Peeping into the crystal ball: Predicting the 2034 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs field

Don't look now, but there is a milestone on our plates as the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs will mark the 10-year anniversary of the elimination-style format. 

The postseason structure -- made up of four rounds, three elimination races and one title-deciding contest -- sees 16 drivers fight for the coveted Bill France Cup.

As such, the 2024 postseason field is slowly but surely coming into focus ... but what if we decided to look ahead? What if, being 10 years removed from the inaugural 2014 running, we leap another 10 years and try to predict how the postseason grid shakes out? 

That sounds like a great idea. Let's predict how the 2034 Cup Series Playoffs field will look, going from youngest driver (10 years from now) to oldest.

Keelan Harvick 

Age in 2034: 21

Cup Series starts to date: None 

Cup Series wins to date: None 

Future forecast: As the son of 2014 Cup Series champion -- and future Hall of Famer -- Kevin Harvick, it only seems natural for Keelan to follow the path of his father and eventually race in NASCAR's premier series. And with growing experience in a multitude of racing circuits, it seems like the path is clear. 

Connor Zilisch 

Age in 2034: 28

Cup Series starts to date: None

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: A five-time winner within the ARCA platform, Zilisch made his national series debut in 2024 at Circuit of The Americas in the Craftsman Truck Series ... and promptly started on the pole and finished fourth. A rising talent who has already signed a multi-year agreement with Trackhouse Racing, Zilisch will only become a stronger racer as more experience is garnered. In due time. 

Ty Gibbs 

Age in 2034: 31

Cup Series starts to date: 73

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: If there's a driver who has found success every step up the ladder, it's Gibbs. As a past champion in both the ARCA Menards Series (2021) and Xfinity Series (2022) -- not to mention on an inside track to participating in the 2024 Cup Series Playoffs -- it seems there is a natural progression taking shape. Come 2034, that progression will likely have yielded numerous playoff bids. Maybe a title or two as well?

Corey Heim

Age in 2034: 32

Cup Series starts to date: 3

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: A steady championship contender in the Craftsman Truck Series, it's only a matter of time before Heim makes another leap. In 56 career Truck races, Heim has 10 wins, 28 top fives and 41 top 10s. Eyebrow-raising performances in ARCA and even part-time Xfinity action only add to the pedigree Heim has built to this point. 

Chandler Smith 

Age in 2034: 32

Cup Series starts to date: 3

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: A career 2024 season so far in the Xfinity Series has Smith on the upswing, to say the least. Add in the fact he is now under the Joe Gibbs Racing banner -- a team with quite the knack for winning titles -- and this pick makes all the more sense. 

Rajah Caruth 

Age in 2034: 32

Cup Series starts to date: None

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: A gradual increase in performance has followed Caruth in the Truck Series. In his second full-time season in the circuit, Caruth has already fetched one win, three top fives and eight top-10 finishes. The upside is too much to ignore. With experience racing for multiple teams, there's flexibility, too -- all characteristics a driver needs to be championship-caliber.

Todd Gilliland

Age in 2034: 34

Cup Series starts to date: 94

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: It took a couple of seasons to get his feet wet, but in his third full-time campaign in Cup, Gilliland has already matched his career-mark in top 10s (four) and has additionally led 121 laps ... 110 more than he led in 2022 (11). Expect the career totals -- and milestones -- to continue rising as Gilliland logs more Cup races. 

Riley Herbst

Age in 2034: 35 

Cup Series starts to date: 7

Cup Series wins to date: None

Future forecast: Herbst's first three full-time seasons in the Xfinity Series (2020-2022) saw the Las Vegas, Nevada native compile zero wins. Each of the last two full-time campaigns, however, have seen Herbst combine for two wins, 14 top fives and 26 top-10 finishes in 53 Xfinity races. Some recipes take longer to brew, but Herbst now has the winning formula in mind. 

William Byron 

Age in 2034: 36

Cup Series starts to date: 238

Cup Series wins to date: 13

Future forecast: Byron has won at least one Cup Series race in five consecutive seasons. To take it a step further, Byron has won multiple Cup races in each of the last three campaigns, 2024 included. As pilot of the famed No. 24 car, it's only natural to think the Hendrick Motorsports machine will wheel its way to a championship in due time through Byron. Come a decade, the question will not be if Byron has won a title. Instead, it'll be how many he has won.

Tyler Reddick 

Age in 2034: 38

Cup Series starts to date: 168

Cup Series wins to date: 6

Future forecast: As each year goes by, Reddick's craft continues to sharpen, whether it be on road courses, short tracks or superspeedways. And as pilot of the Michael Jordan-led 23XI Racing, championships are just part of the expectation.

Chase Elliott

Age in 2034: 38

Cup Series starts to date: 308 

Cup Series wins to date: 19

Future forecast: As one of four former Cup Series champions on this list, Elliott holds the honor of being the youngest of the quartet. Now entering the prime of his career, the sport's reigning Most Popular Driver has plenty more opportunities to win the Bill France Cup. The same will still be true in a decade. 

Christopher Bell 

Age in 2034: 39

Cup Series starts to date: 166

Cup Series wins to date: 9

Future forecast: With back-to-back Championship 4 appearances, Bell has already shown a capability of racing with title hardware on the line. No matter what track, Bell shows out. He might be overlooked compared to others, but make no mistake -- there's potential. And that potential will only be more apparent with another decade of experience. 

Ryan Blaney

Age in 2034: 40

Cup Series starts to date: 328

Cup Series wins to date: 12

Future forecast: We had to have the reigning Cup Series champion on this list, right? Absolutely, and for good reason. With multiple Cup wins in three of his last four seasons, Blaney, similarly to Elliott, is one of the premier faces of the sport and is just now entering his prime. He isn't going anywhere anytime soon. 

Bubba Wallace 

Age in 2034: 40

Cup Series starts to date: 241

Cup Series wins to date: 2

Future forecast: Both of Wallace's Cup wins -- Talladega in 2021 and Kansas in 2022 -- have come during the latter portion of the season, which just so happens to coincide with when the postseason occurs. A little more magic during the regular-season, combined with this late-season prowess, could lead to long-term success. 

Kyle Larson

Age in 2034: 41

Cup Series starts to date: 352

Cup Series wins to date: 27

Future forecast: Ever since he stepped foot in Hendrick Motorsports equipment, Larson has taken a monumental leap forward in his path to superstardom. With at least three wins in each of the last four seasons, Larson has simply aged like fine wine as the years go by. Expect no different in a decade's time. 

Joey Logano

Age in 2034: 44

Cup Series starts to date: 565

Cup Series wins to date: 33

Future forecast: Of the four drivers on this list to win the Bill France Cup already, Logano is the only one to do so multiple times. Although he will be the oldest driver on this list in a decade, the acumen Logano has accumulated over the years will not falter, especially not in what would be his 26th season at the Cup level. The final question -- How many titles will Logano have by this point? Let's find out.