After trips to Watkins Glen International this weekend and Daytona International Speedway the following one, the NASCAR Cup Series regular season will come to an end and the 2023 playoff field will be set.
So far, the only drivers who have qualified for one of the 16 playoff spots are those who have won at least one regular-season race so far. The 13 already in the postseason are:
For everyone else, there are two options to making the postseason: Win one of the next two races and automatically be locked in or sneak in based on points in the standings. With 13 different race winners already, that leaves three vacant playoff spots. So if there are two different first-time winners this season at Watkins Glen and Daytona, only one driver will make the playoffs based on points.
Previous NASCAR Cup Series champs who currently are not locked into the playoffs include Chase Elliott, Kevin Harvick and Brad Keselowski.
Martin Truex Jr. currently leads the regular-season standings, and that’s important because the regular-season champ earns an extra 15 playoff points. The rest of the top-10 regular-season finishers also receive playoff points on a sliding scale, giving them a little playoff advantage from the start.