Final Grades for the Top Stars from the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Season
NASCAR is a sport of teams!
Too often, that's forgotten. The driver may be the most visible member of the team, but it takes a solid group of people behind him to make wins and championships happen.
In grading the Sprint Cup season's top stars, we took a look back—to Daytona where the sport's most popular driver won, kicking off his best season; to the thrill of Kevin Harvick's Darlington win in April that ended his mini-slump. Jeff Gordon's late-summer Brickyard 400 win was a highlight that led into the most exciting 10-race Chase in the sport's history.
And in many cases, teamwork made the difference between a good grade and a not-so-good one.
Here they are, a dozen of the drivers we think were the best in the sport in 2014, and Danica Patrick. The grades are based upon their season, consistency and overall performance compared to preseason expectations.
Tell us how we did.
Kevin Harvick
1 of 13
Results
Wins: 5 Top Fives:14 Top 10s: 20 Poles: 6
2014 in a Nutshell
Kevin Harvick had wins at Phoenix (twice), Darlington and Charlotte before winning the season finale at Homestead. His team went through a series of weird mechanical issues that gave it poor results after the first Phoenix win and fought back to win at Darlington, a victory that turned the team's fortunes around.
Harvick finished as a runner-up seven times this season, most often because of miscues on pit road. This team did surprisingly well for a first-year crew. Much of the credit goes to the chemistry between crew chief Rodney Childers and Harvick. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver was the favorite to win the title, and he delivered on the promise.
Grade: A+
Consistency
Harvick was usually the fastest car every weekend, as proven by the number of poles won, and his victory at Phoenix set the tone for the season. Early-season problems helped to make his team stronger and more resilient. Pit-road issues plagued Harvick throughout the season, but they didn’t hold him back. If you take out the wreck at Martinsville (not caused by him), Harvick's Chase was exemplary.
Grade: A
Overall: A
Joey Logano
2 of 13
Results
Wins: 5 Top Fives: 16 Top 10s: 22 Poles: 1
2014 in a Nutshell
Joey Logano had wins at Texas, Richmond, Bristol, Loudon and Kansas. This was a breakthrough year for him as his teaming with crew chief Paul Wolfe paid huge dividends. Wolfe was able to help Logano focus. There were several missed opportunities when tire issues plagued the team. Mental mistakes hurt, also.
Grade: A-
Consistency
Logano revealed he was a title contender early with several top 10s before winning at Texas. However, he struggled with inconsistency throughout the season. A win at Bristol in August was a huge boost for his entire team.
Logano had no finishes outside the top 20 following the July Loudon race. His maturity and ability to focus may be the only question marks left between winning and not winning a championship. His mistake in the season finale, brushing the outside wall, is a perfect example.
Grade: A-
Overall: A-
Jeff Gordon
3 of 13
Results
Wins: 4 Top Fives: 14 Top 10s: 23 Poles: 2
2014 in a Nutshell
Jeff Gordon had wins at Kansas, Indianapolis, Michigan and Dover. The four-time champion had his best season in more than a decade. He went through several runner-up races early that tested both driver and team and became a win waiting to happen.
A victory in the Brickyard 400 was the highlight of the season. Missing the Chase is a tough mental challenge going forward for Gordon, despite all his years in the sport. Gordon is arguably the best driver who was not a part of the final four contenders.
Grade: A
Consistency
Gordon hasn't been a very good qualifier in his later career. That changed this season and helped his cause tremendously. Excellent pit-crew work, always a trademark of Gordon's teams, was top-notch and an asset.
Grade: A
Overall: A
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Denny Hamlin
4 of 13
Results
Wins: 1 Top Fives: 7 Top 10s: 18 Poles: 3
2014 in a Nutshell
Denny Hamlin's lone win came at Talladega. Based on his statistics this was one of his better seasons, and Hamlin was tough to beat on the track when his car was good. As was the issue with all the Toyota drivers, Hamlin didn’t have the speed needed to win more races. However, his team did peak at the right time, though a gamble by crew chief Darian Grubb in the finale was a season-killer.
Grade: B+
Consistency
Hamlin's qualifying was his weakest link this season. His pit crew worked to modify air guns to give him an advantage off pit road, which helped to give him back the track position. The Joe Gibbs Racing team hit its stride at the right time—during the Chase.
Grade: A-
Overall: B+
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
5 of 13
Results
Wins: 4 Top Fives: 12 Top 10s: 20 Poles: 0
2014 in a Nutshell
Dale Earnhardt Jr. had wins at Daytona, Pocono (twice) and Martinsville. At one point in the season, Junior’s performance looked like he could be the champion. When he was good, he was very good. The opposite was also true. When he dropped out of championship contention, the entire sport exhaled. Was this season the 40-year-old’s last, best chance at the title?
Grade: A-
Consistency
Earnhardt's qualifying often hurt his track position, making him use up his car early in order to move forward to race with the leaders. When he qualified well, he often finished in the top five. His pit crew saved him on several occasions by giving him the track position. Again, when he was good, he was very good.
Grade: A
Overall: A
Brad Keselowski
6 of 13
Results
Wins: 6 Top Fives: 17 Top 10s: 20 Poles: 5
2014 in a Nutshell
Brad Keselowski had wins at Las Vegas, Kentucky, Loudon, Richmond, Chicago and Talladega. The Team Penske driver established himself as the man to beat for the title with his early win at Las Vegas. Keselowski's team had the potential to win 10 races or more.
His may be the best driver and crew-chief (Paul Wolfe) combination next to the Jimmie Johnson-Chad Knaus combo, and we're learning that his philosophy is "win at any cost."
Grade: A-
Consistency
After the early win, Keselowski and his team were all over the place. He was a race-winner one week and then maybe a top-10 finisher the next. His qualifying was always good, but then there were races when the car, in the later laps, just wasn't there for Keselowski. It turned him into a "wreckers or checkers" driver.
Grade: B
Overall: B+
Kyle Larson
7 of 13
Results
Wins: 0 Top Fives: 8 Top 10s: 17 Poles: 1
2014 in a Nutshell
Kyle Larson is arguably the best rookie to come into the series since Kyle Busch debuted in 2004. Larson's talent was integral in helping to strengthen the Chip Ganassi organization overall, and his teammate Jamie McMurray benefited from Larson's talent behind the wheel.
Fans love his wreckers-or-checkers mentality in closing laps that unfortunately has often burned him. He made the Rookie of the Year competition against a large field of drivers a runaway.
Grade: A-
Consistency
Larson's lack of experience at most of the tracks he was racing on hurt his consistency. Second visits to those tracks showed great improvement in his performance. Among all the Cup drivers, Larson was the No. 1 "win waiting to happen." Despite that, it wasn't to be for Larson this season.
Grade: B
Overall: B+
Jimmie Johnson
8 of 13
Results
Wins: 4 Top Fives: 11 Top 10s: 20 Poles: 1
2014 in a Nutshell
Jimmie Johnson had victories at Charlotte, Dover, Michigan and Texas. He had the kind of season any other driver would kill for, but the six-time champion struggled throughout the season trying to get comfortable with his car. This prevented him from winning more races. His four DNFs loom large, and the late-season charge we’ve grown accustomed to from this team never materialized.
Grade: B+
Consistency
That this team took until Charlotte in May to win its first race was an omen. It never took on the look of previous championship teams. It looked ordinary in the Chase, not like the No. 48 crew should. This team was consistently regular.
Grade: B
Overall: B
Ryan Newman
9 of 13
Results
Wins: 0 Top Fives: 5 Top 10s: 16 Poles: 0
2014 in a Nutshell
Of the Chase finalists, Ryan Newman was perhaps the weakest of the four. The goose egg in his wins column stands out and makes his team look like it came into the Chase through the back door. The former Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 winner had a surprisingly good season with a new team, however, so even though he didn't win, he should feel a sense of accomplishment.
If this team continues to improve, Newman's 2015 season will be remarkable. But at the moment, he's doing it in the Chase with smoke and mirrors. His second-place finish in the season finale was a real standout and helped his grade.
Grade: B+
Consistency
Early in the season, this new driver-and-crew-chief combination were still figuring each other out. Newman also had to do the same with the Richard Childress cars. When it all came together, the consistent qualifying efforts and finishes followed. Early prediction: This team will be back in the Chase in 2015.
Grade: B-
Overall: B
Kyle Busch
10 of 13
Results
Wins: 1 Top Fives: 9 Top 10s: 15 Poles: 3
2014 in a Nutshell
Kyle Busch's season started off strong with a big win at Fontana followed by several top fives. Then, the team began to struggle with finding speed midseason, a problem with all the Toyota-powered teams. And, we’re learning that as Busch continues in the Cup series, he is only good when the car is good. He was one of the year’s biggest disappointments.
Grade: C
Consistency
As mentioned, Busch is only good when his Camry is handling well. Often, Dave Rogers struggled getting the car right for Busch with the new ride height rules. Once he got the handling squared away, the lack of speed hampered Busch's success. His late-season charge, especially in the Chase, showed promise for 2015.
Grade: B
Overall: B-
Carl Edwards
11 of 13
Results
Wins: 2 Top Fives: 7 Top 10s: 14 Poles: 0
2014 in a Nutshell
Carl Edwards had wins at Bristol and Sonoma, though his swan song with team owner Jack Roush was an uneven affair. The Missouri native is one of the best drivers in the Cup series at muscling a bad race car to Victory Lane. The problem was, the car was bad too often. He suffered with the Roush Fenway cars having a weak 1.5-mile setup.
Grade: B-
Consistency
Veteran crew chief Jimmy Fennig was stymied by the new ride height rules, and it showed in the team's consistency—or lack of it. Coupled with a disastrous 1.5-mile setup for the RFR cars, Edwards missed many opportunities. His car had lots of speed but couldn't get through the corners, though his road-course win was a shocker. Edwards isn't known for his road racing.
Grade: C
Overall: B-
Matt Kenseth
12 of 13
Results
Wins: 0 Top 5s: 13 Top 10s: 22 Poles: 2
2014 in a Nutshell
Matt Kenseth spent his entire season answering the same question: How can the team that won seven races in 2013 and finished runner-up to the title not win a race in 2014? Kenseth ran out of answers about midseason. It was obvious that he and crew chief Jason Ratcliff were missing something, a small something, but nevertheless big enough to keep them out of Victory Lane in 2014.
Grade: C
Consistency
Kenseth is unquestionably one of the most consistent performers in the series, despite going winless. His top-five and top-10 numbers show that. But mysteriously, this team just couldn't find a way to win. Eventually it began to get into the team's heads, and it showed in the Chase, when consistency was all over the place.
Grade: C
Overall: C
Danica Patrick
13 of 13
Results
Wins: 0 Top Fives: 0 Top 10s: 3 Poles: 0
2014 in a Nutshell
Teammate Kevin Harvick may have done Danica Patrick a huge favor by publicly saying what most in the garage had been thinking: that her learning curve is much steeper than anyone realized.
As Jared Turner of Fox Sports noted, Harvick said, "She's never going to catch up to what I do, she's never going to catch up to what Jimmie Johnson does, she's never going to overcome those hurdles, because we've all done this for 20-some years."
A fast and good learner, Patrick has shown strength on the 1.5-mile tracks, which is critical to her success. Her mettle on restrictor-plate tracks will eventually take her to Victory Lane in one of those races. Will the fans and media have the patience for her as she needs more time to be successful in Sprint Cup?
Grade: B
Consistency
You have to begin to question drivers' abilities when they have the same equipment as their teammate yet their performance is not as good. That's not the case here, as Patrick's steep learning curve has her making more mental mistakes than most drivers. She also has to get much better with qualifying. When she qualifies well, her performance reflects it.
Grade: B
Overall: B
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