You could excuse any driver in the NASCAR Cup Series who isn't Kyle Larson for feeling a little depressed this week.
Larson led 221 of the 267 laps and easily won the race at the Kansas Speedway on Sunday, destroying the rest of the field. Larson tied Christopher Bell for the top spot in that column with his third victory of the year, and he now leads the point standings by 35.
As the regular season approaches the midway point, some people are sitting anxiously in Larson's growing shadow, while everyone else is staring up at him.
Due to the all-star race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, teams take a break from point/playoff races. The Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte on May 25 marks the season's halfway point. With summer approaching, many drivers have reasons to be anxious.
With race victories, seven drivers have advanced to the playoffs: Josh Berry, Denny Hamlin, Austin Cindric, Bell, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Larson, and Joey Logano. In the upcoming months, nine playoff spots will need to be decided.
Over the following 14 races, there should be significant movement both above and slightly below the 16th (cutoff) place. Naturally, many drivers who have yet to win will probably go to victory lane during that time, inputting their names in the playoff chart and confusing the list of drivers who are waiting.
There are several notable names among the drivers that are presently vying for the last few playoff slots, as they are ranked 14th through 27th on the playoff standings.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who is now in 16th and the final playoff berth, is 14 points ahead of Kyle Busch, who is currently in 18th place. Despite his strong performances this year, Ryan Preece is still 7 points behind Stenhouse and one slot behind the cutline as he continues to attempt to establish himself at the highest level of the sport.
Carson Hocevar is ranked 20th and has garnered some media attention this year, both positively and negatively. Daniel Suarez is ranked 27th, while Ty Gibbs is ranked 26th.
Brad Keselowski, a previous champion, is in 33rd place and 110 points behind the magic line as the playoff standings slide further.
Other drivers have been kept out of the victory parade since Bell and Larson have won half of the season's races thus far. Chase Elliott, Tyler Reddick, Ryan Blaney, Ross Chastain, Alex Bowman, Keselowski, and Busch are notable for having goose eggs 12 races in.
Elliott's situation is still a little odd. The majority of the season has seen pace from his Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets, and he is the only Cup driver to finish in the top 20 in all 12 races. However, gremlins come to visit. He finished 15th on Sunday in Kansas after losing 11 spots in the running order due to tire-changing issues in the pits, despite leading 29 laps.
Elliott is the top driver without a victory, yet he is fourth in points and ninth in the playoff standings. It had been 39 races since he last went to victory lane.