The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series playoffs start on Sunday, and 16 drivers are competing for a title. The first race of the postseason takes place at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina for the Cook Out Southern 500. The action will begin at 6 p.m. ET and air on USA as well as the NBC Sports App.
The 16 drivers who made the playoffs are William Byron (regular-season champion), Martin Truex Jr. Denny Hamlin, Chris Buescher, Kyle Busch, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain, Brad Keselowski, Tyler Reddick, Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney, Michael McDowell, Rickey Stenhouse Jr. (Daytona 500 winner), Kevin Harvick and Bubba Wallace. Of 16 drivers who have qualified for the playoffs, Keselowski, Harvick and Wallace are the only ones who have yet to win a race.ย
Videos by PopCulture.com
Wallace knows the odds of him winning a Cup Series title are not in his favor, but he comes into the race with a lot of confidence. “For it to be great, you have to be great,” he said, per NASCAR.com. “I think I’m pumped to be an underdog. We know we are way more capable of being better than 16th, but we know if we don’t execute, we can see our happy asses in 16th. We just have to go out and do what we know how to do and just do it. Not get complacent and be one of those front-running cars over the next 10 weeks. We know it’s a tall task, but we can do it.”
Byron comes into the playoffs to win it all after having a memorable regular season. He won five races and finished in the top 10 13 times. “I’m 25. I feel like I have years left to keep driving,” he said, per the Associated Press. “I feel like this is an opportunity that’s a great one, but it’s one that I’m going to relish and enjoy. I’m going to enjoy that we’re in this position. It’s fun and exciting.”
Another driver to watch is Hamlin who has 17 playoff appearances but has yet to win a title. The three-time Daytona 500 winner has finished in the top five of the Cup Series standings the last four years and finished second in 2010.ย
