Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Prime Minister of Yemen’s Houthi Government Killed in Israeli Strike

2 days ago

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Signs Law Redrawing Congressional Maps

3 days ago

US Air Force will Offer Military Funeral Honors to Slain Capitol Rioter

3 days ago

US Republican Senator Joni Ernst Will Not Run for Re-Election, CBS News Reports

3 days ago

Wall Street Falls as Dell, Nvidia Drive Tech Losses

3 days ago

US Denies Visas to Palestinian Officials Ahead of UN General Assembly

3 days ago

Minneapolis Children Revealed Courage, Absorbed Fear During Church Shooting

4 days ago

Ford Recalls Nearly 500,000 Vehicles Over Brake Fluid Leak

4 days ago

Fresno-Bound Passenger Says Delta Attendant Slapped Him, Seeks $20M

4 days ago
NASCAR Regular-Season Title and Playoff Spots at Stake Down the Stretch at Daytona and Darlington
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 1 year ago on
August 21, 2024

Tyler Reddick takes the checker flag after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Michigan International Speedway, Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Brooklyn, Mich. (AP/Carlos Osorio)

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

BROOKLYN — NASCAR has just two races remaining in the regular season and a pair of competitions are on the line.

Tyler Reddick earned his second win of the season Monday at Michigan International Speedway, giving him the points lead in a closely contested, four-driver race for the regular-season championship.

Reddick is 10 points ahead of Chase Elliott while Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson are within striking distance.

Reddick moved past Larson into the top spot in the Cup standings, and his win opened another spot in the playoffs because he was one of 12 drivers who already earned an automatic bid with a victory.

That leaves four spots available in the 16-car playoffs with races left at Daytona on Saturday night and Sept. 1 at Darlington.

Tight Competition for Playoff Spots

Five drivers have a shot to get in without a win, but at least one will be left out.

“It’s really tight on speed on the race track, tight on points,” Reddick said. “That’s what this Next Gen era has really done, brought us closer together from the front of the field to the back.”

Martin Truex Jr. is No. 13 in the playoff standings with a 77-point cushion over the cutline, but no lead in the format can be considered safe.

Ty Gibbs, Chris Buescher and Ross Chastain currently have the final three spots and Bubba Wallace slipped to 17th, one point behind Chastain.

“We knew at the beginning of the year before we ever got to Daytona that the only way to really be comfortable at any point before playoffs was a win,” Buescher said.

Kyle Busch, who won his first stage of the season on Sunday and finished fourth, is among the drivers who have to win to get in.

Dillon’s Playoff Hopes in Jeopardy

Austin Dillon will be among the desperate drivers, needing to get to a checkered flag first to extend the season, unless he wins an appeal on Wednesday or a subsequent option to fight NASCAR’s decision to revoke his spot in the playoffs.

Dillon was 17th in the FireKeepers 400, a week after he wrecked Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin on the final lap to win at Richmond.

Reddick, meanwhile, is at the front of the pack in points thanks to his consistency, leading the series with 11 top-five finishes and 17 top 10s out of 24 races.

He also won at Talladega four months ago in his No. 45 Toyota for 23XI, which is owned by Hamlin and Michael Jordan, to put himself and team No. 1 in points for the first time.

Wrecks Shake Up Standings

One wreck, as a slew of drivers experienced at Michigan, can change a lot of things in any race and in the standings.

Larson, who was the BetMGM Sportsbook favorite to win the race, lost control of the No. 5 Chevrolet on lap 115 and several cars were tangled up in the mess.

A few laps later, Logano took his damaged No. 22 Ford to the garage and Wallace’s No. 23 Toyota took a hit to stunt the relative success the on-the-bubble driver was having in the race.

The pileup led to Logano finishing 33rd, with Larson one spot behind and Wallace 26th, pushing him from No. 15 to 17 in the playoff standings for the 16-car field.

“The competition out there, it’s a matter of a couple of feet here and there,” Reddick said.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

DON'T MISS

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

DON'T MISS

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

DON'T MISS

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

DON'T MISS

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

DON'T MISS

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

DON'T MISS

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

DON'T MISS

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

DON'T MISS

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

UP NEXT

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

UP NEXT

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

UP NEXT

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

UP NEXT

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

UP NEXT

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

UP NEXT

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

UP NEXT

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

UP NEXT

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

UP NEXT

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

UP NEXT

Judge Blocks Pillar of Trump’s Mass Deportation Campaign

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

18 hours ago

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

18 hours ago

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

18 hours ago

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

19 hours ago

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

19 hours ago

Labor Day Quiz: Do You Know What a Knocker-Upper Is?

19 hours ago

Bulldogs Check All the Boxes in Runaway Win Over Georgia Southern

1 day ago

Judge Blocks Pillar of Trump’s Mass Deportation Campaign

2 days ago

Classic Cars Will Still Need a Smog Test in California After Lawmakers Reject Jay Leno Bill

2 days ago

Visalia Driver Arrested for DUI After Multiple Crashes and Pedestrian Injured

2 days ago

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

A lightning-sparked wildfire, the Garnet Fire, in the Sierra National Forest has burned 18,748 acres in Fresno County and remains at 8% cont...

18 hours ago

Photo: USDA - Forest Service Tanker 40 at Fresno Air Attack Base. The Fresno County Garnet Fire in the Sierra National Forest has burned 18,748 acres and is 8% contained as crews make progress on containment lines while bracing for possible thunderstorms early this week. (Sam Wu/USFS)
18 hours ago

Fresno County Garnet Fire Grows to 18,748 Acres in Sierra National Forest

U.S. flag and Judge gavel are seen in this illustration taken, August 6, 2024. (Reuters File)
18 hours ago

US Judge Blocks Deportations of Unaccompanied Migrant Children to Guatemala

Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, August 31, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
18 hours ago

Israel Pounds Gaza City Suburbs, Netanyahu to Convene Security Cabinet

Demonstrators hold a banner during the 'March for Australia' anti-immigration rally, in Sydney, Australia, August 31, 2025. REUTERS/Hollie Adams
18 hours ago

Thousands in Australia March Against Immigration, Government Condemns Rally

President Donald Trump walks on the grounds of the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, U.S., August 30, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
18 hours ago

Trump Says He Will Order Voter ID Requirement for Every Vote

Activists Yasemin Acar, Greta Thunberg and Thiago Avila attend a press conference before the departure of the Global Sumud Flotilla, a humanitarian expedition to Gaza, at the port of Barcelona, Spain August 31, 2025. (Reuters/Eva Manez)
18 hours ago

Greta Thunberg Joins Flotilla Heading for Gaza With Aid

National Guard troops wear gas masks during protests against federal immigration sweeps, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
19 hours ago

Chicago Mayor Says Police Will Not Aid Federal Troops or Agents

A view of tents sheltering Palestinians displaced by the Israeli military offensive, in Gaza City, August 23, 2025. (Reuters File)
19 hours ago

Post-War Gaza Plan Sees Relocation of Population, ‘Digital Token’ for Palestinian Land: Washington Post

Search

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Send this to a friend