NASCAR raised the stakes of regular-season performance this year, awarding playoff bonus points to drivers who lead each stage of each race, and to drivers at the top of the regular-season final standings. Those points follow a driver through the playoffs until the final race, when none of the final four starts with an advantage.

No matter how you slice it, Truex deserves the regular-season title. His four wins are one more than anybody else has. He has led the most laps (1,448). His average starting position (7th) and average finish (11th) are the circuit’s best.

Truex has dominated the playoff points, winning 17 of 51 race stages. Nobody else won more than 10 stages. He has amassed a series-leading 37 playoff points and gets another 15 playoff points for the regular-season championship. That makes him a solid favorite to reach the final four.

After the Darlington race was over, Truex had a few moments to consider what his team had done — a high mark for him as a driver and for his car owner and crew.

“It’s a big deal for our team to be able to accomplish that for the first time in all our careers,” he said. “To lock up the regular-season points is a huge accomplishment for us, for this team. I feel like we’ve come a long way in just a few years together, and continue to climb.”