The NASCAR Cup Series Round of 12 came to a dramatic close at Charlotte Motor Speedway’s Roval on Sunday, cutting the postseason field down to eight drivers. For Austin Cindric, Bubba Wallace, and Tyler Reddick, the 109-lap road course showdown brought heartbreak. For others, it became a stage to prove their strength.
Ross Chastain was among those who left Charlotte empty-handed. The No. 1 Chevrolet fought to stay in the playoffs until the final corner. His hopes vanished when Denny Hamlin went past him in Turn 7, dropping him behind Joey Logano on the cutline. Kyle Busch’s night went wrong just 300 meters into the race when his No. 8 Chevrolet went into the barriers. He returned to the track 10 laps down and finished 35th, nine laps down.
Amid the chaos, there were drivers who turned Charlotte into a stepping stone. Here are the three biggest winners on Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Bank of America Roval 400.
3 biggest winners of the NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Charlotte Roval
#3. Shane van Gisbergen – No. 88, Trackhouse Racing

For weeks, the question was whether anyone could finally stop Shane van Gisbergen on a road course. The answer was no, once again, as the Kiwi led a race-high 57 laps, won Stage 1, and crossed the line 15.160 seconds clear of second place, scoring his fifth consecutive road-course win.
Even a scare on the final lap, with smoke trailing from his car, couldn’t slow SVG down. While he isn’t in the NASCAR Cup Series playoff picture, the win moved him up to 12th in the overall standings, with 2,142 points in his rookie season.
#2. Kyle Larson – No. 5, Hendrick Motorsports

Kyle Larson looked every bit like a driver rediscovering his edge. After a Round of 16 with no top-ten finishes, he’s turned things around in the Round of 12. Sunday’s runner-up finish gave him three straight top tens, a sign of growing momentum just in time for the semifinal stretch.
Larson had already clinched his Round of 8 spot with stage points, but wasn’t content to ride safely. He traded blows with SVG for much of the race, even muscling past him on Lap 63 with Christopher Bell following through. The fight didn’t last. After pit cycles, SVG retook the lead, and despite contact between the two in the backstretch chicane on Lap 98, Larson had to settle for second.
Still, with 84 laps led in the last five races compared to just 36 across the 14 before that, Larson is trending upward as the Playoffs reach their business end.
#1. Joey Logano – No. 22, Team Penske

If Sunday was about survival, no one embodied it more than Joey Logano. Starting 17th, the Team Penske driver entered Charlotte 13 points above the cutline, and found himself locked in a cutthroat battle with Ross Chastain all afternoon.
Chastain gained crucial stage points while Logano’s crew battled a slow stop in the final stage. Chastain’s speeding penalty with 20 laps left cracked the door open. From there, Logano’s fresh tires gave him just enough to claw back spots as Chastain faded on older tires.
On the final lap, the Trackhouse Racing driver bumped into Hamlin at the frontstretch chicane and spun himself. Logano went past the mess and crossed the line just 0.167 seconds ahead of the backward-rolling No. 1, and sealed the last spot in the Round of 8 by four points.
Logano advances as the eighth seed, 24 points below the lead. But with his Penske crew’s pedigree and flat ovals ahead, counting out the defending champion remains a risky bet.
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