NASCAR at Martinsville 2018 Results: Joey Logano Edges Martin Truex Jr. for Win

Joey Logano secured a place in the championship round of the Monster Energy Cup playoffs with a win Sunday in the First Data 500 at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia.

Logano bumped Martin Truex Jr. to get ahead of the No. 78 car on the final lap to earn the checkered flag.

Logano bumped Truex to set up a pass on the inside. The two cars fishtailed slightly after making additional contact, and Logano maintained control long enough to cross the finish line first. Denny Hamlin sneaked in to take second away from Truex.

Here's a look at the top 10 finishers, with the full leaderboard available on NASCAR's official site. Logano led the most laps (309) of any driver, with Kyle Busch leading the second-most laps (100).

First Data 500 Leaderboard

1. Joey Logano

2. Denny Hamlin

3. Martin Truex Jr.

4. Kyle Busch

5. Brad Keselowski

6. Kurt Busch

7. Chase Elliott

8. Ryan Newman

9. Daniel Suarez

10. Kevin Harvick

Given the stakes of the race, many thought Logano was within his right to do what it took to win.

Not surprisingly, Truex was less charitable.

Logano first had to battle teammate Brad Keselowski to remain in first place in the final stretch of Sunday's race. Keselowski is already eliminated from the playoffs, but he didn't take it easy on his fellow Team Penske driver in search of a fourth win.

Truex eventually overtook Keselowski for second to set up a breathless head-to-head chess match with Logano.

In retrospect, Truex may regret not being more aggressive with Logano. Truex didn't go out of his way to make contact with the No. 22 car as he attempted to climb into first. He patiently waited for his opening and capitalized when Logano left enough room on the inside.

As others argued, however, Logano didn't necessarily go over the line with his final pass on Truex. He made just enough contact with Truex to move into the top spot without taking Truex out of the race completely.

Still, Truex saw his fortunes change drastically in a matter of moments. He went from booking his ticket into the Championship 4 to sitting third in the playoff standings. Twenty-five points separate him from Kurt Busch in fifth, per ESPN.com.

Monster Energy Cup Playoff Standings

1. Joey Logano* (4,074 points)

2. Kyle Busch (4,104 points)

3. Martin Truex Jr. (4,083 points)

4. Kevin Harvick (4,083 points)

5. Kurt Busch (4,058 points)

6. Chase Elliott (4,052 points)

7. Clint Bowyer (4,041 points)

8. Aric Almirola (4,033 points)

*denotes drivers who have qualified for the Championship 4

Truex at least had a better day than Clint Bowyer, who was the lowest finisher among the eight playoff drivers. Bowyer bumped into Jimmie Johnson late in the race and fell a lap behind as he got turned around.

A 21st-place result doesn't rule Bowyer out of the Championship 4 because one win is all it takes to get there. But Bowyer and eighth-place Aric Almirola have a lot of work to do over the next two weeks. A 50-plus-point gap is a big gap to close in the space of two races.

The Monster Energy Cup heads to Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500 on Nov. 4 before the Can-Am 500 at ISM Raceway on Nov. 11. The season culminates with the Ford EcoBoost 400 on Nov. 18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.