Well, we survived Talladega. Some how some way. After eight total cautions and only two being stage breaks we survived. However, did your driver’s position in the NASCAR Power Rankings survive? Heck, maybe even improve? Those are the real questions as we are headed to Dover this weekend.
NASCAR Power Rankings Bottom Five
- 15. Ty Gibbs
- 14. Brad Keselowski
- 13. Chris Buescher
- 12. Chase Briscoe
- 11. Martin Truex Jr.
5 to go@TyGibbs still leads the middle lane with the 23, 11, & 19 behind him. pic.twitter.com/4prlJh5wuK
— Joe Gibbs Racing (@JoeGibbsRacing) April 23, 2023
The newest addition to the top fifteen. A rookie driver, whose getting the hang of this cup series thing it looks like lately. Ty ran out of gas on the last overtime restart, which killed his finish. I was impressed though because he ran up front all-day Sunday and even led some laps. He’s been consistent lately and is on the climb with four top-ten finishes in the last six races.
Brad finished well on Sunday, after getting caught up in the last accident of the race. Solid day for Brad but not surprising enough for me to deserve a jump.
RFK Racing has been historically good at the drafting-type tracks so to see Chris in the top five after Sunday didn’t shock me too much. However, he had a meh day and didn’t even get any stage points so no jump for him this week either.
Arguably the hottest driver on the list right now. Continuing his top-five finish streak at Talladega, with that broken finger. Let’s see if he can keep it up.
Martin had an okay day. He was caught up in the final wreck also so his finish doesn’t reflect but it’s Talladega. You either survive the chaos or are a part of it.
Middle-of-the-Pack Drivers
- 10. Ryan Blaney
- 9. Denny Hamlin
- 8. Tyler Reddick
- 7. Joey Logano
- 6. Ross Chastain
Ryan Blaney and Bubba Wallace led a combined 82 laps at Talladega, but their last-lap wreck left them both disappointed.@bobpockrass | #NASCAR
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 25, 2023
Ryan is climbing back up the power rankings progressively. I wasn’t so much surprised to see him finish where he did. He had a performance, and I fully expected this kind of performance from him, after all, he has won two times at Talladega. Makes you wonder though what more Blaney needs to do for a win.
Denny finished in the top fifteen and was able to get some stage points in stage two. I was surprised he wasn’t in contention more but I think it has a lot to do with the package this car is running. He couldn’t make the moves he’s been known to make during these races in the past.
Oh no, @TylerReddick! pic.twitter.com/NrcF6UE6FY
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) April 23, 2023
Tyler had a huge miscue early when he spun out coming to pit road on the first Toyota team pit sequence of the day. He recovered alright considering his car wasn’t going to be able to lead a line after he sustained the damage.
Joey, has one win this season and has been the most up-and-down driver in each race. A thirtieth-place finish at Dega is the result of being caught up in the final accident of regulation. He needs more consistency to move up. It’s either top ten or bust the last few races for Logano.
Ross has been struggling as of late. With only one top fifteen finish in the last three races. If he can’t turn it around this weekend at Dover a slide in his ranking may occur.
The Top Five
- 5. Kevin Harvick
- 4. Kyle Busch
- 3. Christopher Bell
- 2. William Byron
- 1. Kyle Larson
Kevin was able to get some stage points and even lead laps during Sunday’s race. Unfortunately for him like most, he was caught up in an accident and finished poorly. With some rising drivers lower on the NASCAR Power Rankings list, Kevin needs to get back on track with those good finishes this weekend in Dover.
One of the luckiest drivers I’ve seen in my time watching this sport. With that being said though a win is a win so sometimes being in the right spot at the wrong time for another driver pays off. Rowdy has two wins now, hopefully, this will snap this team back into the contending ways after some poor runs as of late.
It’s almost like clockwork each week. Christopher Bell is in the top fifteen at the conclusion of a race. Another solid race for Bell. Would love to see some more trips to victory lane though.
William was able to finish in the top ten at Talladega and in my opinion, it was very much needed. His last three races have ended with results outside the top ten. I look to see this car back consistently in the top ten at the end of races.
A HUGE hit for Ryan Preece and Kyle Larson. https://t.co/UanMabB0UP pic.twitter.com/iktuxG84or
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) April 23, 2023
What a week for Kyle. Wins at Martinsville and then just absolutely gets taken out in a Talladega wreck. The involvement sadly for Larson was by no choice of his own though. So another week at the top.
No Overtime with NASCAR Power Rankings
Talladega is a shit show, excuse my language but there is no better way to describe the race. So, a lot of my top fifteen were involved in wrecks that honestly weren’t a lot of their fault. A big name in the top ten was dropped due to injury, Alex Bowman will be out of his car for a few weeks after an accident in a dirt race. So a lot of drivers benefited in position jumps. It will be interesting to see how these guys act now headed back to a track like Dover.
As for Dover, well my picks for Dover are boring honestly. I think you need to keep an eye on the Hendrick teams of course. They seemed to have something figured out earlier this season on tracks like Dover. I could easily see Chase Elliott, Larson or Byron win. Now if you want a Toyota and Ford choice they’re kind of obvious. Martin Truex has won at Dover before. I think if he’s going to make a statement it might be this week. Do not count out Denny and Reddick though. The Ford driver is really easy Kevin Harvick. He’s won here before as well, most recently back in 2020.
So with all that being said I will see you next week NASCAR fans go and enjoy this weekend of racing!
If you love NASCAR make sure you stay with us here. Also, for all of your other sports needs make sure to follow the main Belly-Up page. If you love racing of any shape or form, definitely make sure you find me on Twitter!
