The first three races of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season were unpredictable, featuring two superspeedway events and one road course race. Although William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports won at Daytona and Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing claimed victories at Atlanta and COTA, the overall playoff picture remains unclear.
Some top drivers have struggled early on, but while a few may need to start worrying, others still have time to recover.
Denny Hamlin, who has made the playoffs in 18 of his 19 full-time seasons, is unlikely to miss them again. The only time he failed to qualify was in 2013 when he missed four races due to injury. Currently sitting 17th in the standings, four points below the cut line, he has only one top 20 finish—a sixth-place result at Atlanta—but he has rebounded from slow starts before, such as in 2022 when he nearly reached the Championship 4 despite early struggles.
Ross Chastain missed the playoffs last year for the first time with Trackhouse Racing, despite having multiple chances to win during the regular season. He would have qualified based on points alone and even secured a playoff race victory at Kansas. Now in 20th place, nine points below the cut line, his position is mainly due to a last-place finish in the Daytona 500. However, he has since bounced back with an eighth-place finish at Atlanta and a 12th-place result at COTA.
Brad Keselowski spent his first season as a driver/co-owner at RFK Racing adapting to his new role, but he has since returned to form. Although he didn’t win in 2023, he finished eighth in the standings and broke a three-year winless streak at Darlington last spring. Currently sitting 26th with a best finish of 15th at COTA, the 2012 champion still has plenty of time to turn things around.
