This Saturday night the NASCAR Playoff drivers will be facing elimination in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
One driver, Christopher Bell, has clinched his spot in the Round of 12. For the remaining 15 drivers in the Round of 16, elimination is still a possibility Saturday night. The drivers will have to manage tires, fenders and tempers as they race on the short track. Below is the Playoff grid as it looks going to Bristol…
| Rank | Driver | Points | Race Wins | Stage Wins | Playoff Pts | Pts From Cutoff |
| 1 | Christopher Bell | 2,108 | 1 | 3 | 12 | Clinched On Points |
| 2 | William Byron | 2,098 | 2 | 4 | 15 | 48 |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | 2,097 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 47 |
| 4 | Joey Logano | 2,090 | 2 | 5 | 25 | 40 |
| 5 | Ryan Blaney | 2,086 | 0 | 5 | 13 | 36 |
| 6 | Alex Bowman | 2,080 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 30 |
| 7 | Chase Elliott | 2,078 | 4 | 5 | 40 | 28 |
| 8 | Kyle Larson | 2,077 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 27 |
| 9 | Ross Chastain | 2,076 | 2 | 5 | 20 | 26 |
| 10 | Daniel Suarez | 2,056 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 6 |
| 11 | Tyler Reddick | 2,052 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 2 |
| 12 | Austin Cindric | 2,052 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 2 |
| 13 | Kyle Busch | 2,050 | 1 | 3 | 11 | -2 |
| 14 | Austin Dillon | 2,049 | 1 | 0 | 5 | -3 |
| 15 | Chase Briscoe | 2,043 | 1 | 4 | 9 | -9 |
| 16 | Kevin Harvick | 2,017 | 2 | 0 | 12 | -35 |
For one driver starting the race below the cutline, Kyle Busch, the news this week that he will be leaving Joe Gibbs Racing and the #18 Toyota after this season might be a distraction or a relief. Knowing that he will be in the #8 Chevrolet racing for Richard Childress Racing in 2023 could free up his emotions to race for the championship one last time in the #18.
All the Playoff drivers will be racing for whatever they will need to advance … Enough points or a win.
Here’s what all drivers and teams will face equally this weekend no matter what their post-season picture looks like.
Bristol Motor Speedway Data
Track Size: 0.533-miles
Banking/Turns: 24-28 degrees
Banking/Frontstretch: 4-8 degrees
Banking/Backstretch: 4-8 degrees
Frontstretch Length: 650 feet
Backstretch Length: 650 feet
Bass Pro Shops Night Race Data
Season Race #: 29 of 36 (09-17-22)
Playoff Race #: 3 of 10
Race Length: 500 laps / 266.5 miles
Stages 1 & 2 Length: 125 laps (each)
Final Stage Length: 250 laps
So far the first two NASCAR Playoff races have been won by drivers not in championship contention. The beatin’ and bangin’ of NASCAR short track racing could easily make that three for three for spoilers. Here’ how the NASCAR Playoff drivers stack up at Bristol.
| Driver | Races | Poles | Wins | Top Fives | Top 10s | DNFs | Average Finish | Driver Rating | ||
| 1 | Christopher Bell | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 22.0 | 78.3 | |
| 2 | William Byron | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 18.1 | 72.6 | |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | 31 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 15 | 2 | 14.5 | 92.4 | |
| 4 | Joey Logano | 25 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 1 | 15.0 | 91.0 | |
| 5 | Ryan Blaney | 12 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 18.7 | 91.9 | |
| 6 | Alex Bowman | 11 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 20.5 | 69.6 | |
| 7 | Chase Elliott | 11 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 13.3 | 98.8 | |
| 8 | Kyle Larson | 13 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 13.4 | 102.4 | |
| 9 | Ross Chastain | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 26.8 | 45.8 | |
| 10 | Daniel Suárez | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16.0 | 70.0 | |
| 11 | Tyler Reddick | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 17.3 | 72.8 | |
| 12 | Austin Cindric | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | |
| 13 | Kyle Busch | 32 | 2 | 8 | 14 | 19 | 4 | 13.0 | 102.4 | |
| 14 | Austin Dillon | 15 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 16.9 | 70.5 | |
| 15 | Chase Briscoe | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13.0 | 75.9 | |
| 16 | Kevin Harvick | 41 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 21 | 4 | 13.2 | 97.6 |
The excitement will fill the air at Bristol Motor Speedway for fans, drivers and teams when the green flag waives to start the Bass Pro Shops Night Race Saturday night, September 17th at 6:30 p.m. central time (7:30 p.m. eastern time).
By: Buck Stevens
