NASCAR Cup Series points trends ahead of USA TODAY 301 in New Hampshire

June 23, 2024

The NASCAR Cup Series points race is exciting ahead of the USA TODAY 301 in New Hampshire.

Chase Elliott (591 points) is the current leader of the championship ahead of Sunday’s race on the “Magic Mile” with an eight-point lead over his teammate Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports.

Defending champion Martin Truex Jr. is fifth in the overall standings, 61 points behind Elliott.

BUSINESS: USA TODAY 301 Last-Minute Tickets

Here are some drivers trending up and down ahead of Sunday’s USA TODAY 301.

Uptrend driver at USA TODAY 301

Chase Elliott

Elliott leads the points standings with 591 points. He also has 104 stage points, which are especially helpful in the playoff points standings. Elliott has one win at Texas Motor Speedway this season and has a chance to win his first championship since 2020. He also has seven top-five finishes and nine top-10 finishes.

Ryan Blaney

Blaney won last week’s race at Iowa Speedway and moved up five spots in the points standings. He currently sits seventh in the standings, 90 points behind Elliott. The 2023 Cup Series champion has qualified for the playoffs and has a chance to defend his title.

William Byron

The Hendrick Motorsports driver has 10 top-10 finishes, the most of the field, and six top-5 finishes, as well as three wins this season. The Daytona 500 winner currently sits fourth in the standings, 54 points behind teammate Elliott, and moved up two spots after the Iowa race.

Downtrend driver at USA TODAY 301

Martin Truex Jr.

The 2023 New Hampshire race winner has finished outside the top 10 in the last five points races (and even the All-Star Race, which doesn’t count for points). Truex’s last top-10 finish was on May 5 at Kansas Speedway. At one point, Truex was the points leader and now sits fifth, 61 points behind Elliott.

Ty Gibbs

Ty Gibbs has had bad luck in recent races. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has missed the top 10 in each of the last three races, including a 37th-place finish at Sonoma two weeks ago. After a 25th-place finish at Iowa, he dropped three places in the overall standings. Gibbs is 11th in the points standings, 113 points behind Elliott.

Brad Keselowski

The downward trend for Keselowski is basically unchanged. The RFK Racing driver/owner snapped a streak of three top-three finishes at Sonoma and followed that up with a top-10 finish at Iowa. Keselowski was back on track for the top of the standings after his win at Darlington, but has since dropped to ninth after dropping two spots after Iowa. He is 93 points behind Elliott’s lead.

Tickets for USA TODAY 301 in New Hampshire

Tickets are still available for USA TODAY 301 in New Hampshire, but they are selling fast.

BUSINESS: Tickets for the USA TODAY 301 NASCAR Cup Series race in New Hampshire

Time is running out, with the green flag dropping at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday. Get your tickets today and don’t miss NASCAR’s only stop in New England this season.

We occasionally recommend products and services of interest. If you make a purchase through one of the links, we may receive an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this does not influence our reporting.