Bristol elimination race: A look at what each driver needs to advance

BRISTOL, Tenn. — Saturday night’s Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway (7:30 p.m. ET on USA Network) will eliminate four drivers from title contention. 

Here’s is a look at the playoff standings, what it will take for each driver to advance and their results in the first two races of the opening round. The tiebreaker is best result in this round. 

1. Christopher Bell — Has clinched a spot in the second round. Reached the second round in last year’s playoffs before he was eliminated. Finished 5th at Darlington and 3rd at Kansas. 

2. William Byron (+48 to the cutline) — Needs to score eight points to guarantee advancement to the second round. Was eliminated in the first round in 2020, made it to the second round in 2021. Finished 8th at Darlington and 6th at Kansas. 

3. Denny Hamlin (+47 to the cutline)— Needs to score eight points to guarantee advancement to the second round. Has made it to the title race each of the past three years. Finished 2nd at Darlington and 2nd at Kansas. 

4. Joey Logano (+40 to the cutline)— Needs to score 16 points to guarantee advancement to the second round. Has made it to the title race every even-numbered year of the Cup playoffs: 2014, ’16, ’18 and ’20. Finished 4th at Darlington and 17th at Kansas. 

5. Ryan Blaney (+36 to the cutline)— Needs to score 20 points to guarantee advancement to the second round. Has been eliminated in the first round only once. That was in 2020. Finished 13th at Darlington and 9th at Kansas. 

6. Alex Bowman (+30 to the cutline)— Needs to score 26 points to guarantee advancement to the second round. Has made it to at least the second round in each of the past four seasons. Finished 10th at Darlington and 4th at Kansas. 

7. Chase Elliott (+28 to the cutline)— Needs