A case for each driver as champion
A look at the 16-driver field in order of seed heading into the postseason.
1. MARTIN TRUEX JR. Age: 37. Born: Mayetta, N.J. Team: Furniture Row Racing.
Car No.: 78. Make: Toyota. Twitter: @MartinTruex_Jr Championships: None
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 4. Poles: 1 Top 5s: 10. Top 10s: 17 Playoff points: 2,053. Bonus: 53 Odd fact: Truex has led nearly
300 more laps than any other driver this season. 2. KYLE LARSON Age: 25. Born: Elk Grove, Calif. Team: Chip Ganassi Racing.
Car No.: 42. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @KyleLarsonRacin Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 4. Poles: 3 Top 5s: 11. Top 10s: 15 Playoff points: 2,033. Bonus: 33 Odd fact: Larson co-owns sprint car team Larson Marks Racing with Justin Marks and has competed in more than a dozen events this year as a driver. 3. KYLE BUSCH Age: 32. Born: Las Vegas. Team: Joe Gibbs Racing.
Car No.: 18. Make: Toyota. Twitter: @KyleBusch Championships: One (2015).
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 2. Poles: 6.
Top 5s: 10. Top 10s: 16
Playoff points: 2,029. Bonus: 29 Odd fact: With his victory at Pocono Raceway this summer, Busch has now won a points race at every active Cup track except Charlotte Motor Speedway. 4. BRAD KESELOWSKI Age: 33. Born: Rochester Hills, Mich.
Team: Team Penske.
Car No.: 2. Make: Ford. Twitter: @keselowski Championships: One (2012).
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 2. Poles: 2 Top 5s: 11. Top 10s: 14 Playoff points: 2,019. Bonus: 19 Odd fact: Keselowski regularly blogs at his website bradracing.com, allowing fans to get more personal insights on a wide range of topics. 5. JIMMIE JOHNSON Age: 41. Born: El Cajon, Calif. Team: Hendrick Motorsports
Car No.: 48. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @JimmieJohnson Championships: Seven (200610, 2013, 2016).
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 3. Poles: 0 Top 5s: 3. Top 10s: 8 Playoff points: 2,017. Bonus: 17 Odd fact: Johnson has won at every playoff track except Chicagoland Speedway. Of his 83 career wins, 48 have come at tracks being used in the playoffs. 6. KEVIN HARVICK Age: 41. Born: Bakersfield, Calif. Team: Stewart-Haas Racing.
Car No: 4. Make: Ford. Twitter: @KevinHarvick Championships: One (2014).
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 1. Poles: 4
Top 5s: 8. Top 10s: 16
Playoff points: 2,015. Bonus: 15 Odd fact: Harvick and his wife DeLana founded and operate KHI Management, a full-service sports and celebrity-marketing agency representing some of the biggest names in NASCAR, UFC, PGA, motocross and the music industry.
7. DENNY HAMLIN Age: 36. Born: Tampa, Fla. Team: Joe Gibbs Racing.
Car No.: 11. Make: Toyota. Twitter: @dennyhamlin Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 2. Poles: 0 Top 5s: 11. Top 10s: 15 Playoff points: 2,013. Bonus: 13 Odd fact: Hamlin has made the playoff every year but one since he became a fulltime driver in
2006. The only exception was
2013 when he missed four races after breaking his back at Auto Club Speedway. 8. RICKY STENHOUSE JR. Age: 29. Born: Memphis. Team: Roush Fenway Racing.
Car No.: 17. Make: Ford.
Twitter: @StenhouseJr Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 2. Poles: 1
Top 5s: 4. Top 10s: 7 Playoff points: 2,010. Bonus: 10
Odd fact: Stenhouse scored his first two career wins in the Cup Series this season and both came at restrictor-plate tracks — Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway. 9. RYAN BLANEY Age: 23. Born: Cortland, Ohio. Team: Wood Brothers Racing.
Car No.: 21. Make: Ford. Twitter: @Blaney Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 1. Poles: 1
Top 5s: 3. Top 10s: 9
Playoff points: 2,008. Bonus: 8 Odd fact: Blaney is the son of Dave Blaney, a sprint car Hall of Famer who also raced fulltime in the NASCAR Cup Series for 13 years. Ryan Blaney’s uncle is Dale Blaney, a former college basketball star at West Virginia who switched to sprint car racing and became a six-time champion of the All Star Circuit of Champions. 10. CHASE ELLIOTT Age: 21. Born: Dawsonville, Ga. Team: Hendrick Motorsports.
Car No.: 24. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @chaseelliott Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 0. Poles: 1 Top 5s: 6. Top 10s: 14 Playoff points: 2,006. Bonus: 6 Odd fact: Elliott is the son of NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliott, who the Cup championship in
1988 and was named the series’ most popular driver 16 times between 1984 and 2002. 11. RYAN NEWMAN Age: 39. Born: South Bend, Ind. Team: Richard Childress Racing.
Car No.: 31. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @RyanJNewman Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 1. Poles: 0 Top 5s: 6. Top 10s: 11 Playoff points: 2,005. Bonus: 5 Odd fact: Newman finished runner-up for the 2014 championship despite not winning a race that season. 12. KURT BUSCH Age: 39. Born: Las Vegas. Team: Stewart-Haas Racing.
Car No.: 41. Make: Ford. Twitter: @KurtBusch Championships: One (2004).
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 1. Poles: 0 Top 5s: 5. Top 10s: 13 Playoff points: 2,005. Bonus: 5 Odd fact: Busch was the first champion of NASCAR’s “playoff era,” winning the title as a 26year-old in 2004. 13. KASEY KAHNE Age: 37. Born: Enumclaw, Wash. Team: Hendrick Motorsports.
Car No: 5. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @kaseykahne
Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 1. Poles: 0 Top 5s: 3. Top 10s: 4 Playoff points: 2,005. Bonus: 5 Odd fact: Kahne is racing his last season with Hendrick Motorsports and is still contemplating his options for next season. 14. AUSTIN DILLON Age: 27. Born: Lewisville, N.C. Team: Richard Childress Racing.
Car No: 3. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @austindillon3 Championship: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 1. Poles: 0 Top 5s: 3. Top 10s: 4 Playoff points: 2,005. Bonus: 5 Odd fact: Dillon, the grandson of team owner Richard Childress, won the Camping World Truck championship in 2011 and the Xfinity Series championship in 2013. 15. MATT KENSETH Age: 45. Born: Cambridge, Wis. Team: Joe Gibbs Racing.
Car No.: 20. Make: Toyota. Twitter: @mattkenseth Championships: One (2003).
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 0. Poles: 2 Top 5s: 7. Top 10s: 12 Playoff points: 2,005. Bonus: 5 Odd fact: Kenseth will not return to Joe Gibbs Racing next season when Erik Jones will take over the No. 20 car. Kenseth’s future plans are still to be determined. 16. JAMIE MCMURRAY Age: 41. Born: Joplin, Mo. Team: Chip Ganassi Racing.
Car No: 1. Make: Chevrolet. Twitter: @jamiemcmurray Championships: None.
u2017 STATISTICS Wins: 0. Poles: 0
Top 5s: 2. Top 10s: 13
Playoff points: 2,003. Bonus: 3 Odd fact: McMurray is one of just four drivers, along with A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti and Jeff Gordon, to win the Daytona 500 and Rolex 24 at Daytona during their careers. He is also one of only three drivers to win both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard
400 in the same year. McMurray won both in 2010.