Hendrick Motorsports facing early playoff EXIT as star suffers St Louis nightmare

Another NASCAR Cup Series playoff race is in the books following Sunday afternoon's action at World Wide Technology Raceway.

After an impressive late drive, Denny Hamlin was the driver to emerge victorious in St Louis, beating teammate Chase Briscoe in second to lock yet another Joe Gibbs Racing car into the Round of 12 after the No. 19's victory at Darlington last weekend.

It wasn't such a successful race for others, however, including Alex Bowman in the No. 48. Already facing huge pressure heading into the postseason due to his lack of playoff points, Bowman finished a dismal 31st last time out at Darlington, which left him equal bottom of the playoff standings along with Josh Berry.

The Hendrick Motorsports star needed a big performance in St Louis, but could only manage 26th place come the black and white checkered flag on Sunday, leaving him 35 points below the cutoff line and facing an early playoff exit ahead of Bristol's elimination race (September 13).

Berry and the No. 21 crew at Wood Brothers Racing find themselves in an even more precarious position, 45 points below the cutoff line after another disastrous playoff outing.

Having been caught up in a lap one wreck at Darlington, Berry was involved in another incident on lap 37 in St Louis on Sunday, suffering race-ending damage and a major playoff blow as a result.

Of course, both drivers can bail themselves out with a win at Bristol Motor Speedway, but here's how the standings look after two of the three Round of 16 races.

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NASCAR Cup Series playoff standings after St Louis (Gateway)

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