The NASCAR playoff standings and overall Cup Series points have been updated following the Daytona 500 on Sunday, giving us a baseline as the season gets underway in 2025.
Throughout the afternoon and evening, Mother Nature made her mark on The Great American Race, but NASCAR was able to get the Daytona 500 in its entirety in throughout the day. When it was all said and done, William Byron elevated to win his second consecutive season-opening race, returning the Hendrick No. 24 to Victory Lane once again.
He’ll of course lead the way to start the season, but it’s anyone’s guess where we’ll end up when it’s time to crown a champion for 2025. Here’s where the playoff standings and overall points stand for the NASCAR Cup Series after the Daytona 500.
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William Byron is the first driver locked into the playoffs, and some heavy hitters are doing well on points following the Daytona 500, as well. Ryan Blaney is the first driver behind Byron in P2, 30 points to the good following Sunday’s race, while his teammate Austin Cindric is right behind him.
Meanwhile, there’s a bevy of drivers who will need to put in some work over the coming weeks to help their positioning. Kyle Larson, one of the top wheelmen in the Cup Series, famously isn’t usually in the mix at Daytona, and it’ll lead from him starting the season from behind the eight ball, playoff-point wise.
RankDriverWinsPlayoff Points1William Byron152Ryan Blaney 0+303Austin Cindric0+274Tyler Reddick0+235Alex Bowman0+216Chris Buescher 0+197Erik Jones0+198*Jimmie Johnson0+139John Hunter Nemechek0+1310Chase Briscoe0+1211Chase Elliott0+1212Ty Dillon 0+1013Daniel Suarez0+814Michael McDowell0+615Ricky Stenhouse Jr.0+516Ty Gibbs0+017Joey Logano0-018Riley Herbst0-119Corey LaJoie0-120Denny Hamlin0-1
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Meanwhile, the aforementioned Blaney leads the way by one point over Byron in the overall Cup Series point standings after the Daytona 500. His stage win is certainly coming in handy, as he continued to prove why he’s one of the best super-speedway racers in NASCAR throughout Sunday’s race.
Combing through the standings, it can’t be understated what an evening it turned out to be for Legacy Motor Club. Erik Jones, Jimmie Johnson and John Hunter Nemechek are P7-P8-P9 in the standings at the moment. Johnson will drop down due to not being full-time in the Cup Series, but perhaps a bounce-back season is on the way for the team.
RankDriverPointsLeader1Ryan Blaney5102William Byron50-13Austin Cindric48-34Tyler Reddick44-75Alex Bowman42-96Chris Buescher40-117Erik Jones40-118*Jimmie Johnson34-179John Hunter Nemechek34-1710Chase Briscoe33-1811Chase Elliott33-1812Ty Dillon31-2013Daniel Suarez29-2214Michael McDowell27-2415Ricky Stenhouse Jr.26-2516Ty Gibbs21-3017Joey Logano21-3018Riley Herbst20-3119*Corey LaJoie20-3120Denny Hamlin20-3121Brad Keselowski20-3122Todd Gilliland20-3123Bubba Wallace20-3124Justin Haley18-3325Austin Dillon18-3326Kyle Larson17-3427Cole Custer16-3528Christopher Bell13-3829Cody Ware12-3930Noah Gragson9-42
