NASCAR at Bristol results: Kevin Harvick denies Kyle Busch; Joey Logano plays villain

Kevin Harvick denied Kyle Busch in a tight finish at Bristol on Saturday in the Bass Pro Shops Night Race, passing Busch late in the competition with the help of Joey Logano.

Logano, who was ahead in a lapped car, remained in Busch's way, which allowed for the pass. Busch remains without a win in 2020. Harvick, meanwhile, is up to a career-best nine victories.

"He's nobody's friend for a reason," Busch said afterward of Logano.

"BRISTOL, BABY!!"#4TheWin | @KevinHarvick pic.twitter.com/mdkBv8aW4g

— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) September 20, 2020

Cole Custer, William Byron, Matt DiBenedetto and Ryan Blaney were eliminated from playoff contention as the field was cut from 16 to 12. Kurt Busch earned the final advancement spot after Byron wrecked during Stage 2. Clint Bowyer, who came into the race near the bubble, also moved forward.

Sporting News tracked live updates and lap-by-lap highlights from Saturday's NASCAR race at Bristol. Follow below for complete results from the Bass Pro Shops Night Race.

MORE: William Byron sounds off on crash: 'What an idiot'

Who made the NASCAR playoffs Round of 12?

After NASCAR at Bristol on Saturday night, here are the 12 advancing drivers in order of points:

• Kevin Harvick (3,067)
• Denny Hamlin (3,048)
• Brad Keselowski (3,035)
• Joey Logano (3,022)
• Chase Elliott (3,021)
• Martin Truex Jr. (3,016)
• Alex Bowman (3,009)
• Austin Dillon (3,005)
• Aric Almirola (3,005)
• Kyle Busch (3,004)
• Clint Bowyer (3,004)
• Kurt Busch (3,001)

NASCAR at Bristol live updates, highlights from Bass Pro Shops Night Race

10:34 p.m.: Kevin Harvick holds on to win the Night Race at Bristol!

Kevin Harvick holds Kyle Busch off!

WHAT A FINISH at @BMSUpdates! #NASCARPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/zRKnra5sJP

— #NASCARPlayoffs on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) September 20, 2020

Kevin Harvick
Kyle Busch
Erik Jones
Tyler Reddick
Aric Almirola
Clint Bowyer
Chase Elliott
Chris Buescher
Ryan Preece
Michael McDowell
Joey Logano
Austin Dillon
Ryan Blaney
Matt Kenseth
Kurt Busch
Alex Bowman
Jimmie Johnson
Ty Dillon
Matt DiBenedetto
John Hunter Nemechek

— Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverAW) September 20, 2020

10:33 p.m.: Still close heading into the final two laps.

10:32 p.m.: Harvick leads by less than two seconds as we enter the final 10 laps.

10:28 p.m.: 20 laps to go.

10:26 p.m.: And now Harvick weaves through traffic to regain the lead. Logano goes to Busch's dog house.

... and just like that, @KevinHarvick retakes the top spot!

(and @joeylogano had a front-row seat for it all 👀)

📺: NBCSN | 📲: https://t.co/BHXvTwrLoC pic.twitter.com/Y7O8zzzz5n

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) September 20, 2020

10:23 p.m.: Kyle Busch passes Harvick.

Rowdy pounces as @KevinHarvick gets held up in traffic! 😱@KyleBusch goes to the race lead at @BMSupdates! pic.twitter.com/FLe0IpQ2UT

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) September 20, 2020

10:22 p.m.: 50 laps to go. Looks like this one will come down to Harvick vs. Kyle Busch.

10:14 p.m.: Back to green with 82 laps remaining.

10:02 p.m.: Caution. Looks like Austin Dillon was involved in a wreck.

.@KevinHarvick: slows down to pit
└ @austindillon3: nowhere to go
└ ⚠️ trouble ensues ⚠️

📺: NBCSN | 📲: https://t.co/BHXvTwJmNc pic.twitter.com/qnlvOpgvx4

— NASCAR (@NASCAR) September 20, 2020

10 p.m.: With 100 laps to go, Harvick is just way better than everyone else. He has most of the field lapped, and his closest competition is six seconds behind him. Still plenty of time for things to change.

9:53 p.m.: Now just 10 cars on the lead lap. This is one of the weirder races of 2020.

9:50 p.m.: With 135 laps remaining, only 12 cars are on the lead lap. Harvick is in first, Kyle Busch is in second and Elliott is in third.

9:45 p.m.: Ryan Blaney is inside the top 10. He needs to win to advance at this point.

9:37 p.m.: Keselowski heads to the garage after failing to meet minimum speed.

Brad Keselowski goes to the garage. Mechanical, not damaged vehicle policy. They can return, but obviously will be many laps down.

— Jeff Gluck (@jeff_gluck) September 20, 2020

9:12 p.m.: Kyle Busch wins Stage 2.

Stage 2:

1. @KyleBusch

2. @KevinHarvick

3. @chaseelliott

4. @joeylogano

5. @KurtBusch

6. @AlexBowman88

7. @Aric_Almirola

8. @ClintBowyer

9. @Erik_Jones

10. @austindillon3

FREE PASS: @mattdracing (now back on the lead lap)#NASCAR

— Chris Knight ツ (@Knighter01) September 20, 2020

9:05 p.m.: Byron is officially done.

9:04 p.m.: Caution for Byron, who might be done. That's a huge development, as Byron was running neck-and-neck with Clint Bowyer for the final spot in the Round of 12. Joey Gase apparently stopped ahead of him, leading to the crash.

looks like William Byron will be watching instead of participating in the final three rounds of the playoffs pic.twitter.com/bkOYpwRcsd

— Nick Bromberg (@NickBromberg) September 20, 2020

"What an idiot."

William Byron has been eliminated from #NASCARPlayoffs Round of 12 contention. He's out of the race. Listen in to the No. 24 team's radio. pic.twitter.com/P0vKtIPBey

— #NASCARPlayoffs on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) September 20, 2020

9 p.m.: It looks like Hamlin picked up significant damage. This has been a messy race and we're still in Stage 2.

CONTACT.

Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. have damage after this. #NASCARPlayoffs on NBCSN
Stream: https://t.co/wKDI0aNMYn pic.twitter.com/uLBnjq8TBM

— #NASCARPlayoffs on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) September 20, 2020

Bristol gonna Bristol.

Big damage for Denny Hamlin after contact with MTJ. pic.twitter.com/ox4q5ktLlE

— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) September 20, 2020

8:59 p.m.: Martin Truex Jr. now has a tire issue and makes an unplanned pit stop.

8:52 p.m.: DiBenedetto pits for a tire issue and is three laps down. He's another driver with playoff hopes running out.

8:48 p.m.: Hamlin passes Kyle Busch for the lead.

8:47 p.m.: Blaney is in 22nd place. His playoff hopes are expiring.

8:41 p.m.: Kyle Busch, who started at the back, is currently in first.

8:39 p.m.: Here's an updated look at the NASCAR playoff bubble.

After stage 1 at Bristol

Martin Truex +35
Chase Elliott +35
Austin Dillon +33
Alex Bowman +31
Kyle Busch +24
Kurt Busch +9
Aric Almirola +4
Clint Bowyer +0
-
William Byron -0
Cole Custer -8
Matt DiBenedetto -25
Ryan Blaney -27

— Matt Weaver (@MattWeaverAW) September 20, 2020

8:28 p.m.: Chase Elliott wins Stage 1.

Stage 1:

1. @chaseelliott

2. @KyleBusch

3. @keselowski

4. @AlexBowman88

5. @CBellRacing

6. @KurtBusch

7. @keselowski

8. @WilliamByron

9. @joeylogano

10. @BubbaWallace

FREE PASS: @CoreyLaJoie #NASCAR

— Chris Knight ツ (@Knighter01) September 20, 2020

8:07 p.m.: Keselowski takes the lead.

7:58 p.m.: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has crashed out of the race.

Ricky @StenhouseJr's night ends early.

After contact with @JimmieJohnson, Stenhouse slides into the inside wall. #ItsBristolBaby pic.twitter.com/QRxbepoAKI

— #NASCARPlayoffs on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) September 19, 2020

7:56 p.m.: Kevin Harvick holds an early lead.

7:47 p.m.: Green flag.

The hunt for a Cup championship ends tonight at Bristol for four teams.

7:40 p.m.: Engines are fired.

7:30 p.m.: Pre-race festivities are underway, which means the actual start of the race should be here soon.

7:12 p.m.: Here's the playoff situation entering the race. Again, it's Byron, Custer, DiBenedetto and Blaney needing to make a move forward.

7:08 p.m.: Three drivers have been sent to the back of the starting order because of failed inspections. Second time this has happened to Kyle Busch this postseason.

KyBusch, Hamlin and Jones starting from the rear for 2x tech failures. All through now. #nascar

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) September 19, 2020

NASCAR start time today

• Date : Saturday, Sept. 19
• Start time : 7:30 p.m. ET
• TV channel : NBC Sports Network
• Live stream : NBC Sports Go | fuboTV (7-day free trial)

The green flag for Saturday night's NASCAR Cup Series race at Bristol will wave shortly after 7:30 p.m. ET, assuming there are no rain delays as there have been so often since NASCAR returned to live racing in May.

The 7:30 p.m. ET start time will make mid-race adjustments key for race teams, even at a short track like Bristol. The track will be hot and slick at the beginning of the race and get cooler and faster as the night progresses.

Bristol Motor Speedway obviously has lights, so a weather delay could push the race into the late hours of Saturday and early hours of Sunday. The race is scheduled for 500 laps (266.5 miles) and needs to reach the halfway point to be considered official in the event of weather issues.

NASCAR starting lineup at Bristol

Here is the complete starting lineup for Saturday night's NASCAR race at Bristol: