By Aaron Bearden
A look at the Cup Series playoff situation leaving the spring race at Richmond Raceway.
Race: Cook Out 400
Race No.: 8/36
Winner: William Byron
Stage Winner(s): Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin
Winners
- Hendrick Motorsports: William Byron won his third race of the year. Kyle Larson snagged a stage win and took over the points lead. Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman each moved up in the standings. The organization’s 40th anniversary celebration was a smashing success.
- Denny Hamlin: He gave away some points after crew chief Chris Gabehart went with his heart on a failed late call to pit for tires. But Hamlin still scored another playoff point with a stage win and scored 40 points on the day.
- Bubba Wallace: Now that was a solid day. Wallace was the best non-Hendrick finisher in fourth, notching 51 points and rising to 12th in the standings. Wallace is only 13 points behind teammate Tyler Reddick and looking good for another playoff berth early in 2024.
- Joey Logano: This two-time champ is just happy to be above the cutline. Logano is finally in the top-16 after a sixth-place run at Martinsville. He leapt up five spots to 14th with the result.
- Chase Briscoe: This Round of 8 qualifier from 2022 is also in the top-16. Unfortunately, that doesn’t have him in the playoff field just yet due to 17th-place Daniel Suarez’s early win. But Briscoe is only a point below the cutline and looks like a playoff contender again after last year’s nightmare season. Positive signs.
Losers
- John Hunter Nemechek: Remember when Nemechek was quietly inside of the provisional playoff field? The road back to it won’t be easy. Nemechek finished 36th in Martinsville, dropping him 32 points below the cutline in 19th. He’s still within reach, but the margin for error’s decreasing.
- Christopher Bell: Joe Gibbs Racing’s recent playoff ace is already locked into the postseason. But a 35th-place Martinsville finish means he’s out of the regular season bonus point range in 11th as things stand. Thankfully there’s still plenty of time to make up the lost ground.
Playoff Grid
| Rank | Driver | Wins | Points | Gap |
| 4 (t) | William Byron | 3 | 261 | 70 |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | 2 | 292 | 104 |
| 1 | Kyle Larson | 1 | 309 | 152 |
| 11 | Christopher Bell | 1 | 221 | 45 |
| 17 | Daniel Suarez | 1 | 178 | -10 |
| 2 | Martin Truex Jr. | 0 | 295 | 107 |
| 4 (t) | Ryan Blaney | 0 | 261 | 73 |
| 6 | Chase Elliott | 0 | 258 | 70 |
| 7 | Ty Gibbs | 0 | 254 | 66 |
| 8 | Ross Chastain | 0 | 232 | 44 |
| 9 | Tyler Reddick | 0 | 229 | 41 |
| 10 | Alex Bowman | 0 | 227 | 39 |
| 12 | Bubba Wallace | 0 | 216 | 28 |
| 13 | Chris Buescher | 0 | 207 | 19 |
| 14 | Joey Logano | 0 | 191 | 3 |
| 15 | Kyle Busch | 0 | 189 | 1 |
| Playoff Cutoff | ||||
| 16 | Chase Briscoe | 0 | 188 | -1 |
| 18 | Brad Keselowski | 0 | 176 | -13 |
| 19 | John H. Nemechek | 0 | 157 | -32 |
| 20 | Erik Jones | 0 | 154 | -35 |
| 21 | Austin Cindric | 0 | 147 | -42 |
| 22 | Michael McDowell | 0 | 146 | -43 |
| 23 | Josh Berry | 0 | 129 | -60 |
| 24 | Todd Gilliland | 0 | 126 | -63 |
| 25 | Carson Hocevar | 0 | 125 | -64 |
| 26 | Ryan Preece | 0 | 112 | -77 |
| 27 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 0 | 110 | -79 |
| 28 | Corey LaJoie | 0 | 105 | -84 |
| 29 | Noah Gragson | 0 | 101 | -88 |
| 30 | Daniel Hemric | 0 | 95 | -94 |
| 31 | Austin Dillon | 0 | 93 | -96 |
| 32 | Justin Haley | 0 | 85 | -104 |
| 34 | Harrison Burton | 0 | 72 | -117 |
| 35 | Zane Smith | 0 | 67 | -122 |
Above the Cutline
(All But) Locked In
Winners: William Byron (3), Denny Hamlin (2), Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Daniel Suarez
Drivers 60+ points up on the cutline: Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs
Safe (For Now)
Drivers 40-59 points above the cutline: Tyler Reddick, Ross Chastain
In the Danger Zone
Drivers within 40 points of the cutline: Alex Bowman, Bubba Wallace, Chris Buescher, Joey Logano, Kyle Busch
Below the Cutline
Within Reach
Drivers within 50 points of the bubble: Chase Briscoe, Brad Keselowski, John Hunter Nemechek, Erik Jones, Austin Cindric, Michael McDowell
Looking For A Win
Drivers 51+ points below the cutline: Josh Berry, Todd Gilliland, Carson Hocevar, Ryan Preece, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Corey LaJoie, Noah Gragson, Daniel Hemric, Austin Dillon, Justin Haley, Harrison Burton, Zane Smith
Race Results
- William Byron
- Kyle Larson
- Chase Elliott
- Bubba Wallace
- Ryan Blaney
- Joey Logano
- Tyler Reddick
- Alex Bowman
- Ryan Preece
- Chase Briscoe
- Denny Hamlin
- Erik Jones
- Todd Gilliland
- Ross Chastain
- Chris Buescher
- Kyle Busch
- Carson Hocevar
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Ty Gibbs
- Noah Gragson
- Michael McDowell
- Daniel Suarez
- Austin Cindric
- Brad Keselowski
- Josh Berry
- Kaz Grala
- Josh Williams
- Daniel Hemric
- Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Justin Haley
- Zane Smith
- Corey LaJoie
- Harrison Burton
- Austin Dillon
- Christopher Bell
- John H. Nemechek
- David Starr
Stage Points
Results from Martinsville
| Stage 1 | Stage 2 | ||||
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Pos. | Driver | Points |
| 1 | Kyle Larson | 10 (+ 1 Playoff Point) | 1 | Denny Hamlin | 10 (+ 1 Playoff Point) |
| 2 | Bubba Wallace | 9 | 2 | Bubba Wallace | 9 |
| 3 | Chase Elliott | 8 | 3 | Kyle Larson | 8 |
| 4 | Chase Briscoe | 7 | 4 | Chase Elliott | 7 |
| 5 | Martin Truex Jr. | 6 | 5 | Joey Logano | 6 |
| 6 | Joey Logano | 5 | 6 | Alex Bowman | 5 |
| 7 | Denny Hamlin | 4 | 7 | Chase Briscoe | 4 |
| 8 | William Byron | 3 | 8 | William Byron | 3 |
| 9 | Josh Berry | 2 | 9 | Ross Chastain | 2 |
| 10 | Kyle Busch | 1 | 10 | Josh Berry | 1 |
Total Stage Points
| Rank | Driver | Points | Wins |
| 1 | Kyle Larson | 92 | 4 |
| 2 | Martin Truex Jr. | 75 | 1 |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | 68 | 2 |
| 4 | Ryan Blaney | 56 | 1 |
| 5 | Tyler Reddick | 46 | 1 |
| 6 | Chase Elliott | 45 | 1 |
| 7 | Bubba Wallace | 42 | 0 |
| 8 | William Byron | 40 | 0 |
| 9 | Ty Gibbs | 37 | 2 |
| 10 | Joey Logano | 35 | 0 |
| 11 | Christopher Bell | 33 | 2 |
| 12 | Austin Cindric | 28 | 1 |
| 13 | Brad Keselowski | 27 | 0 |
| 14 | Kyle Busch | 26 | 0 |
| 15 (t) | Daniel Suarez | 25 | 0 |
| 15 (t) | Ross Chastain | 25 | 0 |
| 17 | Alex Bowman | 23 | 0 |
| 18 | Michael McDowell | 21 | 1 |
| 19 | Todd Gilliland | 18 | 0 |
| 20 (t) | John H. Nemechek | 17 | 0 |
| 20 (t) | Josh Berry | 17 | 0 |
| 22 | Chase Briscoe | 15 | 0 |
| 23 | Chris Buescher | 14 | 0 |
| 24 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 12 | 0 |
| 25 | Ryan Preece | 11 | 0 |
| 26 | Austin Dillon | 10 | 0 |
| 27 | Erik Jones | 8 | 0 |
| 28 | Corey LaJoie | 4 | 0 |
| 29 (t) | Harrison Burton | 3 | 0 |
| 29 (t) | Noah Gragson | 3 | 0 |
| 31 | Daniel Hemric | 2 | 0 |
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(Top photo credit: Nigel Kinrade Photography)
