CONCORD, N.C. – Chase Elliott sits third in the standings and above the cutoff line, while William Byron is the first driver below the elimination line following Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Byron finished 13th in the No. 24 RaptorTough.com Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, while Elliott came in 21st in the No. 9 Hooters Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
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Joey Logano grabbed one of the four spots in the Championship 4 with his race win.
Looking ahead to Homestead-Miami Speedway, the 1.5-mile track returns to the playoff schedule after a two-year absence from the postseason rotation. The organization has three victories at the Florida venue – Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Byron each have one win there. Byron’s victory came in the most recent race there in February 2021.
Get to lowdown on how the two Hendrick Motorsports playoff drivers are positioned heading into the middle race of the Round of 8. Be sure to tune in to the race at Homestead-Miami on Sunday, Oct. 23 at 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Chase Elliott, No. 9
POINTS POSITION: Third
POSITION TO CUTOFF LINE: +17
LAS VEGAS RESULT: 21st
MIAMI OUTLOOK: In six starts at Homestead-Miami, Elliott has two top-five finishes, three top-10s and an average finish of 9.0. His average finish at this track is the third-best among all active drivers and the best among the remaining playoff drivers. This season, the regular-season champion has the sixth-most points on 1.5-mile tracks this season. The 26-year-old has rebounded with strong points days after disappointing opening races in the previous two playoff rounds and it's reasonable to expect a bounce-back effort this upcoming weekend.
William Byron, No. 24
POINTS POSITION: Fifth
POSITION TO CUTOFF LINE: -6
LAS VEGAS RESULT: 13th
MIAMI OUTLOOK: Byron is the most recent winner at Homestead-Miami – leading 102 laps en route to the victory at the venue last year. He has two top-10 finishes in four starts there. In fact, the 24-year-old has wins at the last two tracks in the Round of 8 with a win at Martinsville Speedway coming in April 2022. On the season, the Charlotte, North Carolina, native has the second-most points on 1.5-mile tracks and he will need to score well on Sunday to improve his playoff position.
DRIVER STANDINGS ENTERING HOMESTEAD-MIAMI
1-Joey Logano: 4,084 points (LOCKED IN)
2-Ross Chastain: 4,063 points
3-Chase Elliott: 4,062 points
4-Denny Hamlin: 4,051 points
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5-William Byron: 4,045 points
6-Chase Briscoe: 4,042 points
7-Ryan Blaney: 4,040 points
8-Christopher Bell: 4,028 points
Kyle Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team remain in the hunt for the owner’s championship. A 35th-place finish as a result of a stage two incident with Bubba Wallace was not the start the team was looking for in this round, but Homestead-Miami offers a great chance to turn the tide. The 30-year-old driver has four top-five finishes in eight starts there and loves to ride the high line around the Florida track.
OWNER STANDINGS ENTERING HOMESTEAD-MIAMI
1-No. 22 team: 4,084 points (LOCKED IN)
2-No. 1 team: 4,063 points
3-No. 9 team: 4,062 points
4-No. 11 team: 4,051 points
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5-No. 24 team: 4,045 points
6-No. 14 team: 4,042 points
7-No. 20 team: 4,028 points
8-No. 5 team: 4,026 points