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Power Rankings: Trying to make order of an odd race
Welcome to Power Rankings. As always, Power Rankings are far from a scientific formula. In fact, it’s the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. Direct all your complaints to us at happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com and we’ll try to have some fun.
1. Kyle Busch (LW: 1): Pocono was a weird race so full warning, this is going to be a weird set of Power Rankings. It’s hard to make judgments on a race that would have been a straight-up fight over the last 20 or so laps had the race gone back green. And it was apparent that most everyone outside of Chris Buescher and Regan Smith thought the fog would pass. Busch finished ninth. We’re not putting much stock in that.
2. Kevin Harvick (LW: 2): Harvick finished fourth, and would have likely been battling with the man right below him in this week’s rankings for the win had the race been restarted. Buescher and Smith would have had to pit, leaving Harvick and Brad Keselowski to restart the race on the first row.
3. Brad Keselowski (LW: 4): Keselowski was ahead of Harvick and finished second because he pitted sooner. He also had some clear track after his pit stop and was able to click off some laps to get a pretty decent gap on Harvick and Tony Stewart. We still think Keselowski having crazy road course testing crashes is a Pocono omen. He’s finished first or second in the races after those crashes.
4. Joey Logano (LW: 3): A drop for Logano is probably a bit harsh after he swiped the lead away from Kyle Larson and Austin Dillon because of the gratuitous contact between the two while they were racing for the lead. But he ended up crashing after he got hit by Chase Elliott.
5. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 6): Johnson finished 16th but he moves up a spotbecause of the way his team fought back after early damage to the nose of the car. It’s not crazy to think Johnson could have finished in the top 10 despite having a ton of tape on the front of the car. But, as you know, the race was called early.
6. Kurt Busch (LW: 7): Busch finished 10th, keeping his run of top-10 finishes going and also keeping his run of completing every lap this season going as well. We’re not sure Busch is going to get another win before the Chase, but we’re still thinking he’s a top-three favorite to make it to the final round simply because of the sheer consistency of the team.
7. Matt Kenseth (LW: 7): Kenseth, the winner of this race in 2015 after the two cars ahead of him ran out of gas, finished 17th, a spot behind Johnson. Could he have gotten into the top 10 too? Who knows. The fog may.
8. Denny Hamlin (LW: 9): Hamlin ended up finishing seventh, the highest-finishing Joe Gibbs Racing-equipped car. The last time the best JGR car finished that (relatively speaking) poorly was at the first Pocono race when Kenseth finished seventh.
9. Tony Stewart (LW: 8): Stewart didn’t have the speed that Keselowski and Harvick did, but he was positioned to be a spoiler in a race for the win between the two had the race been restarted. Instead, Stewart finished fifth and made up some significant ground on Aric Almirola in the points standings. Almirola is now just 12 points ahead of Stewart despite running in eight more races.
10. Martin Truex Jr. (LW: 7): Truex’s misfortune struck early on Monday. Is a flat tire within the first 20 laps better than a flat tire within the last 20 laps? Truex is tied for seventh in the points standings with Johnson now and is just a point ahead of Hamlin. If the misfortune continues, he could fall out of the top 10.
11. Kyle Larson (LW: 11): Despite a damaged car from the contact with Dillon, Larson finished sixth and would have restarted the race in fourth. He’s 15th in the standings and the last car in the Chase currently. Of course, that’s with Buescher outside the top 30. Larson needs to go to work on teammate Jamie McMurray, who is nine points ahead.
12. Chris Buescher (LW: 12): We had to put Buescher in this week’s rankings, even if we all know he wouldn’t have won the race without the fog. But a win is a win and they played the heavy clouds better than anyone else did. It’s not a guarantee Buescher will work his way into the top 30 in points over the next five races, but it’d be surprising if he didn’t.
The Lucky Dog: Regan Smith for his third-place finish.
The DNF: Paul Menard had a transmission issue early and he’s 23rd in the points standings. The Chase ain’t happening.
Dropped Out: Austin Dillon.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
