By Aaron Bearden, Motorsports Editor

Following each regular season 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. 

XFINITY Series

Track: Darlington Raceway

Event: VFW Sport Clips Help A Hero 200

Race Winner: Denny Hamlin

Stage Winner(s): Kevin Harvick (Won Both Stages)

Who Won Big

• Elliott Sadler: Another winless week for Sadler, but the veteran tallied the most stage points of any series regular before late issues relegated him to 33rd. Those stage points allowed Sadler to keep his healthy advantage as the points leader as he marches toward the regular season title.
• Brendan Gaughan: It wasn’t hist prettiest run, but Gaughan’s 13th-place showing in his own throwback No. 62 NAPA Auto Parts Chevrolet was enough to increase his gap over Dakota Armstrong for the final playoff spot to 20 points with two races remaining.

 Who Hurt Their Odds:

• Dakoda Armstrong: His No. 28 Toyota looked sharp with a Cale Yarborough throwback, but Armstrong’s 29th-place run was a killer. The Hoosier will need a twist in fortune over the last two races of the regular season in order to have any hopes of making the playoffs.
• Michael Annett: With Gaughan and Armstrong both struggling, Annett had an opportunity to push himself out of harm’s way for a playoff spot. Instead the JR Motorsports driver suffered damage in a Stage 2 crash and struggled en-route to a 17th-place run.

Playoff Standings: 

*Technically ineligible due to missed races. Would require a waiver to make the playoffs.

Playoff Points

Rank	Driver	Playoff Points
1	William Byron	17
2	Justin Allgaier	8
3 (tie)	Ryan Preece	6
3 (tie)	Sam Hornish Jr.	6
5 (tie)	Ryan Reed	5
5 (tie)	Elliott Sadler	5
5 (tie)	Jeremy Clements	5
8 (tie)	Daniel Hemric	3
7	Blake Koch	2
8 (tie)	Darrell Wallace, Jr.	1
8 (tie)	Brendan Gaughan	1
8 (tie)	James Davison	1

Stage Points

Darlington Results

Season Totals

Camping World Truck Series

Track: Canadian Tire Motorsport Park

Event: Chevrolet Silverado 250

Race Winner: Austin Cindric

Stage Winner(s): Austin Cindric, Ryan Truex

Who Won Big

• Austin Cindric: He might not have made any friends in the process – particularly in the case of Kaz Grala – but Cindric’s bump-and-run on the last lap was enough to cap off his summer surge with a playoff-clinching win. Suddenly Brad Keselowski Racing has both of their teams guaranteed into the postseason in the company’s final planned year.
• Ryan Truex: Bad news: Cindric’s triumph pushed Truex out of the current playoff field. Good news: Truex’s stage win and top-10 result kept him within seven points of Ben Rhodes for the final position with one race remaining before the playoffs.

 Who Hurt Their Odds:

• Noah Gragson: He’s been close a few times this season, but Canada seemed like Gragson’s best bet at a playoff-clinching win. The Kyle Busch Motorsports rookie fell just short, coming home in second behind Cindric. He’ll get one last shot at a season-altering win at Chicagoland.
• Grant Enfinger: Sunday’s unusually quiet day for Enfinger couldn’t have come at a worse time. The Alabaman finds himself 31 points out of the playoffs with one race remaining, meaning it’ll likely take a second-career Truck Series victory for Enfinger to make his playoff debut.
• Kaz Grala: There was little Grala could do about the aggressive use of the front bumper that eliminated him from winning contention on Sunday, but the loss still impacted his playoff pursuit. Grala was due for five additional playoff points and could have kept Cindric out of the postseason with a win.
• Ben Rhodes: It was a quiet day for Rhodes, albeit not a terrible one. But the Louisville, Kentucky native’s 10th-place run put him at risk of playoff elimination after Cindric’s win and Truex’s strong day.

Playoff Standings: 

*Technically ineligible due to missed races. Would require a waiver to make the playoffs.

Playoff Points

Stage Points

Canada Results

Season Totals