NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings after 2018 Bank of America Roval 400
By Asher Fair
How do the 30 full-time NASCAR Cup Series drivers stack up against one another with the round of 16 in the books and the round of 12 set to get underway?
Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney earned his first victory of the 2018 NASCAR Cup Series season in the 29th race on the 36-race schedule, which was the Bank of America Roval 400 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval.
Blaney won the 110-lap race around the 17-turn, 2.28-mile (3.669-kilometer) Charlotte Motor Speedway roval in Concord, North Carolina, which was the third and final race of the first round of the playoffs, the round of 16, after appearing to be slated for a third place finish.
Race leaders Martin Truex Jr. of Furniture Row Racing and Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports made contact heading into the final turn of the lap of the race, jeopardizing both of their chances of winning the race and allowing Blaney to capitalize.
How did Blaney’s victory and the rest of the action from the final race of the round of 16 affect the NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings? Here are the non-formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings heading into the round of 12.
| Rank | Driver | Car, Team, Manufacturer | Last Rank | Trend |
| 1 | Kevin Harvick | #4, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 3 | +2 |
| 2 | Kyle Busch | #18, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 1 | -1 |
| 3 | Martin Truex Jr. | #78, Furniture Row Racing, Toyota | 2 | -1 |
| 4 | Brad Keselowski | #2, Team Penske, Ford | 4 | 0 |
| 5 | Ryan Blaney | #12, Team Penske, Ford | 14 | +9 |
| 6 | Clint Bowyer | #14, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 13 | +7 |
| 7 | Kurt Busch | #41, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 10 | +3 |
| 8 | Chase Elliott | #9, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 8 | 0 |
| 9 | Joey Logano | #22, Team Penske, Ford | 7 | -2 |
| 10 | Alex Bowman | #88, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 11 | +1 |
| 11 | Kyle Larson | #42, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet | 6 | -5 |
| 12 | Aric Almirola | #10, Stewart-Haas Racing, Ford | 5 | -7 |
| 13 | Jimmie Johnson | #48, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 12 | -1 |
| 14 | Austin Dillon | #3, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet | 9 | -5 |
| 15 | Denny Hamlin | #11, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 16 | +1 |
| 16 | Erik Jones | #20, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 15 | -1 |
| 17 | Ryan Newman | #31, Richard Childress Racing, Chevrolet | 17 | 0 |
| 18 | Jamie McMurray | #1, Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet | 21 | +3 |
| 19 | Daniel Suarez | #19, Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota | 20 | +1 |
| 20 | Paul Menard | #21, Wood Brothers Racing, Ford | 19 | -1 |
| 21 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | #17, Roush Fenway Racing, Ford | 18 | -3 |
| 22 | A.J. Allmendinger | #47, JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet | 24 | +2 |
| 23 | William Byron | #24, Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet | 22 | -1 |
| 24 | Chris Buescher | #37, JTG Daugherty Racing, Chevrolet | 23 | -1 |
| 25 | David Ragan | #38, Front Row Motorsports, Ford | 25 | 0 |
| 26 | Michael McDowell | #34, Front Row Motorsports, Ford | 26 | 0 |
| 27 | Kasey Kahne | #95, Leavine Family Racing, Chevrolet | 27 | 0 |
| 28 | Ty Dillon | #13, Germain Racing, Chevrolet | 29 | +1 |
| 29 | Darrell Wallace Jr. | #43, Richard Petty Motorsports, Chevrolet | 28 | -1 |
| 30 | Matt DiBenedetto | #32, Go Fas Racing, Ford | 30 | 0 |
Biggest Movers
Up: Ryan Blaney (+9)
Down: Aric Almirola (-7)
Here are the formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings following the Bank of America Roval 400. To see how the formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings are calculated, click here.