Daytona International Speedway delivered a thrilling finish on Saturday night to conclude the NASCAR Cup Series regular season. Despite running 13th with three laps remaining, Ryan Blaney surged in the closing laps and made the winning pass off turn 4 on the last lap to take the checkered flag in a four-wide finish over Daniel Suarez, Justin Haley and Cole Custer, three drivers who were all searching for a walk-off win to clinch a playoff berth.
WHERE DID HE COME FROM?!
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) August 24, 2025
RYAN BLANEY WINS IN A THRILLING LAST LAP AT DAYTONA! pic.twitter.com/H6IW6dtclh
Rounding out the top 10 behind those drivers were Erik Jones, Kyle Larson, Chris Buescher, Ty Gibbs, Josh Berry and Chase Elliott. William Byron had already locked up the regular-season title at Richmond, so there was no drama surrounding the overall standings at Daytona.
The main focus was on the final two playoff spots, which were occupied by Tyler Reddick and Alex Bowman going into the World Center of Racing. While both drivers were involved in crashes, Reddick clinched his playoff berth when Bowman was forced to retire after the Lap 27 Big One. Bowman had to watch several drivers come agonizingly close to their first win of the season, but ultimately claimed the final playoff spot with Blaney getting his second win.
NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings after Daytona
Now that the playoff field is officially set, the main focus the rest of the way will be on the playoff standings with the 10-race stretch set to begin at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, Aug. 31. That will be the first of three races in the opening round with World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway (Sept. 7) and Bristol Motor Speedway (Sept. 13) to follow.
Position/Driver | Points | Points Above or Below Cutline |
|---|---|---|
1. Kyle Larson | 2032 | +26 |
2. William Byron | 2032 | +26 |
3. Denny Hamlin | 2029 | +23 |
4. Ryan Blaney | 2026 | +20 |
5. Christopher Bell | 2023 | +17 |
6. Shane van Gisbergen | 2022 | +16 |
7. Chase Elliott | 2013 | +7 |
8. Chase Briscoe | 2010 | +4 |
9. Bubba Wallace | 2008 | +2 |
10. Austin Cindric | 2008 | +2 |
11. Ross Chastain | 2007 | +1 |
12. Joey Logano | 2007 | +1 |
13. Josh Berry | 2006 | -1 |
14. Tyler Reddick | 2006 | -1 |
15. Austin Dillon | 2005 | -2 |
16. Alex Bowman | 2002 | -5 |
Larson (three wins) and Byron (two wins) are tied atop the playoff standings (+26) heading to Darlington. Despite having one fewer win, the extra 15 points that come with the regular-season championship are proving valuable for Byron. Denny Hamlin (+23), Blaney (+20), Christopher Bell (+17) and Shane van Gisbergen (+16) have a little breathing room to begin the first round, but not much.
It gets even tighter below them with Elliott (+7), Chase Briscoe (+4), Bubba Wallace (+2), Austin Cindric (+2), Ross Chastain (+1) and Joey Logano (+1) having a slim advantage. Berry (-1), Reddick (-1), Austin Dillon (-2) and Bowman (-5) find themselves below the cutline entering Darlington, but things can easily flip in this type of playoff format.
With the Lady In Black giving drivers a stiff challenge to begin the playoffs, coupled with the unique layout at World Wide Technology Raceway and the Night Race at Bristol, the first round will test drivers with a variety of tracks as they begin their quest for the Bill France Cup.