NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings after 2018 Brickyard 400
By Asher Fair
Only the 10 playoff races remain on the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series schedule. How do the sport’s 30 full-time drivers rank against one another with the regular season in the books?
Team Penske’s Brad Keselowski earned his first and second victories of the 36-race 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season in the final two races of the 26-race regular season, the Bojangles’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway and the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard, more commonly known as the Brickyard 400, Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
In the matter of just over one week, Keselowski became the 10th driver to win at least one race this season to just the fifth driver to win at least two races this season. He is now tied with Stewart-Haas Racing’s Clint Bowyer behind only the “big three” with two wins so far this year.
The “big three” consist of Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch and Furniture Row Racing’s Martin Truex Jr. They have earned seven, six and four victories, respectively, so far in 2018.
But are the “big three” really the “big three” anymore? Just one of the last five races has been won by a “big three” driver. Through the first 24 races of the season, two races in a row had not been won by a non-“big three” driver or drivers, but that has since changed, as non-“big three” drivers have won each of the last three races.
How did Keselowski’s victory in the final race of the regular season affect the NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings? Here are the formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings and the non-formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings following the Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard.
To see how the formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings are calculated, click here.