NASCAR points standings after Texas: William Byron holds points lead, Kyle Larson closing in

FORT WORTH, Texas - It's not always wins and top fives that tell the story when it comes to the NASCAR Cup Series points standings. 

Races like Sunday's at Texas Motor Speedway - one in which William Byron and the No. 24 RAPTOR Chevy team rallied for a 13th-place finish after suffering damage on pit road - are just as important. 

So, instead of a disaster, Byron turned in a workmanlike top 15 and retained the top spot for yet another week in the standings. But he does have a hard charging Hendrick Motorsports teammate who is continuing to gain ground. 

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For the second straight week, Kyle Larson scored the most points of any driver in the field, winning stage two and piling up 17 stage points to go along with a fourth-place finish. With the result, he moved to within 13 points of Byron at the top. 

Chase Elliott took advantage of an early engine failure for Denny Hamlin and moved into a tie for third place while Alex Bowman remained in the top 10, in 10th. 

Here's a look at the standings: 

NASCAR playoff standings today