As the NASCAR Cup Series returns to Daytona International Speedway for the regular-season finale, 14 drivers have visited Victory Lane at least once.
That leaves No. 14-ranked Tyler Reddick and Alex Bowman as the front-runners to claim the final two provisional playoff spots. Chris Buescher sits just below the cutoff line, 89 points behind Reddick and 60 behind Bowman.
The 16-team playoffs begin Aug. 31 at Darlington Raceway.
Regular-season champion William Byron expects the postseason to be as “crazy” as the past 25 events.
“No one’s running away with this thing, which is going to create a really crazy playoffs,” William Byron told NASCAR.com.
At +400, Kyle Larson and Denny Hamlin were tabbed with the top sports-betting odds to capture the 2025 Cup Series championship, according to BetOnline Sportsbook.
A doubleheader @DAYTONA weekend is on deck. pic.twitter.com/IATnn0QL5H
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) August 19, 2025
NASCAR Cup Series Releases 2026 Schedule
NASCAR Cup Series officials offered a few twists after releasing the schedule for the 2026 campaign.
Among the changes, a street-course event at San Diego’s Naval Base Coronado was added, the Championship 4 race was moved to Homestead-Miami Speedway, and a new In-Season Challenge will be adopted.
North Wilkesboro Speedway will host its first points event since 1996, while Dover Motor Speedway will host the All-Star weekend.
“Obviously, a lot of collaboration, a lot of time, a lot of energy that went into it, and it’s just a good blend like we’ve had over the past few years of innovation and tradition, of being able to celebrate our history and our roots and where we come from, but then also having these bold new moves that we’re introducing to the schedule,” NASCAR Executive Vice President and Chief Venue & Racing Innovation Officer Ben Kennedy said, as reported by NASCAR.com.
A bold new mission, a triumphant return and plenty of full-throttle thrills.
The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule is here! pic.twitter.com/WlACzioY2S
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) August 20, 2025
2025 NASCAR Cup Series Drivers’ Championship Odds
Here is a Week 26 look at the drivers’ odds for the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series drivers’ championship, according to BetOnline Sportsbook:
| Driver | 2025 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Odds |
|---|---|
| Kyle Larson | +400 |
| Denny Hamlin | +400 |
| Ryan Blaney | +550 |
| Christopher Bell | +550 |
| William Byron | +600 |
| Chase Elliott | +850 |
| Tyler Reddick | +1800 |
| Joey Logano | +1800 |
| Chase Briscoe | +1800 |
| Shane van Gisbergen | +2200 |
| Ross Chastain | +2500 |
| Bubba Wallace | +3300 |
| Alex Bowman | +3300 |
| Austin Cindric | +4000 |
| Chris Buescher | +4000 |
| Josh Berry | +5000 |
| Austin Dillon | +5000 |
| Carson Hocevar | +5000 |
| Kyle Busch | +6000 |
| Ty Gibbs | +6600 |
| Brad Keselowski | +8000 |
| Ryan Preece | +10000 |
| Daniel Suarez | +15000 |
| Erik Jones | +25000 |
| Noah Gragson | +25000 |
| AJ Allmendinger | +25000 |
| Michael McDowell | +25000 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | +30000 |
| Zane Smith | +30000 |
| Justin Haley | +50000 |
| Todd Gilliland | +50000 |
| Cole Custer | +50000 |
| John Hunter Nemechek | +50000 |
| Ty Dillon | +50000 |
*-Odds current at time of publication
