The NASCAR Cup Series has had just one points leader through the first seven races of the 2026 season, and that is guaranteed to continue to be the case once Sunday afternoon's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway comes to an end.
23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick has won four of those seven races, including the first three, and he owns an 82-point lead over Team Penske's Ryan Blaney.
Even with NASCAR having boosted the value of race wins from 40 to 55 points this year, Reddick is guaranteed to lead the standings at the end of this 500-lap race around the four-turn, 0.533-mile (0.858-kilometer) high-banked Bristol, Tennessee oval, as there are still only 20 points on offer across stages one and two.
All four race winners this season are in the top four in points heading into Bristol. Here's a look at the overall top 10 before the Food City 500.
NASCAR Cup Series standings before Bristol
Rank | Driver | Points | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota | 353 | 0 |
2 | Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford | 271 | -82 |
3 | Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | 259 | -94 |
4 | Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | 249 | -104 |
5 | William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | 238 | -115 |
6 | Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | 222 | -131 |
7 | Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota | 212 | -141 |
8 | Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford | 206 | -147 |
9 | Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet | 206 | -147 |
10 | Chris Buescher, No. 17 RFK Racing Ford | 206 | -147 |
A full starting lineup for Sunday's race can be found here. It was determined by Saturday's single-car qualifying session.
Follow along with our standings updates from Bristol as the Food City 500 unfolds.
NOTE: Only the top 10 drivers are included after the first two stages.
NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol: Standings updates
NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol: Standings after Stage 1
1 - Tyler Reddick - 353 (0)
2 - Ryan Blaney - 279 (-74)
3 - Denny Hamlin - 264 (-89)
4 - Chase Elliott - 249 (-104)
5 - William Byron - 238 (-115)
6 - Ty Gibbs - 222 (-131)
7 - Christopher Bell - 221 (-132)
8 - Kyle Larson - 216 (-137)
9 - Bubba Wallace - 208 (-145)
10 - Brad Keselowski - 206 (-147)
NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol: Standings after Stage 2
1 - Tyler Reddick - 353 (0)
2 - Ryan Blaney - 288 (-65)
3 - Denny Hamlin - 272 (-81)
4 - Chase Elliott - 249 (-104)
5 - William Byron - 238 (-115)
6 - Kyle Larson - 226 (-127)
6 - Ty Gibbs - 226 (-127)
8 - Christopher Bell - 221 (-132)
9 - Bubba Wallace - 210 (-143)
10 - Brad Keselowski - 206 (-147)
NASCAR Cup Series at Bristol: Full standings after Food City 500
Full race results can be found here.
The ninth race on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the AdventHealth 400, which is set to be shown live on Fox from Kansas Speedway beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 19. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss any of the action!