Chase Elliott only looking forward in NASCAR's playoff push

Chase Elliott is ninth in the standings heading into Sunday's race at Kansas Speedway. He is 14 points ahead of Austin Cindric, the first driver below the cut line. Erik Jones is not in NASCAR's playoffs. He won the 2018 race to advance to the round of eight. Elliott was second at the intermediate track last fall. Kevin Harvick's car caught fire at Darlington. It was the result of a crash involving Chase Briscoe and Elliott. The accident led to more discussion about Next Gen cars. They are safer than the ones used before. There is no automatic berth to next round with a win.

Kyle Larson finished 12th at Darlington after engine problems. He is now 21 points behind playoff leader Joey Logano. He believes the playoffs are very important.

The weather forecast for the fall race at Kansas is not good. It is expected to be cool and rainy. Ross Chastain is eighth in the playoff standings. He hopes the weather stays nice and warm until Monday.

Denny Hamlin is the 5-to-1 favorite to win at Kansas. Kyle Busch is 6-2, Martin Truex Jr. is 7-5 and Christopher Bell's win in New Hampshire is only Toyota win by Toyota in the last 13 races.