By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor
Following each points race, Kickin’ the Tires takes a deep look at the current playoff grids for both the NASCAR XFINITY Series and Camping World Truck Series, evaluating the postseason picture for NASCAR’s second and third tours.
Camping World Truck Series
Track: Martinsville Speedway
Event: Texas Roadhouse 200
Race Winner: Noah Gragson
Stage Winner(s): Matt Crafton, Johnny Sauter
Who Won Big
- Matt Crafton: He had a controversial spin of Christopher Bell and couldn’t hold off Noah Gragson for the win, but Crafton still won a stage and tallied a runner-up result to cap off a solid points day in Martinsville. Now the two-time champ sits 30 points clear of Austin Cindric for a spot in the season finale.
- Johnny Sauter: Sauter’s day was similar to Crafton’s, minus the spin. The defending Truck Series champ scored a stage win and finished third to leave Martinsville a solid 42 points clean of the Championship 4 cutoff.
Who Hurt Their Odds:
- Austin Cindric: It wasn’t a bad day for Cindric in Virginia. He snagged four stage points and finished 10th. But the Brad Keselowski Racing rookie lost ground on the four competitors above him after scoring fewer stage points and overall points. When only six drivers are running for four spots, the margin for error is low.
- John Hunter Nemechek: Man, what brutal luck. A brake failure led to a massive crash for the NEMCO Motorsports star in Martinsville. Now he heads to the final two races of the Round of 6 in need of a victory or issues for his fellow championship competitors to keep his title hopes alive.
Playoff Standings:
| Rank | Driver | Wins in Round | Points | Points Ahead/Behind Cutoff |
| 1 | Christopher Bell | 1 | 3083 | 45 |
| 2 | Johnny Sauter | 0 | 3080 | 42 |
| 3 | Matt Crafton | 0 | 3068 | 30 |
| 4 | Ben Rhodes | 1 | 3049 | 11 |
| Championship 4 Cutoff | ||||
| 5 | Austin Cindric | 0 | 3038 | -11 |
| 6 | John Hunter Nemechek | 0 | 3021 | -28 |
Playoff Points
| Total Playoff Points | ||
| Rank | Driver | Playoff Points |
| 1 | Christopher Bell | 47 |
| 2 | Johnny Sauter | 26 |
| 3 | Matt Crafton | 15 |
| 4 | John Hunter Nemechek | 14 |
| 5 | Ben Rhodes | 13 |
| 6 | Austin Cindric | 7 |
| Playoff Points Earned On-Track | ||
| Rank | Driver | Playoff Points |
| 1 | Christopher Bell | 32 |
| 2 | Johnny Sauter | 16 |
| 3 | John Hunter Nemechek | 11 |
| 4 | Matt Crafton | 8 |
| 5 | Ben Rhodes | 7 |
| 6 (tie) | Austin Cindric | 6 |
| 6 (tie) | Noah Gragson | 6 |
| 8 | Kaz Grala | 5 |
| 9 | Ryan Truex | 3 |
| 10 | Chase Briscoe | 2 |
| 11 | Stewart Friesen | 1 |
Stage Points
Martinsville Results
| Stage 1 | Stage 2 | ||||
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Pos. | Driver | Points |
| 1 | Matt Crafton | 10 (+1 Playoff Point) | 1 | Johnny Sauter | 10 (+1 Playoff Point) |
| 2 | Johnny Sauter | 9 | 2 | Matt Crafton | 9 |
| 3 | Ben Rhodes | 8 | 3 | Noah Gragson | 8 |
| 4 | Ryan Truex | 7 | 4 | Christopher Bell | 7 |
| 5 | Noah Gragson | 6 | 5 | Chase Briscoe | 6 |
| 6 | Kaz Grala | 5 | 6 | Harrison Burton | 5 |
| 7 | Austin Cindric | 4 | 7 | Todd Gilliland | 4 |
| 8 | Mason Diaz | 3 | 8 | Justin Haley | 3 |
| 9 | Chase Briscoe | 2 | 9 | Stewart Friesen | 2 |
| 10 | Harrison Burton | 1 | 10 | Cale Gale | 1 |
Playoff Totals
| NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Playoff Stage Points | ||||
| Driver | Playoff Stage Points | This Round (Round of 6) | Round of 8 | Playoff Stage Wins |
| Johnny Sauter | 57 | 19 | 38 | 3 |
| Matt Crafton | 56 | 19 | 37 | 1 |
| Christopher Bell | 52 | 7 | 45 | 2 |
| Ben Rhodes | 42 | 8 | 34 | 1 |
| Austin Cindric | 24 | 4 | 20 | 0 |
| Chase Briscoe (e) | 23 | 8 | 15 | 1 |
| John Hunter Nemechek | 16 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| Kaz Grala (e) | 15 | 5 | 10 | 0 |
(e)=Eliminated from playoff contention
Season Totals
| Rank | Driver | Stage Points | Stage Wins |
| 1 | Christopher Bell | 230 | 7 |
| 2 | Johnny Sauter | 223 | 8 |
| 3 | Matt Crafton | 220 | 3 |
| 4 | Chase Briscoe | 185 | 1 |
| 5 | Ben Rhodes | 182 | 1 |
| 6 | Ryan Truex | 162 | 3 |
| 7 | John Hunter Nemechek | 137 | 1 |
| 8 | Noah Gragson | 104 | 1 |
| 9 | Austin Cindric | 100 | 1 |
| 10 | Grant Enfinger | 84 | 0 |
| 11 | Justin Haley | 73 | 0 |
| 12 | Kaz Grala | 62 | 0 |
| 13 | Stewart Friesen | 44 | 1 |
| 14 | Timothy Peters | 37 | 0 |
| 15 | Todd Gilliland | 27 | 0 |
| 16 | Myatt Snider | 25 | 0 |
| 17 | Jessie Little | 16 | 0 |
| 18 | Harrison Burton | 14 | 0 |
| 19 (tie) | Austin Wayne Self | 6 | 0 |
| 19 (tie) | Parker Kligerman | 6 | 0 |
| 19 (tie) | Cody Coughlin | 6 | 0 |
| 22 (tie) | Brett Moffitt | 5 | 0 |
| 22 (tie) | Justin Shipley | 5 | 0 |
| 24 (tie) | Joe Nemechek | 4 | 0 |
| 24 (tie) | Korbin Forrister | 4 | 0 |
| 24 (tie) | Jason Hathaway | 4 | 0 |
| 27 (tie) | Austin Hill | 3 | 0 |
| 27 (tie) | Rico Abreu | 3 | 0 |
| 27 (tie) | Victor Gonzales Jr. | 3 | 0 |
| 27 (tie) | Mason Diaz | 3 | 0 |
| 31 | Regan Smith | 2 | 0 |
| 32 (tie) | T.J. Bell | 1 | 0 |
| 32 (tie) | Cale Gale | 1 | 0 |
Pay backs a Bitch Nemechek wrecked Cole Custer put him into fence karma is still well and good