4 drivers at risk of elimination after 2nd race at the NASCAR championship playoff first round feat. Shane van Gisbergen

Shane van Gisbergen’s first NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs run has turned into a battle for survival. After two races, the rookie sits below the cutline with just one chance left to save his championship hopes. With Darlington and Gateway now complete, the 16-driver field will shrink following the elimination race at Bristol, and van Gisbergen is one of four drivers in immediate danger.

After the second race of the Round of 16 at World Wide Technology Raceway, four drivers sit below the elimination line. They are Shane van Gisbergen, Austin Dillon, Alex Bowman, and Josh Berry. Unless they deliver strong results at Bristol, their championship hopes will end early.

Let's take a look at the four drivers that are at risk of getting knocked out following the race at Bristol Motor Speedway:

#4. Shane van Gisbergen

NASCAR: Cup Series Playoff Media Day - Source: Imagn

Van Gisbergen sits 14th in the standings, 15 points below the cutoff, and under playoff pressure for the first time in his Cup career. Despite the deficit, he has four wins this season, more than Dillon, Bowman, and Berry combined. But his inconsistencies have caught up to him. With only five top-10s in 28 races, the margin for error is razor-thin.

At Gateway, he started at 18th and outperformed fellow playoff drivers like Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman. Bristol will be another unknown, but if he builds rhythm early and picks up stage points, he has a realistic chance to escape elimination. Of the four, he is the least likely to be knocked out.

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#3. Austin Dillon

NASCAR: Cup Series Playoff Media Day - Source: Imagn

Dillon holds 13th place in the standings, 11 points below the cutoff, and just ahead of Shane van Gisbergen. His Richmond win secured his playoff berth, but it has been his only trip to Victory Lane all year. He has just one top-five finish, and his average result sits around 20th, not the type of form that holds up in elimination battles.

Dillon has been through playoff cutlines before, unlike van Gisbergen or Berry. That could count at a track as unforgiving as Bristol.

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#2. Alex Bowman

NASCAR: Southern 500 - Source: Imagn

Bowman is 15th in the playoff standings, 35 points below the line, and faces a must-win scenario at Bristol. His season has been steadier than Dillon’s, with 14 top-10s and six top-fives, but the lack of a win has left him exposed.

The frustrating part for Bowman is that his pace has been good, often running inside the top 10, but in the playoff format, good finishes are not enough without stage points or wins. Bristol offers him one last chance, but unless he finds breakthrough speed, elimination is a serious threat.

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#1 — Josh Berry

NASCAR: Southern 500 - Source: Imagn

Berry enters Bristol in 16th, also 45 points below the cutoff, and carries the heaviest risk. His one win earlier in the year gave him entry into the postseason, but six DNFs and a 21.9 average finish have dragged him to the bottom of the table. Even when he has shown pace, leading 169 laps this season, he hasn’t been able to convert that into consistent playoff-worthy results.

The Wood Brothers Racing driver has shown resilience in tough spots, but competing against playoff veterans at Bristol is as steep a challenge as it gets. Unless he delivers the race of his career, Berry is the most likely driver to be eliminated this weekend.

The elimination race at Bristol will be decisive. Only the top 12 in points will move forward to the Round of 12, which includes races at New Hampshire, Kansas, and the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course.

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Shane van Gisbergen Faces Gateway Challenge in Rookie Playoff Run

At NASCAR Cup Series Playoff Media Day in Charlotte, rookie driver Shane van Gisbergen spoke about the challenge of racing at World Wide Technology Raceway, a track he had never seen before arriving for the playoff weekend. Van Gisbergen explained that his preparation was different from most of his competitors. Instead of extensive simulator work, he focused on video analysis and using SMT data to study driver trends.

He admitted he had stepped away from sim racing for a while but invested time in observing the differences in technique, particularly in Gateway’s two very distinct corners. Speaking to NBC Sports editor Dustin Long, Shane van Gisbergen gave a direct account of how he prepared for the weekend.

"Yeah I haven't really done sim for a while so yeah just video mainly and SMT so probably watch more drivers than usual and there's a lot of technique and style differences at both ends especially the second corner you can use third or fourth gear and so yeah just trying to study trends and what works and what the good guys did and why but yeah it's gonna be it's a tough week coming to a pretty important race in a place I've never seen before today," Shane van Gisbergen said.

When qualifying wrapped up, Shane van Gisbergen secured 18th on the grid. For a driver tackling Gateway for the first time, it placed him ahead of playoff veterans Chase Elliott and Alex Bowman, who qualified 19th and 25th.