With a hat tip to New York Yankees great Yogi Berra, the Round of 8 NASCAR Cup Series playoff is getting late early.

Only three races are left in a 2025 season that has been filled with highs and lows, including a tearful Denny Hamlin after career win No. 60 at Las Vegas last Sunday.

That could be debated as either a high or low depending on one's view of the Joe Gibbs Racing racer, who is brash, opinionated and generally unapologetic behind the wheel of his No. 11 Camry and as the 23XI Racing co-owner with Michael Jordan.

What is not in question is that time is running out on the seven drivers not named Hamlin who are chasing a championship as the series shifts to Alabama and treacherous Talladega Superspeedway for Sunday's YellaWood 500.

The standings are pretty telling and not quite

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