By Adam Carabine
The StatChat Power Rankings are focusing in on the 16 Cup Series Playoff Drivers. Rankings are determined using a large number of statistical inputs, with most emphasis on the last 5 races
Chase Briscoe – This week: 16th – Last week: 14th
It wasn’t an abysmal day at Vegas for Chase Briscoe, but it wasn’t enough to keep him from dropping to the bottom of the Power Rankings. P26, no stage points, etc. Now that he’s out of the playoffs, is Stewart-Haas on cruise control until the end?
Harrison Burton – This week: 15th – Last week: 16th
A pretty solid run at Vegas for Burton this past weekend, he moves up from the last place in our Power Rankings after weeks stuck at the bottom. Can he finish the year strong?
Ty Gibbs – This week: 14th – Last week: 12th
To be fair to Ty Gibbs, there’s been a nasty string of bad luck with the 54 team over the past few weeks. He qualified 8th, but was unable to overcome adversity on the day and finished 30th at Vegas, 3 laps down.
Brad Keselowski – This week: 13th – Last week: 11th
Unfortunately for Brad, he only made it 89 laps before parking it with a DNF at Vegas. Aside from a runner-up finish at Talladega, Keselowski’s finished 19th or worse in every race of the playoffs. He’ll need to tidy that up to stop this freefall.
Tyler Reddick – This week: 12th – Last week: 13th
While he managed to start on the front row at Vegas, and earned a stage victory, it was not meant to be his day, as he crashed out (and barrel rolled) with Brad Keselowski, finishing 35th. His underlying numbers were good up until that point, so he moves up a spot, but he’ll need more if he wants to make it to the Championship Four.
Daniel Suarez – This week: 11th – Last week: 15th
A big jump in the Power Rankings after a gutsy strategy call earned Suarez a P3 at Vegas. Yes, Suarez was out on older tires with quickly diminishing fuel, but he managed to cut out an extra pit stop on the final run, and it earned him a Top 5.
Austin Cindric – This week: 10th – Last week: 9th
Maybe surprisingly, it’s been a decent playoff stretch for Austin Cindric. Yes, he’s out of the championship hunt, but he’s had a solid showing through most of the playoffs. Vegas was unfortunately an exception, as he was involved in an incident and finished 34th.
Ryan Blaney – This week: 9th – Last week: 8th
While Blaney managed to finish the race at Vegas, it was a tough day for the defending champ. P32 is not the way to get yourself back into the Championship Four, though most of that was not his fault – just a wrong-place-wrong-time situation.
Alex Bowman – This week: 8th – Last week: 6th
Poor Alex, eliminated last week from the playoffs after a disqualification, it sounds like he had the week from hell. You wouldn’t have been able to tell just by looking on Sunday at Vegas, though, as he finished in the Top 5.
Denny Hamlin – This week: 7th – Last week: 4th
It was a quiet Top 10 for Hamlin at Vegas, but his underlying numbers showed he was on track for a worse finish than he got. He’ll need some more solid finishes to move up our Power Rankings again, and more importantly, to punch his ticket to the Championship Four at Phoenix.
Joey Logano – This week: 6th – Last week: 10th
From out of the playoffs one week, to locked into the Championship race the next, it’s been a whirlwind for Logano. He snuck into this Round of 8 after Alex Bowman’s DQ at the Charlotte Roval. Lucky for him, Vegas is one of his best tracks, and he proved that he’s the master of fuel savings.
Chase Elliott – This week: 5th – Last week: 3rd
Vegas turned out to be a rough day for many of the playoff hopefuls, and Elliott was no different. He now sits in the 8th spot of the standings, and will likely need a win to get his way into the Championship Four, as he’s -53 pts to the cutline.
Martin Truex Jr. – This week: 4th – Last week: 7th
Vegas is Martin Truex Jr.’s best track on the schedule by average finish, and it showed again last Sunday. While his playoff run (and let’s be honest, entire season) has been marred by costly mistakes, this was a great run for him. It’s too late for him to fight for the championship this year, but he’s searching for a final win to cap off a hall-of-fame career.
William Byron – This week: 3rd – Last week: 5th
Byron has had a slow second half of the season, with all three of his wins coming in the first ten races. But he’s starting to rev up again, and his P4 at Vegas came at just the right time. He’s above the playoff cutline, and he’s also moved up two spots in the Power Rankings.
Kyle Larson – This week: 2nd – Last week: 1st
Larson’s fall out of the top spot in the Power Rankings doesn’t have much to do with his own failings at Vegas, and rather the fact that the new leader had a dominant performance. Larson is still comfortably above the cutline after a P11 at Vegas, and certainly can never be counted out.
Christopher Bell – This week: 1st – Last week: 2nd
Bell has had a playoff run that dreams are made of. His worst finish came at Watkins Glen – P14, and he has been in the conversation for the win in each of the other races. While he was certainly upset to not be able to pass Logano’s old tires at the end of the Vegas race, he’ll have to be happy with another P2, and the fact that he’s moved up to our top spot in the Power Rankings!
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