With 21 races complete in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season, the playoff field is beginning to take shape. Twelve drivers have already clinched playoff spots with race wins, including Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, Shane van Gisbergen, and Chase Elliott. This leaves only four points-based positions available heading into the final 15 regular-season races.
| POS | NO. | DRIVER | Playoff Status | Playoff Margin |
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 2 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 3 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 4 | 88 | Shane van Gisbergen | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 5 | 24 | William Byron | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 6 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 7 | 2 | Austin Cindric | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 8 | 22 | Joey Logano | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 9 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 10 | 19 | Chase Briscoe | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 11 | 1 | Ross Chastain | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 12 | 21 | Josh Berry | Locked In (Race Win) | – |
| 13 | 45 | Tyler Reddick | Points Only | 156 |
| 14 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Points Only | 63 |
| 15 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Points Only | 44 |
| 16 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | Points Only | 16 |
Tyler Reddick currently leads the non-winning contenders at +156, followed by Alex Bowman (+63), Chris Buescher (+44), and Bubba Wallace (+16), who sits precariously on the cutline. Right below him is Ryan Preece, just 16 points out of a spot. Kyle Busch, Ty Gibbs, and Michael McDowell trail further behind, but with one win, any of them could still shake up the standings.
The playoff format eliminates four drivers after each of the first three rounds, setting up a winner-take-all finale among the final four. With multiple former champions and hungry young contenders still on the outside looking in, the fight for those last few positions is only intensifying.
On The Bubble
| POS | NO. | DRIVER | Playoff Status | Playoff Margin |
| 17 | 60 | Ryan Preece | Below Cutline | –16 |
| 18 | 8 | Kyle Busch | Below Cutline | –39 |
| 19 | 54 | Ty Gibbs | Below Cutline | –52 |
| 20 | 71 | Michael McDowell | Below Cutline | –77 |
| 21 | 16 | AJ Allmendinger | Below Cutline | –80 |
| 22 | 43 | Erik Jones | Below Cutline | –89 |
| 23 | 42 | John H. Nemechek | Below Cutline | –100 |
| 24 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Below Cutline | –108 |
| 25 | 38 | Zane Smith | Below Cutline | –112 |
| 26 | 77 | Carson Hocevar | Below Cutline | –125 |
| 27 | 6 | Brad Keselowski | Below Cutline | –140 |
| 28 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Below Cutline | –147 |
| 29 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Below Cutline | –159 |
| 30 | 10 | Ty Dillon | Below Cutline | –163 |
| 31 | 7 | Justin Haley | Below Cutline | –163 |
| 32 | 34 | Todd Gilliland | Below Cutline | –167 |
| 33 | 4 | Noah Gragson | Below Cutline | –229 |
| 34 | 41 | Cole Custer | Below Cutline | –237 |
| 35 | 35 | Riley Herbst | Below Cutline | –249 |
| 36 | 51 | Cody Ware | Below Cutline | –352 |
As the series heads to Indianapolis, every point—and every mistake—could decide who gets a shot at the 2025 title and who’s left watching from the sidelines.
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