Winners and losers from the 2023 NASCAR Playoffs elimination race at Martinsville Speedway

The conclusion of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs elimination race at Martinsville Speedway has set a precedent for the sport going into next weekend. With the title decider at Phoenix Raceway set to be contested between the Final 4 qualifying drivers, "The Paperclip" gave fans a taste of the action as some drivers rounded out their championship hopes. In contrast, qualifying drivers look ahead to next weekend.

Team Penske's Ryan Blaney managed to make his way into the championship conversation with his first-ever appearance in the Final 4. The #12 Ford Mustang driver has been in the Round of 8 on four different occasions before and has not been able to advance until this season.

The Xfinity 500 saw NASCAR Cup Series drivers race with enough respect on track to not cause chaos, unlike Saturday's Xfinity Series race at the same 0.5-mile-long track.

The racing was so clean that the 500-lap-long race set a record for the most number of laps under a green flag run to a finish at Martinsville Speedway. A total of 168 laps of uninterrupted green flag racing broke the record at the short track set 27 years ago in 1996.

With the 2023 season of the highest echelon of stock car racing coming to an end next Sunday, it remains to be seen who finds himself on the top of the NASCAR table next weekend.

Winners from the NASCAR Playoffs elimination race at Martinsville

Ryan Blaney

The undisputed winner in the grandest sense of the term would have to be Team Penske's Ryan Blaney. After finding himself in the 2023 playoffs after a somewhat lucky win during the regular season at Talladega, the 29-year-old and his team stepped up in the final round of the playoffs just as four drivers were set to advance for a shot at the title.

The #12 Ford Mustang driver ultimately made his first appearance in the Final 4 at Martinsville Speedway by managing to visit the victory lane at "The Paper Clip".

William Byron

Despite struggling from an ill-handling car, William Byron was able to advance into the final round of the 2023 NASCAR playoffs on the basis of points he collected over the season. With a tally of six wins, the most for any driver this year, Byron sealed his appearance in the Final 4 despite finishing in P13 during the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville.

Aric Almirola

The Stewart-Haas Racing driver came extremely close to winning a NASCAR Cup Series race just as he announced his departure from his current team in the sport. Managing to cross the checkered flag in P2, Almirola's future in the sport also remains a mystery, with a part-time Cup Series season most likely his way forward.

Losers from the NASCAR Playoffs elimination race at Martinsville

Denny Hamlin

Despite winning the first stage, finishing P2 in the second one, and rounding off the 500-lap-long race in P3, Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin could not overcome the points deficit from last weekend.

After having been put in a must-win situation essentially by a power-steering failure in Miami, Hamlin failed to score any points. The #11 Toyota driver's recovery drive at Martinsville did not seem to be enough come the end of the race.

Martin Truex Jr.

Managing to clinch pole position on Saturday for the final Round of 8 race, Martin Truex Jr.'s playoff hopes never kicked off despite him being a dominant force during the regular season. The 2023 NASCAR regular season champion's woeful run finally came to an end at Martinsville Speedway.

Tyler Reddick

Another Toyota-manufactured car expected to do well at the 0.5-mile-long short track was 23XI Racing's Tyler Reddick. The #45 Camry TRD driver kicked off his weekend on the wrong foot with a spin during qualifying, eventually burying him in the mid-to-rear pack.

He ultimately finished in P26, putting an end to his playoffs challenge as well.