR. Yet, he kept his cool and kept churning out wins at Mexico, Chicago, Sonoma, and Watkins Glen. Although the current NASCAR format is highly debated, SVG didn’t shy away from speaking his mind.

He made his argument, challenging Brad Keselowski to race his way with a win into the playoffs.

Four wins, be it road courses or oval, are indeed special, and SVG has earned his right to compete for the championship. The Kiwi driver has been in the headlines thanks to his wins, but the same cannot be said for Josh Berry, another driver who is making his first appearance in the playoffs.

Josh Berry’s win at Las Vegas was his first in the Cup Series, while Wood Brothers Racing registered its 101st win. But since then, his results have been mediocre at best. Apart from his win, the former SHR driver has three top 10s, and heading into Darlington, he is below the cutline.

Well, we’ve seen Ford drivers turn a corner for good in the Next Gen era. And Berry, being a part of the Penske group, can script a wild run. Do not count out SVG from this race. It is worth noting that there is a road course race at Charlotte Roval in the Round of 12. With the bonus points he’s scored so far, it just might allow him to have a deep playoff run.

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The Daytona weekend wasn’t a sweet memory for a lot of big-name drivers. We are talking about former champions and multi-race winners. Lady Luck hasn’t come to Kyle Busch’s rescue just yet as he stares into the possibility of last year’s repeat. A win would be appreciated, but for the second year in a row, Rowdy won’t compete for the championship.

Heck, didn’t even get a genuine shot at overturning his misfortunes at Daytona. 27 laps into the race, Busch was sliding across the racetrack after Bubba Wallace sparked a massive crash. No repairs or adjustments would get Busch back in contention, but for a driver like him, his playoff fate shouldn’t be hanging on a wildcard event.

Joining Busch is Brad Keselowski, another veteran driver and a champion himself. 2025 has been a pretty rough year for the RFK Racing co-owner. Lack of consistency and race-winning speeds forced Keselowski to play catch-up. Perhaps the missed opportunities at Atlanta and Iowa are something he will look at after failing to make the playoffs.

0.031 seconds kept Daniel Suarez from staging an epic comeback at Daytona. Out of the seat of No. 99 Chevy for the next year, and no new opportunity in sight, this win could’ve been a game-changer. Just how quickly things can change at the top level. Last year, he won at Atlanta in an iconic three-wide photo finish. But the very next year, Suarez failed to progress to the top 16 and is now looking for a new job.

Chris Buescher is one of the few drivers many think should be headed for the playoffs. Four top 5 finishes, followed by nine top 10 runs, but that wasn’t enough. The Texas native had a good shot at winning in Daytona, running second to Joey Logano. But with 14 laps to go, Logano was spread thin in defending multiple lanes and got loose. Ultimately, the No. 22 Ford spun after making contact with Buescher’s Ford.

Buescher, in the post-race interview, admitted that the wreck with Logano proved costly for his shot at a win.

These drivers are considered the heavyweights of the Cup Series garage. But, they all will have to take a humbling pill and watch their rivals have a shot at winning the Bill France Cup.

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The 26 race weekends might not hold importance now that the Cup Series is headed to playoffs. Rather than predicting the uncertain outcome of the championship in Phoenix, we are looking back at the drivers who genuinely built the core for their title charge. The key factor here in determining this list will be consistency and progression throughout the 26 races.

Is this year going to be it for Denny Hamlin? Lost anchor sponsor, lost his crew chief, didn’t sign an extension heading into the Daytona 500. But fast forward to August, and he seems to have found an extra gear despite turning 44. There’s more to his regular-season run than just four wins.

Even when the road course patch hit, he continued to finish inside the top 5 spots. Runner-up at Pocono and P4 at Chicago, he surprised everyone with his road course mastery. All of this while missing a points race in Mexico. The #11 team under the leadership of Chris Gayle has been a dominant force, a trend that could continue in the playoffs.

Next, we have William Byron, the regular season champion, who started strong with a Daytona 500 win. But, he had to wait until Iowa to add a win under his belt. Why is he on this list? The answer to this question is simple: He has been running up front consistently, and he has led 915 laps with 13 top 10s.

Methodical and smooth execution is the trait of the #24 team. Although Byron doesn’t have multiple wins like Hamlin, he compensated for it with the regular-season title. 32 playoff points is the insurance a driver wishes to have in a bid to mount a title charge, and the HMS star has this advantage.

Joining his teammate on this list is Kyle Larson. It has been some time since we saw Larson in the victory lane. With three wins and five top 5 runs until Kansas, he was the frontrunner to win the regular season title. But then came the Double duty, and consecutive crashes took the sting out of the driver and his confidence.

This is the reason why he is placed 3rd on this list, as his progress somewhat stalled after a solid start to the season. But you just can’t ignore how good the HMS star has been despite the struggles. He is leading the playoff points tally alongside his teammate, and with back-to-back top 10s at Richmond and Daytona, the #5 team might have found its rhythm again.

Rounding off this list, we have Ryan Blaney. The Penske star has had it rough over his three direct rivals, and it has everything to do with luck and not skill. He has 7 DNFs so far in 26 races, yet he is still holding strong in the points tally before the playoffs.

A win at Nashville allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief after engine failures and untimely wrecks. And then came the Coke Zero Sugar 400. He won the pole due to the weather, and Lady Luck finally smiled on him as he surged through the field on the final few laps at Daytona. If the No. 12 team manages to keep their motors from blowing, Blaney is likely headed for another championship race in Phoenix.

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