The round of 8 of the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs is scheduled to begin on Sunday with the First Data 500. Who will advance to the Championship 4?
The first six races of the 10-race 2018 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs have been completed, meaning that the first two rounds, the round of 16 and the round of 12, have come to a close.
Only the round of 8 remains on the schedule prior to the Championship 4 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in mid-November. This round is scheduled to get underway with the First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway this Sunday, October 28.
Following the third and final race of the round of 12, the Hollywood Casino 400, Kansas Speedway, each of the eight drivers who advanced from the round of 12 to the round of eight had their point totals reset to 4,000.
After the point totals of these eight drivers were reset to 4,000, the playoff totals that they have each earned throughout the first 32 races of the 36-race season were added to their respective point totals.
Here is how the playoff picture looks heading into the 500-lap race around the four-turn, 0.526-mile (0.847-kilometer) Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. The totals listed in the “behind” column show where each driver is currently positioned relative to the Championship 4 cut line.
Rank – Driver, Car, Team, Manufacturer: Points (Behind)
1st – Kyle Busch, #18, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota: 4055 (+40)
2nd – Kevin Harvick, #4, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford: 4054 (+39)
3rd – Martin Truex Jr., #78, Furniture Row Racing, Toyota: 4038 (+23)
4th – Chase Elliott, #9, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet: 4018 (+3)
5th – Joey Logano, #22, Team Penske, Ford: 4015 (-3)
5th – Kurt Busch, #41, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford: 4015 (-3)
5th – Clint Bowyer, #14, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford: 4015 (-3)
8th – Aric Almirola, #10, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford: 4006 (-12)
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Two races will remain on the round of 8 schedule once the First Data 500 reaches its conclusion at Martinsville Speedway. These two races are set to take place at Texas Motor Speedway and ISM Raceway (Phoenix). Including Martinsville Speedway, all three of these tracks hosted one race each earlier this season.
With only half of the round of 8 drivers set to advance from the round of 8 to the Championship 4, which four drivers will be the drivers who have a chance to win the 2018 Cup Series championship in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway when it rolls around in mid-November?
If the results of the three round of 8 races are the same as the results of the three regular season races that were contested at the three tracks featured in the round of 8, here is how the playoff picture would look to close out the round of 8 and thus who would advance to the Championship 4 with a chance win the 2018 Cup Series championship and who would not. The totals listed in the “behind” column show where each driver would be positioned in relation to the Championship 4 cut line.
NOTE: Included in this chart are the current point totals of each driver as well as the point totals that they earned in the regular season races at Martinsville Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and ISM Raceway. These point totals are added to show what each driver’s point total would be after the round of 8 concludes if the results of each of the three round of 8 races are the same as the results of each of the three regular season races that were contested at these three tracks.
Some drivers were penalized following the conclusions of the regular season races at these tracks. However, the point totals used for these races in the chart below are the point totals that each driver earned in each race before these penalties were issued.
Rank – Driver: Points – (Martinsville – Texas – Phoenix): Points (Behind)
1st – Kyle Busch: 4055 – (50 – 59 – 52): 4216 (+98) – 1 WIN
2nd – Kevin Harvick: 4054 – (42 – 45 – 53): 4194 (+76) – 1 WIN
3rd – Clint Bowyer: 4015 – (55 – 39 – 32): 4141 (+23) – 1 WIN
4th – Kurt Busch: 4015 – (33 – 47 – 40): 4135 (+17)
5th – Chase Elliott: 4018 – (28 – 33 – 39): 4118 (-17)
6th – Joey Logano: 4015 – (35 – 46 – 20): 4116 (-19)
7th – Martin Truex Jr.: 4038 – (33 – 1 – 41): 4113 (-22)
8th – Aric Almirola: 4006 – (23 – 6 – 30): 4065 (-70)
If the results of the three round of 8 races end up being the same as the results of the three regular season races that were contested at the three tracks that are set to host these three round of 8 races, the four drivers who would advance to the Championship 4 are Kyle Busch, Kevin Harvick, Clint Bowyer and Kurt Busch. Meanwhile, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, Martin Truex Jr. and Aric Almirola would be eliminated from championship contention.
Do you believe that the round of 8 races will produce similar results to the results of the three regular season races that were contested at the three tracks that are set to host these three round of 8 races? If so, how similar do you believe these results will be, and which four round of 8 drivers do you believe will advance to the Championship 4 with a chance to win the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series championship?