NASCAR: The biggest loser from Joey Logano’s win

Nobody lost more distance to a provisional NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 spot due to Joey Logano’s win at Kansas Speedway than Chase Elliott.

Team Penske’s Joey Logano ended a 28-race win drought on Sunday at Kansas Speedway to lock up a spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 for the second time in the last three years and the third time in the last five.

On points alone, the 2018 champion still wouldn’t be inside the top four in the championship standings despite his victory, which caused a shift in the playoff picture since he is now locked into the Championship 4 and there are only three more spots available in the winner-take-all round at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, November 8.

As a result, everybody not named Logano lost points — relative to the playoff cut line, that is — when the #22 Ford found victory lane for the first time since March and the third time in 2020.

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However, one driver lost more points relative to the cutoff than anybody else.

Logano’s points total still only ranks fifth highest among the eight remaining playoff drivers, and it trails the fourth highest total, which is held by Hendrick Motorsports’ Chase Elliott, by 10 points.

But because of Logano’s win, Elliott’s fourth place point total is currently not enough to place him above the Championship 4 cut line, as that cut line sits between the drivers who rank third and fourth in points instead of the drivers who rank fourth and fifth.

Elliott trails Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski by eight points for third place in the championship standings — and the final spot above the Championship cut line.

All three drivers above Elliott in the standings — Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin and Keselowski — lost 10 points relative to the cut line because of the fact that Elliott, now in the fifth spot in the playoff picture, has scored 10 more points than Logano, the actual fifth place driver in points, has scored.

All three drivers behind Logano in the standings — Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kurt Busch — lost eight points relative to the cut line because of the fact that Keselowski, now in the fourth and final spot in the playoff picture, has scored eight more points than Elliott, the actual fourth place driver in points, has scored.

But Elliott went from 10 points above it to eight points behind it, a net loss of 18 points to the cutoff, making him the big loser of Logano’s victory when it comes to advancing to the Championship 4.

Which three drivers will join Logano in this year’s Championship 4 at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, November 8? The two remaining round of 8 races are scheduled to take place on Sunday, October 25 at Texas Motor Speedway and on Sunday, November 1 at Martinsville Speedway.