2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver Rankings: Week 25
There are still two races to go to the Chase for the Sprint Cup and potentially more than a dozen drivers still eligible for a playoff berth.
Granted, 11 drivers are locked into the Chase—but there are still five more spots that are up for grabs.
Right now, Jamie McMurray (12th on the grid), Ryan Newman (13th), Paul Menard (14th), Jeff Gordon (15th) and Clint Bowyer (16th) are in the Chase.
But there are also 14 other drivers still eligible to knock one of those five out—with a win, of course. Included in that dozen-plus are Kasey Kahne, Aric Almirola, Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, Kyle Larson, AJ Allmendinger and more.
After the Sept. 6 race at Darlington and the Sept. 12 race at Richmond, several of those drivers who are technically “in” the Chase right now could wind up on the outside looking in when the Chase begins at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 20.
As we present this week’s driver rankings, there’s not a great deal of movement from last week’s rankings prior to this past Saturday’s race at Bristol.
There are no new entries in this week’s rankings, but there have been a few changes up and down as far as who is where.
Let’s check them out:
10. Ryan Newman
1 of 10
Previous ranking: 10th
Why he’s here
Ryan Newman continues to be one of the most consistent drivers in the Sprint Cup series. He rode that consistency all the way to last year’s finale and almost stole the championship away from Kevin Harvick. Newman moved up one spot in the overall standings after Bristol to 11th, making it two straight weeks that he’s climbed a spot.
Key 2015 moments
Newman hasn’t gone crazy or done anything unusual of late. In fact, in his last nine starts, he has four top-10 and two other top-15 finishes. And in that same span, he’s improved from 14th to 11th in the standings.
What’s next?
While nothing is guaranteed, this is not the time for Newman to change things. He needs to maintain consistency in the next two races to assure he’s in the Chase. Sure, if he’s in position to win a race, all the better, but at the same time he doesn’t want to run the risk of going for a win, only to lose big and then risk elimination from the Chase.
In other words, it’s better to go for a top five or top 10 with some certainty, rather than go for a win and wind up 40th if he’s involved in a mishap.
9. Kurt Busch
2 of 10
Previous ranking: 9th
Why he’s here
With two wins, Kurt Busch is locked into the Chase. But he’s struggled of late and this is the worst time of the season for that to happen, potentially having him enter the Chase with no momentum at all. In his last four races, Busch has finished 37th (Pocono), fifth (Watkins Glen), 20th (Michigan) and 14th (Bristol).
We could have dropped him to 10th in this week’s rankings, but Busch is coming up to two of his better tracks, at Darlington and Richmond.
Key 2015 moments
Busch's two wins at Richmond and Michigan have been his brightest spots of 2015. But let’s not forget had he not missed the season's first three races after NASCAR suspended him, he likely would be even higher in the standings. Still, sitting eighth in the rankings is a decent position.
What’s next
We said it last week, and we’ll say it again this week: Busch has to work on momentum going into the Chase. Richmond could easily be a win for him (having two wins already there, not to mention his overall short-track prowess), and Darlington could also be a win if he can outwit the so-called Lady in Black.
8. Martin Truex Jr.
3 of 10
Previous ranking: 5th
Why he’s here
Martin Truex Jr.’s third-place finish at Michigan gave hope that he was finally back on track. Unfortunately, he finished 28th at Bristol, which marked his third finish of 19th or worse in his last four races. Truex was a picture of consistency during the first third of the season, but he’s really struggled in the middle third, for sure.
In addition, he dropped from fourth to sixth in the standings after Bristol, another reason why he dropped three spots in this week’s Bleacher Report rankings.
Key 2015 moments
Truex had an outstanding first half of the season, being arguably the best driver in the series behind Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson. But his struggles at Sonoma (42nd), Daytona (38th), Pocono (19th), Watkins Glen (25th) and Bristol (28th) continue to raise cause for concern.
What’s next
Even though he’s fallen back to sixth place in the Sprint Cup standings and eighth in the B/R rankings, Truex will still be a factor going into the Chase. The key, though, will depend on whether he can remain a factor throughout the first round and be able to advance to the second round. If he doesn’t get his early-season consistency back, it’ll be a short Chase for Truex.
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7. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
4 of 10
Previous ranking: 8th
Why he’s here
Even though Dale Earnhardt Jr. hasn’t done anything spectacular of late—like winning at Daytona in July—he’s been flying under the radar with good runs week after week of late. After finishing a disappointing 22nd in the Brickyard 400, Earnhardt has finished fourth (Pocono), 11th (Watkins Glen), 10th (Michigan) and ninth (Bristol).
Key 2015 moments
Obviously, Junior’s wins at Talladega and Daytona have been his season's highlights. But like we said last week, he hasn’t had the same zip and pizzazz he had during 2014. And we’re likely not going to see any of that at Darlington (no career wins), but it could give his Chase hopes a big boost at Richmond (three career wins). He’s never entered a Chase with a win. If he manages to do so, it could certainly propel his championship hopes even higher.
What’s next
It would be great to see Junior win at Darlington next week, particularly with that race being the long-awaited return of the Southern 500 on what used to be Darlington’s traditional Labor Day weekend. It’s a race that has long eluded Earnhardt, and with its return to Labor Day, don’t be surprised if he goes for the jugular—in other words, wins—at both Darlington and Richmond. That would further enhance his Chase seeding when the points are reset.
6. Kyle Busch
5 of 10
Previous ranking: 7th
Why he’s here
It’s fair to say Kyle Busch is safe to make the Chase at this point. With two races remaining, he’s 29th in the standings and 46 points ahead of 31st-ranked Cole Whitt. What that means is even if Busch were to drop to 30th position in the next two races, he’s still almost a certainty to make the Chase.
Key 2015 moments
Without question, his four wins (Sonoma, Kentucky, New Hampshire and Indianapolis) have been the Busch’s season highlights. But it’s likely there are still quite a few more highlights to be made between now and the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Given what he’s done thus far, Busch has the potential to be the most exciting driver to watch from here on out.
What’s next
Busch will likely look to win at least one of the next two races to give him the top-seed edge over Jimmie Johnson, who is tied with Busch with a series-leading four wins apiece. His best chance to reach Victory Lane again will likely be Richmond.
5. Brad Keselowski
6 of 10
Previous ranking: 6th
Why he’s here
Brad Keselowski has quietly and methodically continued to improve his overall lot over the last several weeks. He left Daytona in July seventh in the standings. But after Saturday’s race at Bristol, he’s up to fourth in the standings. Plus, he’s amassed two top fives, three top 10s and one 11th-place finish in his last seven races.
Key 2015 moments
Keselowski's biggest moment thus far this season was his win in the 2015 campaign's fifth race, at Fontana. He also has three runner-up showings (Martinsville, Loudon and Pocono). While he’s not having the kind of season he did in 2014, when he won a series-high six races, Keselowski is maintaining consistency, which is the next best thing.
What’s next
Given that he’s already locked into the Chase, Keselowski can afford to gamble a bit in the remaining two regular-season races. He did just that at Bristol and came home with a sixth-place finish. He’s always wanted to win at Darlington (no wins, one top five and two top 10s in six starts) and has one win at Richmond.
It would be nice to see him win one of these last two regular-season races to give him added momentum going into the Chase.
4. Matt Kenseth
7 of 10
Previous ranking: 4th
Why he’s here
With a blown engine at Bristol, Matt Kenseth should have fallen in this week’s rankings. But at the same time, the blown engine—and the subsequent 42nd-place finish—was not his fault. Therefore, we leave him fourth in this week’s rankings. Yes, Bristol was a bad finish, but in his previous six races, he had two wins, two other top-five and two more top-10 finishes.
Key 2015 moments
Despite what happened at Bristol, it’s still been a good year for Kenseth overall. He has three wins, nine top-five and 15 top-10 finishes. While Bristol was a setback, he should bounce back strong at Darlington and particularly Richmond, which would give him great momentum going into the Chase.
What’s next
What happened to Kenseth at Bristol is similar to what happens to a rodeo cowboy. If your ride throws you, dust yourself off, get back on and ride again. Kenseth is having a very good year, and we can easily see him being one of the four drivers to be in contention for the championship going into the season-ending race at Homestead.
3. Jimmie Johnson
8 of 10
Previous ranking: 3rd
Why he’s here
Jimmie Johnson has been like a sleeping giant the middle third of the season. And that giant finally awoke at Bristol. Coming off one of his worst finishes of the season (39th) two weeks ago at Michigan, Johnson bounced back in a big way to finish fourth at Bristol. Don’t be surprised if Johnson’s quiet nature and not being in the news much of late has been by design. When the Chase begins, he’ll be right near the top of the potential favorites.
Key 2015 moments
With wins at Atlanta, Texas, Kansas and Dover, either Johnson or Kyle Busch (who also has four wins to date) will likely be the No. 1 seed in the Chase for the Sprint Cup when the points are reset after Richmond.
What’s next
Johnson has a good history at most of the remaining 12 tracks on the schedule, including the 10 in the Chase. We would not be surprised to see him win three or maybe even four of those 12 remaining races. Johnson learned a very valuable lesson in last year’s Chase when he fell short and failed to reach the final round. He won’t make that same mistake again this year. He wants that seventh championship in a big way.
2. Joey Logano
9 of 10
Previous ranking: 2nd
Why he’s here
Yes, Joey Logano is for real. If you didn’t believe it after he won the season-opening Daytona 500, you should believe it now after wins at Watkins Glen three weeks ago and at Bristol this past Saturday. Logano is without question Kevin Harvick’s No. 1 rival from this point on. And don’t forget that both drivers were part of the final four in last year’s championship-deciding race at Homestead.
Key 2015 moments
Obviously, winning the season-opening Daytona 500 remains the biggest highlight thus far of both Logano’s season and career. But his win at Watkins Glen proves something very important: Logano is definitely peaking at the right time and should enter the Chase with a boatload of emotion and momentum.
What’s next
Logano is on fire, plain and simple. The masterful way he won at Bristol, riding the high line and then cutting down on Harvick again and again in the closing laps was arguably one of the finest driving performances I’ve seen from Logano in his career. And to think, he’s only 25 years old. I would not be surprised to see him cap off the 2015 season with a win in the finale and for the championship, just like he won the season opener.
1. Kevin Harvick
10 of 10
Previous ranking: 1st
Why he’s here
In 24 races, Kevin Harvick has two wins, 10 runner-up finishes and a career-best 17 top-five finishes. No one even comes close to him with that kind of consistency, not Jimmie Johnson, not Kyle Busch, not anyone.
Harvick is currently doing the same exact thing he did last year: peaking at the absolute right time. With the exception of his 42nd-place finish at Pocono earlier this month, Harvick has seven top-five and one other top-10 finish in his last nine starts. That’s championship deja vu, indeed.
Key 2015 moments
Not only does he have two wins, Harvick also has been the points leader since the season's third race. Granted, the points will be reset after Richmond, and Harvick will likely start the 16-driver Chase somewhere in the top five drivers, but it’ll be tough to pick against him as one of the top favorites to win again in 2015, just like he did in 2014.
What’s next
If Harvick were to win each of the last two races remaining in the regular season, that would tie him with Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch for most wins by a driver. And it likely would put Harvick as the top seed once the points are reset to start the Chase.
Sure, he has the incentive to win the championship again, but what better way to start the Chase—and the kickoff to win a second title in a row—than to start at the top once the points are reset.
Follow me on Twitter @JerryBonkowski
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