William Byron 'buckled down' to clinch Regular Season Championship
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USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
NASCAR playoff projections, points with one race left in 2025 regular season
The NASCAR Cup Series playoff field will be officially determined following the regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway on Aug. 23. The NASCAR Cup Series playoff field is nearly set with just one race remaining in the 2025 regular season. Austin Dillon became the 14th driver to clinch a berth in the playoffs and earned a measure of redemption with his victory under the lights at Richmond Raceway on Aug. 16. Including Dillon, 14 drivers have earned wins this season, leaving just two spots remaining in the 16-driver playoff field. The series now heads to its most famous venue, Daytona International Speedway, for its regular-season finale. The Daytona summer race has produced its share of surprises in recent years, with a number of first-time winners that shook up the playoff field. That includes Erik Jones in 2018, Justin Haley in 2019 and Harrison Burton in 2024, who each celebrated their first NASCAR Cup Series wins at the legendary track. For winless drivers this season, Daytona serves as the ultimate wild card, providing hope that even someone ranked well back in the standings can claim victory and a berth in the playoffs. And should a previously winless driver take the checkered flag in primetime on Aug. 23, that would leave just one spot available to the top-ranked driver without a victory this season. Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing and Alex Bowman of Hendrick Motorsports are ranked 15th and 16th, respectively, in the driver standings and would be the final two drivers to make the 10-race playoffs if no new winner emerges. The other side of the 16-driver cut line features two RFK Racing drivers and a two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion: No. 17-ranked Chris Buescher, No. 18 Ryan Preece and No. 19 Kyle Busch, the 2015 and 2019 champion and now Dillon's teammate at Richard Childress Racing. Here's a look at the top 20 drivers in the standings following Saturday night's race at Richmond ranked by playoff seeding as of now: NASCAR driver standings — Projected 2025 playoffs A look at the top 20 drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series standings, ranked by projected playoff seeding with one race remaining in the regular season. Includes rank, driver, wins (playoff points in parentheses), regular-season points, and points above or below 16-driver cut line, where applicable: Next NASCAR Cup Series race Daytona International Speedway will host the final regular-season race on Saturday, Aug. 23 before the 10-race NASCAR Cup Series playoffs begin. Watch NASCAR Cup Series races on Fubo
Newsweek
3 hours ago
- Newsweek
Brad Keselowski Laughs at Connor Zilisch's Hard Fall after Xfinity Victory
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. NASCAR Cup Series driver Brad Keselowski laughed at Connor Zilisch's fall, which occurred when Zilisch was celebrating his victory at Watkins Glen International last weekend. The 19-year-old driver suffered from a broken collarbone and recently underwent surgery to expedite his recovery for a racing return. The incident occurred when Zilisch had just climbed atop his car, only to slip and fall headfirst. The event made headlines over the past week due to its severity. However, Keselowski found humor in Zilisch's fall, stating that he experienced falls in the past. When asked ahead of the race at Richmond if he planned on climbing on top of his car if he won the race, the 2012 NASCAR Cup champion said: "Probably not. I think I'll just grab my American flag and stand outside of it. But man, that was sure scary. I called Adam Alexander [NASCAR commentator] yesterday because now that we know Connor's okay, it is one of the funniest damn videos I've ever seen in my life. And we've all had our, you know, moments. "The funniest part to me was Adam just saying, 'Oh my god, he fell.' And my wife and I, we've had a lot of fun with that. But, you do this sport long enough, you're bound to have a moment that you wish you could have back. And, I've got quite a few of them, and Connor got his first one." Brad Keselowski, driver of the #6 Castrol Ford, walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Viva Mexico 250 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on June 15, 2025 in Mexico City, Mexico. Brad Keselowski, driver of the #6 Castrol Ford, walks onstage during driver intros prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Viva Mexico 250 at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on June 15, 2025 in Mexico City, gave an update recently after undergoing surgery. Newsweek Sports reported his comments: "Wanted to give everyone a quick update. Had surgery on my collarbone this morning to get a plate and screws to help with the healing process. Been a tough few days for me mentally, but all the love you guys have shown has certainly helped. Thank you." Due to the injury, Zilisch was unable to race the next day in the Cup Series with Trackhouse Racing. It remains to be seen if he can return for the Wawa 250 at Daytona International Speedway next weekend. Addressing the topic of his racing return, Trackhouse's team owner Justin Marks said: "I think it's a discussion that we all have to have. We haven't really talked about much, obviously, since yesterday, but in the little bit that we've discussed in some of the quiet moments over the last 24 hours, it's going to have to be a group decision. "It's going to have to be sponsors, Chevrolet, the team, taking care of his development, taking care of him as a human and as an athlete, and then keeping his motivations high and making sure he knows he's got a group of people behind him that are supportive of him."
Fox News
4 hours ago
- Fox News
A Year After Controversial Richmond Victory, Austin Dillon Wins With No Drama
RICHMOND, Va. — Austin Dillon didn't face any questions about whether he crossed any line other than the finish line Saturday night. Just one year ago, Dillon's Richmond Raceway victory stirred a huge controversy and resulted in NASCAR ruling that his contact with Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin was too egregious to award a playoff berth for the win. But this year, Dillon won with absolutely no controversy, as he beat Alex Bowman by 2.47 seconds at the finish. "I'm too tired to be angry," Dillon said. "I got a little cold, a broken rib, a lot of adversity. Some things you don't understand at the time come back around. "God has a way of putting that timing together. I feel like I was probably the calmest I've ever been tonight in the car winning the race. I didn't act a certain way. I was just thankful for the opportunity." Dillon entered the race 28th in the NASCAR Cup Series standings but now will be one of the 16 drivers in the playoffs when they start in two weeks at Darlington Raceway. Two spots remain in the playoff field. Tyler Reddick and Bowman would gain those spots if the regular-season finale doesn't have a new winner. If there is a new winner, one of those two drivers would get the final spot, with Reddick entering the race 29 points ahead of Bowman. Dillon doesn't have those worries, as he no doubt has a playoff spot. Last year, the team lost its appeal to the NASCAR decision to withdraw the playoff berth in the wake of the last-lap fracas. "I'll never forget last year," said Dillon's grandfather and team owner, Richard Childress. "But today, winning the race — I want to focus and concentrate on it. "I was not happy with the way things went down with the way things were called on us. But that's history. Let's look at tonight. Tonight was a great night." Dillon and Ryan Blaney gave a great battle for the lead in the final 100 laps, with them side-by-side and at times swapping the front spot. Dillon made his final pit stop about four laps before Blaney and Blaney could never catch him, eventually wearing out his tires enough that Bowman passed him for second. "He raced door-to-door with a Cup champion," said Richard Boswell, who came to RCR to crew chief for Dillon this season after the closure of Stewart-Haas Racing. "He beat him at the end." For Dillon, it marked his sixth win in his 433rd career Cup start. Driving the famed No. 3 that Dale Earnhardt made famous while racing for Childress, Dillon faces questions about whether he deserves the privilege of driving such an iconic car number. That only increased when many questioned how he won the race at Richmond a year ago, a race where Dillon had a comfortable lead until a caution set up a two-lap shootout to the checkered flag. Dillon said it was hard for his grandfather to get over it. "Last year ... it stung to him because he felt like NASCAR kind of let him down in a way," Dillon said. "They had to make a call. I got over it. He doesn't get over those type of things. "Hopefully this lets him sleep at night again … because this sport is special. It's given our family a living and a lot of other families a living." And the win at Richmond was special, a track where Dillon struggled early in his career but also a track where RCR has had some great moments. Dillon also raced for the third consecutive week with a broken rib, suffered when he fell off a ladder at home. When Dillon arrived on Friday at Richmond, he said he didn't arrive with an angry feeling from last year and the term redemption didn't really seem to apply. The circumstances were just different this year. "This is what I wanted last year," Dillon said. "It's not how I wanted to end it last year [when] I felt like I had to with my back against the wall kind of deal." Dillon had led just one lap in any race since winning a year ago and before leading 107 Saturday night at Richmond. "If you would have told me we would come back a year later and sitting in Victory Lane after all we went through?" Dillon said. "I cried in our appeal process because that win meant a lot to me to be able to race with Denny and Joey. "Before that period, we didn't have a good run. I was so pumped to just be up there racing for a win. Then to come back this year, everyone is telling you, 'Go get it done. You can get the redemption here. Show them what it means to win.'" The 35-year-old Dillon made the playoffs for the first time in three years. He finished 29th and 32nd in the standings the last two seasons. "We're kind of like a fighter," Dillon said. "We don't go away. I think a lot of people think that guy is going to go away at some point. We're able to claw, chip, find ways. "I like that underdog mentality a little bit." Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
