Denny Hamlin believes four drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series should be worried about their playoff chances. On his Actions Detrimental podcast, Hamlin says that Joey Logano, Kyle Busch, Bubba Wallace and Chris Buescher are the drivers on the bubble when it comes to qualifying for the postseason.
“If you’re those guys, you haven’t won yet,” Hamlin said. “Do you just think that magically you’re going to have an Austin Cindric weekend? Maybe you have that outlook. They’re in that position 180 or 170 (points) behind because they haven’t had the speed all year that it takes to really win.
“You would argue out of the most dangerous out of all them you would say Buescher or Logano. Logano qualifies so well, he’s going to put himself in position to win races more times than not because of his qualifying. Buescher finds a way to put himself up front by the end of these races and next thing you know, holy s***, might win when rarely do I see that he’s the fastest car. I never really see that but he executes great. Scott Graves and his team just does a great job calling races and strategizing and building a solid enough car that gives him a shot to win a lot of these weeks.
Denny Hamlin explains waht’s going on with Bubba Wallace
Hamlin went on to analyze what Bubba Wallace has done this year. “Bubba’s got speed, but since the short tracks he hasn’t had the top-five speed that we want to see,” he said. And for Busch, Hamlin said, “Not top-five speed that I’ve seen. His finishes fluctuate quite a bit.
Logano, Busch, Wallace and Buescher would likely make the playoffs if it began today. But the four drivers know they need to get a win soon to clinch a spot in postseason play as their seasons have had their share of ups and downs.
Wallace is looking for his first win since 2022. He made the playoffs in 2023 and finished 10th in the standings. In 2024, Wallace got off to a fast start, earningtop-five finishes at Daytona and Atlanta. Since then, Wallace has earned another top-five finish and top-10 finish to keep himself in the playoff race.
So far this season, there have been nine drivers to win at least one Cup Series race. Hamlin, Kyle Larson and William Byron are the only drivers to win at least three races each.
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