The driver who won Saturday night's NASCAR Cup Series playoff race made good on a confident Babe Ruth-like prediction earlier this week when he said he expected to dominate and win the Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway.
Dominate, Brad Keslowski did. After leading a race-best 192 of the 400 laps at the three-quarter mile track, he scored an impressive 2.568-second victory over Martin Truex Jr. to guarantee his position in the next round of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs. It’s Keselowski’s fourth win of the season in the No. 2 Team Penske Ford and 34th career victory.
"I'm really pumped. I don’t want to look too far ahead. The next round is going to be really difficult, but still, I’m really pumped about this performance and the way we’ve run on short tracks," Keselowski said. "If we can get to [the championship race at] Phoenix, we’re going to be really good."
MORE: Richmond playoff race highlights
Below is more information about the race, from Keselowski's perspective to the updated playoff standings:
Who won the NASCAR race yesterday?
Brad Keselowski was clearly the class of the field, leading nearly four times as many laps as any other driver.
"It was a great race for us and the 2 team," 2012 series champion Keselowski said, noting he drove the same car Saturday as he used to win at New Hampshire earlier this summer. "I wanted to do a really cool burnout with it, but I want this car for Phoenix."
Keselowski’s Team Penske teammate Joey Logano was third, followed by Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott. Kyle Busch finished sixth, followed by championship points leader Kevin Harvick. Aric Almirola, Alex Bowman and Clint Bowyer rounded out a top 10 sweep of current playoff-eligible drivers. Although not a victory for the reigning series champion Busch, his top-10 finish was an achievement considering he started last in the field after failing prerace inspection twice.
Finishing order for playoff contenders
Truex kept up his consistent pace. His third-place run was his ninth top-five finish in the last 10 races.
Dillon, meanwhile, has positioned himself for a much better playoff run than many may have anticipated. He now has a second top-five heading into Bristol Motor Speedway next week for the final race in the opening stage of the playoffs.
"This race team is on fire right now and showing up when it matters," he said.
| Pos. | Driver |
| 1 | Brad Keselowski |
| 2 | Martin Truex Jr. |
| 3 | Joey Logano |
| 4 | William Byron |
| 5 | Chase Elliott |
| 6 | Kyle Busch |
| 7 | Kevin Harvick |
| 8 | Aric Almirola |
| 9 | Alex Bowman |
| 10 | Clint Bowyer |
| 12 | Denny Hamlin |
| 13 | Kurt Busch |
| 14 | Cole Custer |
| 17 | Matt DiBenedetto |
| 19 | Ryan Blaney |
| 21 | William Byron |
Updated 2020 NASCAR playoff point standings
Denny Hamlin earned enough points to secure a spot in the next round of the playoffs despite a 12th-place finish. He led 45 laps and won Stage 1, but he was called for speeding on pit road and had to play catch-up the rest of the night after serving the penalty.
Hamlin joins Keselowski and Kevin Harvick, who won the first playoff race at Darlington, in the Round of 12. The playoff field will be trimmed from 16 drivers to 12 following the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol on Sept. 19.
Here's how every driver still in contention looks:
| Rank | Driver | Points to cutoff |
| 1 | Kevin Harvick | Clinched |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Clinched |
| 3 | Denny Hamlin | Clinched |
| 4 | Joey Logano | +51 |
| 5 | Martin Truex Jr. | +38 |
| 6 | Austin Dillon | +36 |
| 7 | Chase Elliott | +28 |
| 8 | Alex Bowman | +27 |
| 9 | Kyle Busch | +18 |
| 10 | Aric Almirola | +7 |
| 11 | Kurt Busch | +7 |
| 12 | Clint Bowyer | +3 |
| -- | -- | -- |
| 13 | William Byron | -3 |
| 14 | Cole Custer | -8 |
| 15 | Matt DiBenedetto | -25 |
| 16 | Ryan Blaney | -27 |
Holly Cain writes for the NASCAR Wire Service.
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