With Daniel Suárez becoming the 12th different driver to win this season and earn a spot in the Playoffs, that leaves just four positions open in the 16-driver NASCAR Cup Series postseason field with 10 races left to go in the regular season.
The four drivers currently in the Playoff hot seats that all drivers outside the postseason cutoff are coveting are Ryan Blaney (+95 points from the Playoff cutoff), Martin Truex Jr. (+65), Christopher Bell (+28) and Aric Almirola (+7).
Stewart-Haas Racing’s Aric Almirola is currently in the most precarious position of the four drivers inside the Playoff cutoff, because he is in the 16th and final transfer position on points. But if a driver below him in the standings wins over the next 10 races, he could find himself bounced out of the Playoffs. Almirola currently has a seven-point advantage on his SHR teammate Kevin Harvick who is 17th – the first spot outside the Playoffs cutoff.
Of the drivers looking for their first NASCAR Cup Series win of the season, three have won previously at Nashville Superspeedway in either the NASCAR Xfinity Series or the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series – Kevin Harvick (2006, 2010 NXS), Austin Dillon (2011 NCWTS) and Brad Keselowski (2008, 2010 NXS).
Playoff Outlook: Drivers Without Wins
| Rank | Driver | Points | Race Wins | Stage Wins | Playoff Pts | Pts From Cutoff |
| 13 | Ryan Blaney | 511 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 95 |
| 14 | Martin Truex Jr. | 481 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 65 |
| 15 | Christopher Bell | 444 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 |
| 16 | Aric Almirola | 423 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 17 | Kevin Harvick | 416 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -7 |
| 18 | Tyler Reddick | 381 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -42 |
| 19 | Austin Dillon | 376 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -47 |
| 20 | Erik Jones | 368 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -55 |
| 21 | Michael McDowell | 330 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -93 |
| 22 | Chris Buescher | 318 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -105 |
| 23 | Justin Haley | 310 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -113 |
| 24 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 288 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -135 |
| 25 | Bubba Wallace | 284 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -139 |
| 26 | Ty Dillon | 270 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -153 |
| 27 | Cole Custer | 262 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -161 |
| 28 | Harrison Burton # | 241 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -182 |
| 29 | Todd Gilliland # | 239 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -184 |
| 30 | Brad Keselowski | 227 | 0 | 0 | -10 | -196 |
