After a long and grueling grind of a year, the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season is over. Its champion, for the third time in his career, is Joey Logano. And it’s only fitting he came out on top this season in particular, as it was quite the curious ride.
Statistical prowess be damned, Logano made it all the way to Phoenix and ended up prevailing to earn the championship while the dominant drivers of the season, like Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson, fell by the wayside. In Bell’s case, he didn’t make the Championship 4 after a wall ride at Martinsville and an extensive review as to whether his spot in the Championship 4 would stand. It came just months after a similar decision by NASCAR was made on a much larger scale, as Austin Dillon was not permitted to have his win at Richmond count toward playoff eligibility due to rough driving on the last lap.
Meanwhile, 18 different drivers visited Victory Lane, from Kyle Larson’s six wins to Harrison Burton’s stunning upset to make the playoffs at Daytona in July. Three of the eight closest finishes in Cup Series history took place in the season, including the closest ever (Kyle Larson over Chris Buescher by 0.001 seconds) at Kansas in May and the closest three-wide finish ever (Daniel Suarez over Ryan Blaney by 0.003 and 0.007 over Kyle Busch) at Atlanta in February.
In all, these were some of the statistical top performers during the 2024 season:
- Most wins: Kyle Larson (6 — Las Vegas I, Kansas I, Sonoma, Brickyard 400, Bristol Night Race, Charlotte Roval)
- Most top fives: Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell (15)
- Most top 10s: Christopher Bell (23)
- Best average finish: Chase Elliott (11.7)
- Most laps led: Kyle Larson (1699)
- Most laps completed:
- Most poles: Kyle Larson (5 — Richmond I, Martinsville I, Texas, Iowa, Chicago)
- Rookie of the Year: Carson Hocevar
Here is a complete look at the full and final NASCAR Cup Series championship standings for 2024, including all drivers who declared for Cup points during the year:
