NASCAR on the verge of a new Cup Series points leader?

Seven different drivers have spent time atop the NASCAR Cup Series point standings at some point during the 2024 season, and all seven had spent time atop the standings at some point in their careers heading into the year.

Hendrick Motorsports teammates Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson have recently exchanged the lead, and even tied for it, on a number of occasions. William Byron, one of their two teammates, also led the standings earlier in the year.

The other points leaders this season include Joe Gibbs Racing teammates Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex, Team Penske's Ryan Blaney, and Richard Childress Racing's Kyle Busch, who now finds himself well below the playoff cut line.

The highest driver in the standings who has not yet led this year is a driver who has never led at any point in his career, and that is 23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick, who has quietly made his way all the way up into third place.

Tyler Reddick on the verge of the points lead?

Reddick, who has emerged as a contender for the win just about every week behind the wheel of the No. 45 Toyota, now sits just 15 points behind Elliott and 12 points behind Larson. He only has one win this season, that coming at Talladega Superspeedway back in April, but he has become a regular frontrunner.

The 28-year-old native of Corning, California has never had a strong start to a Cup Series season, having recorded just a single top 20 finish in the first two races in all five of his seasons as a full-time driver – combined. But he has turned it on as of late, recording seven top eight finishes in the eight most recent events.

Reddick has finished ahead of both Elliott and Larson in each of the three most recent races, and he has not been the lowest finisher of the trio in any of the last five.

With Elliott having not finished inside the top eight in any of the four most recent races and Larson having struggled with consistency as of late, posting just five finishes higher than 34th place in the nine most recent events, is Reddick poised to become the season's eighth different points leader and the first first-time points leader of the year?

The points leader at the end of the regular season scores an additional 15 playoff points ahead of the four-round, 10-race postseason, which is the equivalent of three race victories.

The regular season runner-up scores 10, making the difference between first and second a full race win. The third place finisher scores eight, and that total decreases by one for each spot down through the 10th place finisher.

So while winning matters most in the modern playoff format, there is still something to be said about the importance of the points battle. It's not a battle in which Reddick has much experience, but it's one in which he is looking to make a big impact for the Hamlin and Michael Jordan-owned team this year.

The Brickyard 400 is the 22nd race on the 36-race 2024 NASCAR Cup Series schedule, and it is set to be broadcast live on NBC from Indianapolis Motor Speedway this Sunday, July 21 beginning at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Reddick took the pole position for the race on Saturday afternoon (full starting lineup here). Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss the first Cup Series race on the Indy oval since 2020!