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) /

5 of 6

DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 01: Chase Elliott, driver of the #9 NAPA Throwback Chevrolet, and Joey Logano, driver of the #22 Shell Pennzoil Ford (Photo by Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images) /

#6 through #4

. No. 19. Joe Gibbs Racing, Toyota. MARTIN TRUEX JR.. #6

Martin Truex Jr. may be one of the biggest wild cards of the playoffs, as hard as that may be to believe. He finished the regular season tied atop the wins list, but he hasn’t won a race in over two and a half months. Additionally, he was a non-factor in each of the regular season’s final three races after going on a four-race streak of top six results. Is the 2017 champion primed to make his second championship run in three years, or is he going cold at the wrong time?

#5. . No. 22. Team Penske, Ford. JOEY LOGANO

Joey Logano proved last season that you don’t need a stellar regular season to win the championship. Though he only finished this year’s regular season with two victories, he had a better regular season this year than last year, nearly winning the regular season title, and he did it despite the fact that his second place in the regular season finale was his first top 12 finish in over a month and a half. Could he be heating up at the right time for the second year in a row?

No. 9. Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet. CHASE ELLIOTT. #4.

Chase Elliott has quietly been one of the most consistent drivers heading into the playoffs, posting an average finish of 8.60 in the final five races of the regular season, the second best among all drivers. He finished the regular season as the highest Chevrolet driver in the championship standings despite the fact that he endured a seven-race drought of top 10 finishes during which his average finish was a disastrous 26.43. For the first time, we can say that, entering the playoffs, he has proven that he can contend for race victories regularly. He is the only Chevrolet driver who has won more than one race in the last two years, and he has won five. After 2017 was the first season since the 2000 season during which no Chevrolet drivers finished in the top four in the standings, can the fan-favorite get Chevrolet back to the Championship 4?

Home/NASCAR Cup Series