NASCAR: Driver Power Rankings after Phoenix – Kevin Harvick takes over
By Asher Fair
![AVONDALE, AZ - MARCH 11: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Skittles Sweet Heat Toyota, and Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John's Ford, lead the field in a restart during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series TicketGuardian 500 at ISM Raceway on March 11, 2018 in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images) AVONDALE, AZ - MARCH 11: Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 Skittles Sweet Heat Toyota, and Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Jimmy John's Ford, lead the field in a restart during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series TicketGuardian 500 at ISM Raceway on March 11, 2018 in Avondale, Arizona. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/c15277096d918e41ba4cb5a1a7e7904bf3ca7227cfffe8f647599dbe3aadb647.jpg)
Non-formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings
Rank | Driver | Car, Team, Manufacturer | Last Rank | Trend |
1 | Kevin Harvick | #4, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 1 | 0 |
2 | Kyle Busch | #18, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 8 | +3 |
3 | Martin Truex Jr. | #78, Furniture Row Racing, Toyota | 7 | +1 |
4 | Denny Hamlin | #11, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 1 | +4 |
5 | Joey Logano | #22, Team Penske, Ford | 2 | -2 |
6 | Ryan Blaney | #12, Team Penske, Ford | 3 | -4 |
7 | Aric Almirola | #10, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 11 | +3 |
8 | Clint Bowyer | #14, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 6 | +4 |
9 | Brad Keselowski | #2, Team Penske, Ford | 5 | -2 |
10 | Kyle Larson | #42, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet | 12 | -4 |
11 | Chase Elliott | #9, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 14 | +10 |
12 | Erik Jones | #20, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 16 | +1 |
13 | Kurt Busch | #41, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 9 | +2 |
14 | Ryan Newman | #31, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet | 20 | 0 |
15 | Austin Dillon | #3, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet | 10 | -4 |
16 | Paul Menard | #21, Wood Brothers Racing, Ford | 13 | -7 |
17 | Daniel Suarez | #19, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 23 | +8 |
18 | Alex Bowman | #88, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 19 | -2 |
19 | William Byron | #24, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 24 | +7 |
20 | Jimmie Johnson | #48, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 27 | +2 |
21 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | #17, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford | 17 | -4 |
22 | Chris Buescher | #37, JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet | 21 | -4 |
23 | Darrell Wallace Jr. | #43, Richard Petty Motorsports, Chevrolet | 15 | -4 |
24 | Trevor Bayne | #6, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford | 26 | -4 |
25 | A.J. Allmendinger | #47, JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet | 25 | +2 |
26 | Michael McDowell | #34, Front Row Motorsports, Ford | 22 | +3 |
27 | David Ragan | #38, Front Row Motorsports, Ford | 29 | -3 |
28 | Jamie McMurray | #1, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet | 18 | 0 |
29 | Kasey Kahne | #95, Leavine Family Racing, Chevrolet | 28 | -6 |
30 | Matt DiBenedetto | #32, Go Fas Racing, Ford | 30 | 0 |
31 | Ty Dillon | #13, Germain Racing, Chevrolet | 31 | 0 |
32 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | #00, StarCom Racing, Chevrolet | 33 | 0 |
33 | Gray Gaulding | #23, BK Racing, Toyota | 32 | 0 |
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Biggest Movers
Up: Chase Elliott (-10)
Down: Paul Menard (-7)
After winning three consecutive races following the season opener in Daytona, Kevin Harvick is finally up to the top spot in both the formulated and the non-formulated power rankings.
As a result of the fact that he finished in 31st place at Daytona, his average finish was a huge reason that he was unable to climb to the #1 spot after winning at Atlanta and Las Vegas, which shows just how important average finish is in terms of calculating these power rankings moving forward. Will drivers continue to shift several positions in these rankings after each and every race even as the number of races contested starts to stack up?
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The next NASCAR Cup Series race is set to take place on Sunday, March 18th at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California. That race, the Auto Club 400, is set to be broadcast live on Fox on that date starting at 3:30 pm ET.