How Kyle Busch is crashing the championship picture

We know Martin Truex Jr. has a bounty of playoff points, and Kyle Larson has nipped at his heels the whole season. But hold everything -- here comes Kyle Busch. Here's our examination on how 'Rowdy' is crashing the championship party.

Back-to-back: Kyle Busch's incredible win at Dover, in which he made a pass for the lead just before the white flag dropped, gives him two in a row in the postseason. That's 10 extra playoff points for a driver who is the hottest in the series.

Better than average: Best average finish through 29 races this year? Kyle Larson at 10.3. Truex Jr. follows at 10.6 with Kyle Busch at 11.0. They are the class of the field in this regard and rank 1-2-3 in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. However ...

No time like the present: Busch enters the Round of 12 best in position to roll off top-five finishes. His average finish in 2017 in previously run races at Charlotte, Talladega, Kansas, Martinsville, Texas and Phoenix -- the next six tracks on the schedule -- is a stunning 5.0. His worst finish in those races is 15th at Texas. Everything else is a top-five showing.

Trailing 'Rowdy': Sticking with this theme of 2017 finishes at the next six tracks, Truex Jr. is well behind Busch in average finish at 12.3 (although he does have a win at Kansas). Larson? He sits at 12.0 with runner-up finishes at Texas and Phoenix.

Recent success: It took Busch until Race 21 (at Pocono) to get his first win. Since the breakthrough, no one has been running up front more frequently. In the past nine races dating back to Pocono in August, Busch has four wins, five top-five finishes and eight top 10s. It's two wins and six top-fives for Truex Jr. and two wins and five top-fives for Larson -- the competition is admittedly close, but Busch's four wins serve as tiebreaker for us.

Miami maestro: Speaking of tiebreakers, Busch owns the ultimate one in his comparison with Truex Jr. and Larson. If all three drivers advance to the Championship 4, one will almost certainly have to win at Miami to win the title. Only Busch has done that before. Everything appears to be setting up for another title run for the No. 18 team.