In a recent blog article which can be accessed right here, we discussed the chances of Ford performance drivers Matt Dibenedetto, Clint Bowyer, Ryan Blaney, and Joey Logano as they attempt to capture the elusive 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Championship.
This Sunday, the 2020 NASCAR Playoffs kick-off at Darlington Raceway with the running of the Cook Out Southern 500.
Without further ado, let’s take an in-depth look at the remaining Ford Performance 2020 NASCAR Playoff participants and analyze their chances of taking home the Cup this year.
Aric Almirola
As the driver of the number 10 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas racing, Aric Almirola has so far seen the most success of his 13-year Cup Series career.
Last year, Almirola finished 14th in the 2020 Playoff season standings. The year before that, he finished in 5th, so he is certainly no stranger to NASCAR postseason success.
This year, Almirola looks poised to make a solid 2020 Playoff run. So far this season, he has earned 14 top-10s, five top-5s, and three pole positions across 26 races.
Almirola has yet to taste victory lane in 2020, but his solid consistency throughout this past year is enough to make him a long-shot hopeful for title contention come November.
Aric Almirola currently holds the 12th position in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings.
Cole Custer
Cole Custer, current driver of the number 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, is the least-experienced driver on this list, seeing as how 2020 is his first full-time season in the Cup Series.
Nevertheless, Custer has already made quite the name for himself, having achieved six top-10s, two top-5s, and one victory this season, which came at Kentucky Speedway during this year’s running of the Quaker State 400.
Even still, fierce competition and a lack of top-level experience makes it unlikely that Custer will make it to the promised land by year’s end.
Cole Custer currently occupies the 11th position in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings.
Brad Keselowski
Brad Keselowki is the current driver of the flagship number 2 Ford Mustang for Team Penske, a seat he has occupied for nearly a decade, and a seat from which he won the NASCAR Cup Championship in 2012.
With Keselowski’s future at Team Penske in question, there is little doubt that “Bad Brad” has something to prove this postseason. So far this year, he has accumulated 19 top-10s, 9 top-5s, two pole awards, and three wins.
All-totalled, this makes him the second strongest driver on this list by way of statistics, with an average finishing position of 9.7. If the numbers are to be believed, he will be a serious force to be reckoned with throughout this Playoff circuit. This is especially true seeing as how one of Keselowski’s best tracks, Bristol Motor Speedway, will be hosting a Playoff race later this season.
If he can remain strong throughout the first three elimination rounds, there is an extremely high likelihood that we may see Brad hoist the Cup over his head in victory for the second time in his career.
Brad Keselowski currently holds the 3rd position in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings.
Kevin Harvick
Even with competition befitting of an entire NASCAR Hall of Fame Class, there is no denying that Kevin Harvick, driver of the number 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing, is the odds-on favorite to win the NASCAR Cup Series Championship this year.
After an incredibly impressive late-career burst which can be traced all the way back to his unceremonious exit from Richard Childress’s Chevrolet-powered racing family, Harvick is still the man to beat in 2020.
Since switching to Ford, Harvick has accumulated a whopping 25 race wins (nearly 50 percent of his career win total) and one NASCAR Cup Series title.
This year alone, Harvick has made it to victory lane a ridiculous SEVEN times over 26 races, with 21 top-10s, 17 top-5s, and three pole positions to boot.
There is little doubt that “Happy Harvick” is currently locked onto the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Championship like a heat-seeking missile. Anyone in his path had better be planning to bring multiple career performances to the track if they wish to have any hope of knocking Harvick off course by this year’s championship race at Phoenix.
Kevin Harvick is the current leader of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Playoff standings.
Part of what makes Harvick and his fellow Ford NASCAR drivers so successful is the unbridled performance capability and power of the incomparable 2020 Ford Mustang.
If you want to feel like a racing champion behind the wheel of this incredible muscle car, then head to Dunphy Ford today for a test drive. We look forward to seeing you.
