NASCAR Power Rankings: Kevin Harvick sets the tone
By Asher Fair
Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. have secured their spots in the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4 for the third consecutive season.
For the third consecutive season, Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick is set to go to the NASCAR Cup Series Championship 4.
He is set to join Joe Gibbs Racing’s Martin Truex Jr., who has also advanced to the round every year since 2017, and two other drivers who have not yet been determined after winning the second race of the round of 8 of the four-round, 10-race playoffs, the AAA Texas 500, at Texas Motor Speedway.
How did Harvick’s victory in this 334-lap race around the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) Texas Motor Speedway oval in Fort Worth, Texas affect the NASCAR Cup Series Power Rankings?
These NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings were calculated using a formula, which you can see here. But before they are revealed, take a look below at some of the highlights of this edition of these rankings.
Alternatively, click here to get started.
NOTE: Front Row Motorsports rookie Matt Tifft has been removed from these power rankings, as he was sidelined for the remainder of the season after suffering a seizure at Martinsville Speedway last Saturday morning and missing the race at the track the following afternoon.
NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings Analysis
The AAA Texas 500 set the tone for the round of 8 finale, which will ultimately determine which two drivers will join Kevin Harvick and Martin Truex Jr. in the Championship 4.
There are no drivers who are fewer than 20 points from the Championship 4 cut line, above it or below it, so it may very well take a victory by one of the four drivers below it or an awful race by one of the two drivers above it to change the playoff picture.
Right now, that playoff picture indicates a repeat Championship 4 from last year, as Joe Gibbs Racing’s Kyle Busch currently sits above that cut line along with reigning champion Joey Logano of Team Penske.
Other than the fact that the two round of 8 winners are now atop these formulated NASCAR Cup Series Driver Power Rankings in the order of more recent victory, there were no significant changes in this week’s rankings. One round of 8 driver did dip below the top eight as a result of a dreadful start to the round.