How the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Contenders Line-up for the Elimination Race at Martinsville

After the chaos at Texas, the NASCAR Cup Series field reaches Martinsville for the final race before the season finale at Phoenix Raceway. Kyle Busch’s win, while significant given his stature and his ongoing streak, throws the ‘race for Phoenix’ wide open as a non-playoff contender won the race.

One of the top contenders, Brad Keselowski will start on pole position for the race this Sunday at Martinsville. Keselowski, who has two wins at Martinsville, finished in sixth place in the race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Martin Truex Jr., who finished in second place at Texas, will start in the same position at Martinsville. Truex Jr. is one of the strong favorites at Martinsville after winning the last two races at the track.

How Brad Keselowski earned pole position

Despite finishing highest among the playoff contenders at Texas, Truex Jr still starts below Keselowski at Martinsville. This is because the metric to decide the starting line-up takes four factors into consideration. Those are – final finish position by the driver in the last race, the team owner’s finish position, owner points position, and the fastest lap time from the latest race.

Playoff contenders are given preference over the non-playoff drivers in the starting line-up, irrespective of where they finished in the latest race. Alex Bowman, the second-highest finishing playoff driver at Texas (5th), starts in third place on Sunday.

Where the other NASCAR Cup Series playoff contenders start at Martinsville

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Denny Hamlin and Kurt Busch complete the top-five. The older Busch brother finished just behind Keselowski in 7th place at Texas.

Hamlin encountered numerous difficulties in Texas but finished in ninth place. On Sunday, he faced difficulties during a restart and was pushed behind. On Wednesday, he was involved in a wreck moments after the resumption. He rallied back for a top-10 finish, but he expected more.

Three other serious title contenders then follow in the starting line-up. Kevin Harvick starts in sixth place in Martinsville. Kansas winner Joey Logano and Chase Elliott start in seventh and eighth place.

Kyle Busch must be gutted to start in ninth place despite his win at Texas. However, he is not in playoff contention and is hard done by the rule.

The drivers have much lesser time to prepare for Martinsville after the delay in Texas. Keselowski and Truex Jr. have a great chance to use the front row start and stay at the top. Nevertheless, an intense race is expected, to say the least, this Sunday.

Read more – What does the NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Scenario Look Like Ahead of the Elimination Race at Martinsville?