NASCAR: The big winner at Richmond not named Austin Dillon

Entering Sunday night's NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway, there were four races remaining on the 26-race 2024 regular season, and there had been 12 different winners this season, meaning that there could be as many as 16 different winners before the start of the four-round, 10-race postseason in a few weeks.

There are 16 playoff spots, which would imply that all 12 winners were locked in, but those spots officially go to the regular season champion and the 15 drivers who rank next highest in wins.

So in the event that there were to be a winless regular season champion but 16 different winners, the lowest ranking winner in the point standings would have been left on the outside looking in.

Team Penske's Austin Cindric, who won at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway back in early June, entered Sunday's Cook Out 400 as the lowest ranking winner in the point standings in 19th place. The top winless driver in the point standings was Joe Gibbs Racing's Martin Truex Jr. in seventh, 96 points out of the lead.

With 55 points on offer for non-winners in each race (35 for a second place finish plus 10 each for wins in stage one and stage two) and four races left on the regular season schedule, there was still a chance that Truex could climb his way to the top and win the regular season championship without a race victory.

Had that happened, and four new winners (not named Truex) emerged over the course of the regular season's final four races, Cindric's playoff spot may have been at risk.

That is no longer the case.

Richard Childress Racing's Austin Dillon did become the 13th different winner in Sunday night's race, but NASCAR determined that, due to how he achieved the victory, it would not count toward his playoff eligibility. While he kept the win, there are still only 12 drivers who have wins that count toward their playoff eligibility.

As a result, Cindric is finally officially locked into the playoffs.

But even had Dillon's win counted toward playoff eligibility, Cindric would have effectively been locked in anyway, as Dillon finds himself well below Cindric in the point standings. Cindric fell to 20th place, but he is still 107 points ahead of Dillon in 26th (now actually 132 ahead of Dillon in 31st thanks to Dillon's 25-point post-race penalty).

Additionally, Truex was scored in 37th (last) place after failing to finish the race due to an engine issue. Still the top winless driver, he sits in eighth in the point standings, 117 points out of the lead.

With just three regular season races remaining on the calendar, the chances of a winless regular season champion are practically nonexistent.

For Cindric to have missed the playoffs in the event that Dillon's win stood, many things would have needed to happen.

Three new winners not named Truex would have needed to emerge in the regular season's final three races, all of them would have needed to be higher than Cindric in the point standings, Dillon would have needed to overcome a 132-point deficit and pass Cindric, and Truex would have needed to overcome a 117-point deficit and pass Hendrick Motorsports' Kyle Larson (plus the other six drivers he trails, some of whom by over 100 points as well).

So even with a lackluster 24th place finish at Richmond, Cindric walked away from the four-turn, 0.75-mile (1.207-kilometer) short track a big winner, set for his second playoff appearance in three years as a full-time Cup Series driver.

The antepenultimate race on the 2024 regular season schedule is the FireKeepers Casino 400, which is set to be broadcast live on USA Network from Michigan International Speedway beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET this Sunday, August 18. RFK Racing's Chris Buescher, who hasn't yet won this year, is the reigning race winner. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss any of the action!