Well, one person is undefeated when knocking motorsports fans out. Mother Nature, put a damper on the start of the Indianapolis 500 earlier on Sunday. Then, she wasn’t done and made the trip to Charlotte after the halfway point of the Coke 600 to cut the six-hundred-mile crown jewel race short. While I know it wasn’t how we wanted it to end, a winner was crowned. So, I must update the 2024 NASCAR Power Rankings before our next points-paying race!
The Beginning
- 15. Joey Logano
I didn’t expect Joey to be anywhere near the top fifteen on Sunday. He finished p14. While it isn’t great it’s better than most of the drivers in contention for this spot so he is back in the top fifteen of the 2024 NASCAR Power Rankings for this week.
- 14. Kyle Busch
I had high hopes for Rowdy going into the Coke 600, especially after the punch heard throughout the sports world. However, the car wasn’t under Kyle to make a run. So instead he finished fifteenth and will head to Gateway looking to repeat his performance from last year.
- 13. Brad Keselowski
Brad wins at Darlington, then comes out and competes from the drop of the green flag since he did start 30th. He managed to grab stage points in stages one and two, and even though rain played a part he still grabbed a second-place finish.
- 12. Ty Gibbs
He grabbed his first career pole and looked strong leading 74 laps early. Once his car got back in the “dirty air” though he never recovered the lead and came home sixth. Gateway wasn’t kind to Ty last year, but this is a new Ty.
- 11. Ross Chastain
He was mentioned as one of the guys who could shock some heading into the weekend. He wasn’t great but he wasn’t bad either. Finishing eighth snapped a streak of seven consecutive races finishing outside the top ten.
2024 NASCAR Power Rankings Mid-Pack
- 10. Martin Truex Jr.
Martin was a guy mentioned with Chase Elliott by the broadcast team who was said to be “one to watch.” That however never came to fruition after leading a few laps he fell back to around where he finished in 12th.
- 9. Christopher Bell
He went four straight weeks of not even touching the top fifteen. While it will be a rain-shortened win, a win is a win. Now Christopher can seriously start working on getting ready for the playoffs and hopefully put the poor runs behind him.
- 8. Bubba Wallace
I swear I am not jumping on the “Bubba Bandwagon” okay? This guy has just turned it on performance-wise this season at tracks where you don’t expect it. Hopefully, he can continue that trend this weekend at Gateway other wise he may begin to descend back down the 2024 NASCAR Power Rankings.
- 7. Ryan Blaney
Two races in a row where he finished outside of the top thirty. Was this weekend his fault maybe not but still the result is what everyone looks at in this sport. He heads to Gateway where he finished 6th last year with hopes of a repeat performance.
- 6. Alex Bowman
He’s right there. I mean right there a few more positions in qualifying better and I could see this team dominating a race. However, five straight top-ten finishes are always welcomed in the meantime.
The Top Five
- 5. Tyler Reddick
He had to serve a pass-thru penalty at the beginning of the race. Which instantly put him behind the eight ball. However, he clawed his way back up to a top-five finish. Had the weather not ruined the race, who knows where Tyler would’ve finished?
- 4. Chase Elliott
His win at Texas, went a long way for the driver of the nine Chevy Camaro. He’s finished a worst place of fifteenth and that was back at Talladega of all places. Chase and his team need some more dominance shown for me to think he’s a serious ‘chip contender right now though.
- 3. William Byron
What a move Willy B pulled off, fighting for position this past weekend! Another guy who would’ve benefitted probably from the rain staying away.
- 2. Denny Hamlin
Denny being Denny is what I saw Sunday evening. Competing and finishing solidly in the top ten. Denny looks good right now, but this is a sport all about momentum I feel like so let’s see if he can keep it going.
- 1. Kyle Larson
I know he didn’t get to complete “the double” we all wanted to see happen. No thanks to Mother Nature obviously. However, he was running competitively in the Indy 500 before a speeding penalty killed his day. Also, Justin Allgaier who started the race for him, said multiple times that if Kyle got behind the wheel of the car he was going to fly and I somehow don’t doubt that one single bit.
We Are Off To Gateway!
Well, I was going to talk briefly about the Coke 600. However the news of Stewart-Haas Racing closing at the end of the 2024 NASCAR season is a lot bigger. What in the world does this do for the silly season now? Things are about to get interesting, and quick considering everything I’ve seen at least stating that one of the four SHR charters is undecided on for potential suitors.
Are we going to finally see Dale Jr. in the NASCAR Cup Series as an owner? Where do all of the SHR drivers land next season? Oh the questions go on and on for days. NASCAR is back boys and girls. I do not care what anyone has to say and I’m so here for it!
Now as for Gateway. Well, expect more of the same. I think you are going to see a JGR or HMS car in victory lane. It’s to easy to not pick those guys at this point. However if anyone could throw a wrench in those plans look to a guy like Ross Chastain. Or even again with the news of SHR’s closure a SHR driver coming out and proving they deserve to be in a cup series seat next year.
Featured Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images
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