The NASCAR playoffs continue with only 12 drivers remaining in contention for the championship. Denny Hamlin leads this group after NASCAR reset the points for New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
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The Joe Gibbs Racing driver, who leads the series with five wins, enters the Round of 12 with 3,034 points. This puts him 26 points above the cutline entering the Round of 12. He leads William Byron and Kyle Larson, who both enter the round with a 24-point cushion.
The other drivers above the cutline entering the Round of 12 are Christopher Bell (+20), Ryan Blaney (+19), Chase Briscoe (+10), Chase Elliott (+5), and Bubba Wallace (+1).
The four drivers below the cutline are Austin Cindric (-1), Joey Logano (-2), Ross Chastain (-2), and Tyler Reddick (-3). This is not an insurmountable hurdle for any of these four drivers, especially with stage points on the line each week of the season.
A new round means new opportunities. pic.twitter.com/iqn5HUfFej
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) September 14, 2025
"I feel like our team can do a lot of great things and there's no reason why we can't reset and give 'em hell," Cindric said after last weekend's race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The next round of the playoffs starts with a track that heavily favors Bell — New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The Oklahoma native has five starts at the New England track. He has three top-two finishes and two wins. This includes last season's race when he led 149 of the 305 laps.
Bell is not the only Joe Gibbs Racing driver who enters the Round of 12 with some favorable tracks on the horizon. Hamlin has three wins at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in his career. He also has four wins at Kansas Speedway, the second track in the Round of 12.
The final race of the Round of 12 will benefit multiple drivers. They will take on the Charlotte Roval, an oval/road course hybrid. Shane van Gisbergen, who failed to advance in the playoffs after Bristol, will enter as the favorite to win.
However, multiple playoff drivers will remain under the spotlight based on past road course success. This includes Larson, Cindric, Bell, Elliott, Chastain, and Byron.
