NASCAR: 5 playoff drivers who won’t be back in 2024
By Asher Fair
![Ricky Stenhouse Jr., JTG Daugherty Racing, Kevin Harvick, Stewart-Haas Racing, NASCAR playoffs (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., JTG Daugherty Racing, Kevin Harvick, Stewart-Haas Racing, NASCAR playoffs (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/72ab224b69a3bd8a93622583ed72566a25e102c1b60bbcce18aa57d99a24d37c.jpg)
Every NASCAR Cup Series playoff field consists of a few surprises. Which contenders from 2023 won’t be back in the 2024 postseason?
The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season saw several drivers end lengthy playoff droughts, one driver qualify for the postseason for the first time in his career, and other usual contenders surprisingly fail to qualify for the postseason.
All things considered, only 10 of the 2022 season’s 16 playoff drivers made it back to the playoffs in 2023, and the 2024 playoff field is guaranteed to look different than that of 2023. But just how different will it look?
Which playoff drivers from this past season will fail to qualify for next year’s 16-driver postseason field?
NASCAR playoff drivers who won’t be back: No. 1 – Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. secured his first playoff berth since the 2017 season by winning the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway to open up the 2023 season, and he went on to have a very consistent year. His success far exceeded that of any of his first three seasons at JTG Daugherty Racing.
But when it was all said and done, he finished the season 19th in total points scored. Relying on another upset victory in a superspeedway race is what he is probably going to have to do if he wants to earn back-to-back playoff spots for the first time in his career.
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