The results of the Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 brought the 13th different race winner of the 2021 Cup Series season when Aric Almirola held off Christopher Bell in a dark shortened race. Well below the cut line, Almirola’s only chance of making the playoffs was a race win.
While currently listed 23rd in the points standings, Almirola will be among the 16 playoff drivers….unless more than three different drivers win one of the final four races in the regular season.
Yet to win a race, Denny Hamlin continues to hold on to the points lead with 874 points – 13 ahead of Kyle Larson who currently has four race wins.
Despite a lap seven wreck that knocked him out of the race, Kyle Busch holds on to his top five position in the points standings with two race wins.
While Chevrolet continues to lead the manufacturer’s standings with eleven wins and 812 points, Ford has retaken second place after Aric Almirola’s win in the number 10 Stewart-Haas Racing car at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; bringing the total to five wins and 758 points. Toyota has six wins and 755 points.
The top 16 drivers after the New Hampshire race:
Denny Hamlin
Kyle Larson
William Byron
Kyle Busch
Chase Elliott
Joey Logano
Martin Truex Jr
Ryan Blaney
Brad Keselowski
Kevin Harvick
Alex Bowman
Tyler Reddick
Austin Dillon
Kurt Busch
Christopher Bell
Chris Buescher
Daytona 500 winner Michael McDowell is currently listed in 19th place and Aric Almirola is currently listed as 23rd in the points standings but both will be a part of the playoffs under the win and you are in status.
Once the regular season is over after the race at Daytona in late August, the official standings will be set according to the number of race wins, finishing position, playoff points, and stage wins.
The top 10 drivers at the end of each stage earn points on a sliding scale from 10 down to one.
While Denny Hamlin has yet to win a race, he does have five stage wins and a total of 250 stage points; Kyle Larson follows with four race wins, 12 stage wins, and 249 stage points.
Larson’s 12 stage wins tops the list and Larson is the only driver to earn double digits in stage wins; the next closest driver is Denny Hamlin with five.