NASCAR: Four contenders within just two points as Texas race resumes

Here is where the eight remaining 2020 NASCAR Cup Series championship contenders sit relative to the Championship 4 cut line as they run during the red flag at Texas Motor Speedway, with four sitting within just two points of one another.

Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series round of 8 playoff race at Texas Motor Speedway, the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500, was halted after just 52 laps had been run due to inclement weather.

The remaining 282 laps of this 334-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) oval in Fort Worth, Texas were rescheduled to later this morning, with NBC Sports Network set to broadcast the resumption of the race live beginning at 10:00 a.m. ET.

No points were awarded in the first 52 laps, which saw four lead changes among five drivers and three caution flag periods, since no stages were completed.

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Stage one is set to end after lap 105 while stage two is set to end after lap 210, with the final stage being a 124-lap segment. This means that there are still points on the table for stage one (for the top 10 finishers) and stage two (for the top 10 finishers) in addition to the points on the table for the actual race result.

Stewart-Haas Racing’s Clint Bowyer, who is no longer in championship contention, leads the race after 52 laps. A full running order at the time of the red flag can be seen here.

Here is what the playoff picture looked like entering this race, including the 20-point penalty which was issued to Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. for a spoiler issue that was discovered in pre-race inspection.

Rank – Driver: Points (Behind), (Wins/Playoff Points), (+/- cut line)
1st – Joey Logano: 4064, (3 WINS/27 PP), (CLINCHED)
2nd – Kevin Harvick: 4115, (9 WINS/67 PP), (+41)
3rd – Denny Hamlin: 4094, (7 WINS/55 PP), (+20)
4th – Brad Keselowski: 4082, (4 WINS/35 PP), (+8)
————CHAMPIONSHIP 4 CUT LINE————
5th – Chase Elliott: 4074, (3 WINS/28 PP), (-8)
6th – Alex Bowman: 4055, (1 WIN/9 PP), (-27)
7th – Martin Truex Jr.: 4031, (1 WIN/17 PP), (-51)
8th – Kurt Busch: 4009 , (1 WIN/6 PP), (-73)

Based on how the drivers are running after 52 laps, here is what the playoff picture would look like (including prospective points for stage one, stage two and the end of the race).

Rank – Driver: Points (Behind), (Wins/Playoff Points), (+/- cut line)
1st – Joey Logano: 4111, (3 WINS/27 PP), (CLINCHED)
2nd – Kevin Harvick: 4116, (9 WINS/67 PP), (+2)
2nd – Denny Hamlin: 4116, (7 WINS/55 PP), (+2)
4th – Chase Elliott: 4115, (3 WINS/28 PP), (+1)
————CHAMPIONSHIP 4 CUT LINE————
5th – Brad Keselowski: 4114, (4 WINS/35 PP), (-1)
6th – Martin Truex Jr.: 4075, (1 WIN/17 PP), (-40)
7th – Alex Bowman: 4074, (1 WIN/9 PP), (-41)
8th – Kurt Busch: 4032, (1 WIN/6 PP), (-83)

Yes, four drivers, as they run, are within just two points of the Championship 4 cut line, with three in and one out, and one of them is Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick, who entered the round of 8 with a whopping 45-point lead over the cut line due to all of the playoff points that he has accrued so far this year.

Harvick hit the turn two wall on Sunday before the red flag after leading 28 laps from the pole position and currently sits in 36th place, one lap off the lead lap.

Tune in to NBC Sports Network at 10:00 a.m. ET for the live broadcast of the resumption of the 2020 Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 500 from Texas Motor Speedway.