.Bob Pockrass.FOX NASCAR Insider.The most significant issue of those fighting for a playoff area in the NASCAR Cup Set is actually that a motorist that isn't from another location in the mix safes into the playoffs along with an upset victory.Hello, Austin DillonDillon, that was actually 32nd in the status going into Richmond, put himself in the playoffs with a victory-- albeit a disputable one-- on Sunday, the 23rd ethnicity of the 26-race routine season.Following Richmond, 3 ethnicities remain to place the playoff ground: Michigan, Daytona and also Darlington.The NASCAR playoffs feature 16 motorists-- the regular-season champion and afterwards the following 15 motorists placed by wins with ties broken by points.With the top 7 vehicle drivers in the standings all contending the very least one triumph, the regular-season champ probably will be just one of the victors. Thirteen drivers have actually succeeded this year, meaning up to 3 places can be accessible on factors. So who resides in, that performs the bubble and also that goes to win-at-all-costs? Those thirteen motorists with triumphes who remain in: Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, William Byron, Christopher Bell, Ryan Blaney, Chase Elliott, Tyler Reddick, Brad Keselowski, Alex Bowman, Joey Logano, Daniel Suarez, Austin Cindric and also Austin Dillon.The blister transformed significantly with Dillon's victory as today at most merely three locations-- certainly not four as before the Richmond race-- might be readily available to winless motorists. Each Chris Buescher and also Ross Chastain dropped beneath the cutline while Bubba Wallace moved to the silver lining of being one of the 3 winless motorists along with the absolute most points.Joey Logano talks about Austin Dillon's overtime transfer to win the 400 Therefore let's specify: There are actually 5 winless chauffeurs that will be actually combating for the existing 3 places offered solely on points.Martin Truex Jr. has a 78-point side on the cutline (currently Buescher as well as Chastain), along with 60 aspects on Ty Gibbs, who is 15 factors over Wallace. Buescher and also Chastain, tied in the standings, are actually three points responsible for Wallace.In other words, it's heading to be a fight to the finish.Buescher gained at Michigan and also Daytona in 2014, yet those additionally are actually spots where Wallace commonly has run well. Gibbs still finds his initial job Mug succeed. Chastain is the motorist along with the most recent knowledge in playoff tension situations, where he mostly has proven he can make points happen.There are actually 16 various other playoff-eligible chauffeurs who practically face must-win conditions: Pursuit Briscoe, Kyle Busch, Todd Gilliland, Josh Berry, Michael McDowell, Carson Hocevar, Noah Gragson, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Erik Jones, Ryan Preece, Daniel Hemric, Justin Haley, Corey LaJoie, John Hunter Nemechek, Harrison Burton and Zane Smith.Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR for FOX Sporting Activities. He has invested many years dealing with motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with jobs at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Setting publication and also The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Observe him on Twitter @bobpockrass. Acquire extra from NASCAR Cup Series Follow your faves to obtain details regarding games, updates and more.