Watch the NASCAR Sylvania 300 streaming online live from New Hampshire Motor Speedway by following the link at the end of this preview article. The NASCAR Sylvania 300 is the second of three races in the opening “Challenger” round of the NASCAR Chase for the Cup.
Brad Keselowski currently holds the points lead in the Chase, and automatically advances to the next round after winning last week’s race. Don’t expect Brad to slow down just because he has a pass to the next round, though. Keselowski took the pole position for today’s race, and he looks to increase his lead over the Chase field even further.
For those unfamiliar with the Chase format, of the 16 drivers who qualified for the Chase for the Cup, 12 will advance to the second round. With only three races in each round (and the points resetting in each round), drivers who find themselves low in the points standings will be scrambling to get a win and an automatic trip to the second round.
The current Chase for the Cup standings, point totals, and qualifying positions in today’s NASCAR Sylvania 300 are:
- Brad Keselowski , 2059, pole position
- Jeff Gordon, 2052, 13th position
- Joey Logano, 2049, 7th position
- Kevin Harvick, 2047, 3rd position
- Dale Earnhardt Jr., 2042, 11th position
- Denny Hamlin, 2041, 4th position
- Kyle Busch, 2041, 5th position
- Jimmie Johnson, 2041, 6th position
- Kurt Busch, 2039, 15th position
- Matt Kenseth, 2034, 16th position
- Kasey Kahne, 2034, 17th position
- Carl Edwards, 2030, 8th position
- Ryan Newman, 2029, 9th position
- AJ Allmendinger, 2025, 27th position
- Greg Biffle, 2021, 26th position
- Aric Almirola , 2007, 21st position
The full points standings, including non-Chase drivers, are available here .
So, as it stands, Newman, Allmendinger, Biffle, and Almirola are on the chopping block. A win would solve that, as would finishing far enough ahead of the other Chase for the Cup drivers to advance to 12th or higher in the points standings.
Non-Chase qualified drivers starting in the top ten are Jamie McMurray, starting in the 2nd position, and Kyle Larson, starting int he 10th position. Other notables include Danica Patrick, starting in the 18th position and still looking for her first NASCAR checkered flag, and Tony Stewart, starting in the 28th position. As reported earlier in The Inquisitr , Tony Stewart has more significant concerns to worry about at the moment than a poor starting position, as he could face prison time for the incident that caused the death of Kevin Ward Jr.
You can watch today’s NASCAR Sylvania 300 streaming online live from New Hampshire Motor Speedway by following this link .