It was almost a Cinderella story at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday as Matt DiBenedetto was less than 10 laps away from the first win in his Cup Series career, but it just wasn't meant to be.
Denny Hamlin stayed hot and came back from an early bump with Jimmie Johnson to earn his fourth win of the season and his fifth straight finish inside the top three.
DiBenedetto got terrible news this week as it was announced he would not be returning to Leavine Family Racing and he was so close to getting just a taste of redemption at the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race, but he came up just a little shot.
But his second-place finish was his fourth top-10 finish in his last eight races and could be a sign of good things to come even if he has to do it in another ride.
Also those drivers on the playoff bubble let go a collective sigh of relief because had DiBenedetto won, guys like Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer and Daniel Suarez would see another playoff spot evaporate.
As it is though they can breathe easier as they still have a chance to make it into the playoffs even without a win.
Here are your updated point standings.
NASCAR points standings 2019
Below are the updated standings following the Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race. Winners are in bold and are guaranteed a playoff spot.
| Rank | Driver | Wins | Points |
| No. 1 | Kyle Busch | 4 | 932 |
| No. 2 | Joey Logano | 2 | 893 |
| No. 3 | Denny Hamlin | 4 | 855 |
| No. 4 | Martin Truex Jr. | 4 | 838 |
| No. 5 | Kevin Harvick | 4 | 830 |
| No. 6 | Brad Keselowski | 3 | 794 |
| No. 7 | Chase Elliott | 2 | 757 |
| No. 8 | Kurt Busch | 1 | 741 |
| No. 9 | Ryan Blaney | 0 | 686 |
| No. 10 | Alex Bowman | 1 | 681 |
| No. 11 | Kyle Larson | 0 | 665 |
| No. 12 | William Byron | 0 | 664 |
| No. 13 | Aric Almirola | 0 | 654 |
| No. 14 | Erik Jones | 0 | 646 |
| No. 15 | Ryan Newman | 0 | 603 |
| No. 16 | Daniel Suarez | 0 | 591 |
| No. 17 | Clint Bowyer | 0 | 589 |
| No. 18 | Jimmie Johnson | 0 | 565 |
| No. 19 | Paul Menard | 0 | 520 |
| No. 20 | Chris Buescher | 0 | 506 |
| No. 21 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 0 | 479 |
| No. 22 | Matt DiBenedetto | 0 | 438 |
| No. 23 | Austin Dillon | 0 | 427 |
| No. 24 | Ty Dillon | 0 | 400 |
| No. 25 | Daniel Hemric | 0 | 369 |
| No. 26 | Ryan Preece | 0 | 318 |
| No. 27 | Bubba Wallace | 0 | 304 |
| No. 28 | Michael McDowell | 0 | 303 |
| No. 29 | Corey Lajoie | 0 | 279 |
| No. 30 | David Ragan | 0 | 257 |
| No. 31 | Matt Tifft | 0 | 253 |
| No. 32 | Quin Houff | 0 | 71 |
| No. 33 | Reed Sorenson | 0 | 68 |
| No. 34 | J.J. Yeley | 0 | 38 |
| No. 35 | Jamie McMurray | 0 | 19 |
| No. 36 | Austin Theriault | 0 | 10 |
| No. 37 | Andy Seuss | 0 | 9 |
| No. 38 | Stanton Barrett | 0 | 2 |
| No. 39 | Casey Mears | 0 | 1 |
Who’s on the Cup Series playoff bubble?
Clint Bowyer had a great finish Saturday earning his 10th top 10 of the year, but it was what happened in the earlier stages that cost him.
Coming into the night race Daniel Suarez sat behind Bowyer in the standings and finished behind Bowyer in the night race, albeit by just one spot.
But by virtue of a second-place finish in the second stage, Suarez jumped Bowyer in the standings and now sits in the 16th spot in the standings, two points up on Bowyer.
Every spot counts and there are just two races left for Bowyer to get back into the playoff hunt.
How are NASCAR driver points awarded per race?
Each finishing spot in the field earns driver points with the maximum being 40 for a win. These points accrue over the season as do owner points.
Drivers can also earn points based off of their finishes in the first two stages of the race. The driver who finishes first earns 10 points, the man who finishes in second earns nine and so on and so forth, points earned in those stages are then added to the points earned at the finish of a race.
The points are added up over all of the races and there is a reset after the regular-season finale in the 26th race. Drivers who have earned wins or finish in the top 16 of the Cup Series standings then move on to the playoffs.
Drivers accumulate playoff points earning five bonus points for a win and one for a stage win. Those points are added to a driver's total at the start of the playoffs.
For a more in-depth look at how scoring works, click here.