NASCAR Cup Series: 2019 Playoff Driver Power Rankings

By Asher Fair | Sep 10, 2019

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - SEPTEMBER 08: Ryan Newman, driver of the #6 Acorns Ford, Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 McDonald's Chevrolet, Erik Jones, driver of the #20 STANLEY Wish For Our Heros Toyota, William Byron, driver of the #24 Liberty University Chevrolet, Martin Truex Jr, driver of the #19 AOI Toyota, Clint Bowyer, driver of the #14 Rush/Cummins Ford, Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Wabash National Ford, Chase Elliott, driver of the #9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet, Denny Hamlin, driver of the #11 FedEx Express Toyota, Alex Bowman, driver of the #88 Nationwide Chevrolet, Kurt Busch, driver of the #1 Monster Energy Chevrolet, Kyle Busch, driver of the #18 M&M's Toyota, Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford, Brad Keselowski, driver of the #2 Discount Tire Ford, Kevin Harvick, driver of the #4 Mobil 1 Ford, Aric Almirola, driver of the #10 Smithfield/Meijer Ford, pose for a photo with the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series trophy to start the playoffs following the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Big Machine Vodka 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on September 08, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images) /

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INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – SEPTEMBER 07: Kyle Larson, driver of the #42 McDonald’s Chevrolet (Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images) /

#12 through #10

Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet. WILLIAM BYRON. #12. . No. 24

Crew chief Chad Knaus nearly got a struggling Jimmie Johnson to the round of 12 last season, and he would have had Johnson not wrecked on the final lap of the round of 16 finale. William Byron, meanwhile, isn’t struggling ahead of his first career Cup Series playoff appearance. He recorded five top eight finishes in the final 10 races of the regular season, including three top four finishes, the first three top four finishes of his career. He is also the only driver who hasn’t finished a single race outside of the top 24 all year long. He should advance to at least the round of 12 even though he is the lone playoff driver with zero career victories.

Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota. ERIK JONES. #11. . No. 20

Erik Jones is another driver who has been plagued by inconsistency. He is set to enter the playoffs with one victory and three finishes of 18th place or lower in the last four races of the regular season, a four-race stint that follows a four-race streak of top four finishes. He is capable of winning the championship if he can just be consistent, as evidenced by the fact that only three drivers in the field, all former champions, have finished in the top three in more races than he has this year.

Chip Ganassi Racing, Chevrolet. KYLE LARSON. #10. . No. 42

There’s not much to say about Kyle Larson other than it almost seems as though he has forgotten how to win. Aside of Ryan Newman and the winless Byron, his win drought of more than two years is the longest among the 16 playoff drivers. He has run well as of late with eight top 10 finishes, including five top five finishes, in the final 11 races of the regular season, but there always seems to be something that keeps him from winning, or in some cases, securing a good result. He has never advanced to the round of 8, and the 2019 season just doesn’t feel like it will be the season to produce such an appearance, but he could make things interesting if he does.

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