But even though the playoff format emphasizes and rewards winning at the right time above all else -- Joey Logano is living proof of that -- perhaps too little attention has been paid to the run that Christopher Bell is on as he tries to win his first championship.

Joey Logano’s win at Las Vegas returned him back into the NBC Sports NASCAR Power Rankings, but Christopher Bell remains No. 1 with three races left in the Cup season. Logano was one of two new drivers to this week’s top 10.

A win by any of the playoff drivers at Las Vegas on Sunday, or the next two weeks at Homestead-Miami Speedway or in Martinsville, Va., will earn an automatic berth in the finale.

Christopher Bell turned a lap at 185.344 mph in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing to take the top starting spot for Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Christopher Bell on the finish and whether Ryan Blaney was playing any defense for Joey Logano and what Blaney said about it.

Once overlooked, the Joe Gibbs Racing prodigy has turned the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series into his own chessboard, moving with precision and stealth toward the ultimate prize. Now, as the season heads into its most intense phase,