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Sprint Cup Chase 2015: NASCAR Standings and Schedule After Coca-Cola 600
May 25, 2015
Carl Edwards' outlook for the Sprint Cup Chase is a heck of a lot better after Sunday night. The 35-year-old won the Coca-Cola 600, and as a result, he ensured passage to the Challenger Round with his first checkered flag of the 2015 season.
Without the win, Edwards would be sitting outside of the top 16. Instead, he's well inside the safety zone. You can see the full Sprint Cup standings below, courtesy of ESPN.com:
| Sprint Cup Chase Standings | |||
| Position | Driver | Points | Wins |
| 1 | Jimmie Johnson | 393 | 3 |
| 2 | Kevin Harvick | 473 | 2 |
| 3 | Joey Logano | 407 | 1 |
| 4 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 401 | 1 |
| 5 | Brad Keselowski | 381 | 1 |
| 6 | Matt Kenseth | 372 | 1 |
| 7 | Kurt Busch | 327 | 1 |
| 8 | Denny Hamlin | 321 | 1 |
| 9 | Carl Edwards | 312 | 1 |
| 10 | Martin Truex Jr. | 432 | 0 |
| 11 | Jamie McMurray | 353 | 0 |
| 12 | Jeff Gordon | 346 | 0 |
| 13 | Kasey Kahne | 345 | 0 |
| 14 | Ryan Newman | 343 | 0 |
| 15 | Aric Almirola | 339 | 0 |
| 16 | Paul Menard | 336 | 0 |
| Source: ESPN.com | |||
Here's a look at the rest of the Sprint Cup schedule following Sunday's race, per NASCAR.com:
| Sprint Cup Schedule—Post-Coca-Cola 600 | |||
| Race | Track | Date | Time |
| FedEx 400 Benefiting Autism Speaks | Dover International Speedway | Sunday, May 31 | 1 p.m. ET |
| Axalta 'We Paint Winners' 400 | Pocono Raceway | Sunday, June 7 | 1 p.m. ET |
| Quicken Loans 400 | Michigan International Speedway | Sunday, June 14 | 1 p.m. ET |
| Toyota-Save Mart 350 | Sonoma Raceway | Sunday, June 28 | 3 p.m. ET |
| Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola | Daytona International Speedway | Sunday, July 5 | 7:45 p.m. ET |
| Quaker State 400 Presented by Advance Auto Parts | Kentucky Speedway | Saturday, July 11 | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| NASCAR Sprint Cup July New Hampshire Race | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | Sunday, July 19 | 1:30 p.m. ET |
| Crown Royal Presents the 'Your Hero's Name Here' 400 at the Brickyard | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Sunday, July 26 | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| Pennsylvania 400 | Pocono Raceway | Sunday, Aug. 2 | 1:30 p.m. ET |
| Cheez-It 355 | Watkins Glen International | Sunday, Aug. 9 | 2 p.m. ET |
| Pure Michigan 400 | Michigan International Speedway | Sunday, Aug. 16 | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| IRWIN Tools Night Race | Bristol Motor Speedway | Saturday, Aug. 22 | 7:30 p.m. ET |
| Bojangles' Southern 500 | Darlington Raceway | Sunday, Sept. 6 | 7 p.m. ET |
| Federated Auto Parts 400 | Richmond International Raceway | Saturday, Sept. 12 | 7:30 p.m. |
| Challenger Round | |||
| MyAFibStory.com 400 | Chicagoland Speedway | Sunday, Sept. 20 | 3 p.m. ET |
| Sylvania 300 | New Hampshire Motor Speedway | Sunday, Sept. 27 | 2 p.m. ET |
| AAA 400 | Dover International Speedway | Sunday, Oct. 4 | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Contender Round | |||
| Bank of America 500 | Charlotte Motor Speedway | Saturday, Oct. 10 | 7 p.m. ET |
| Hollywood Casino 400 | Kansas Speedway | Sunday, Oct. 18 | 2:15 p.m. ET |
| Alabama 500 | Talladega Superspeedway | Sunday, Oct. 25 | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Eliminator Round | |||
| Goody's FAST PAIN RELIEF 500 | Martinsville Speedway | Sunday, Nov. 1 | 1:15 p.m. |
| AAA Texas 500 | Texas Motor Speedway | Sunday, Nov. 8 | 2 p.m. ET |
| Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 | Phoenix International Raceway | Sunday, Nov. 15 | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| Championship Round | |||
| Ford EcoBoost 400 | Homestead-Miami Speedway | Sunday, Nov. 22 | 3 p.m. ET |
| Source: NASCAR.com | |||
Races determined largely by fuel mileage and consumption, such as the Coca-Cola 600, definitely aren't for most NASCAR fans.
Edwards may not have had the best car on the night, but crew chief Darian Grubb timed the last pit stop perfectly. He ensured Edwards had just enough left in the tank to close out the win.
"That's what made the race for us," Edwards said of Grubb's gambit, per Fox Sports' Jared Turner. "That's what he does—he takes a mediocre day like that and he puts us in a good position."
Grubb was unapologetic with the nature of his team's victory, per Popular Speed:
At the end of the day, few will remember that Edwards somewhat lucked into the win. He prevailed within the rules of the sport, and that's all that matters.
Ask Martin Truex Jr. if he'd settle for a fuel-mileage win.
The 34-year-old picked up yet another top-10 finish, his 11th in 12 Sprint Cup races. Truex looked primed to win with a little under 40 laps to go, but he had to make one last pit stop. That ended up costing him a potential victory, and he settled for fifth.
Truex's frustration with the result was evident in his post-race comments, per USA Today's Jeff Gluck:
Fellow driver Brad Keselowski also felt the finale to the Coca-Cola 600 was somewhat unjust in terms of the most deserving driver:
Kevin Harvick is the only driver with more points than Truex, but Harvick has the security that comes with winning a Sprint Cup race.
If the No. 78 keeps up this pace, then he should finish in the top 16. But it seems improbable that he'll continue racking up top-10 finish after top-10 finish. He'll likely fall back to earth at some point, and when he does, he might start slipping in the standings.
It would be a shame if Truex is unable to truly capitalize on his great start to the 2015 season with a trip to Victory Lane.
At least he's still in the top 16, which can't be said of Clint Bowyer, Danica Patrick and Greg Biffle. Those drivers are the first three out at the moment, and the gap between them and the Chase is only increasing, especially after Edwards leapfrogged the line.
Bowyer is 40 points behind Paul Menard, while Patrick and Biffle are 44 and 52 points back, respectively.
Obviously, it's way too early to begin panicking. The Challenger Round doesn't kick off until September, and Edwards is proof positive that a driver's fortunes can change radically in the space of one race.
All it takes is a confluence of events to fall in Bowyer's, Patrick's or Biffle's favor.