The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will take this week off with the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race set to take place this Saturday night. There will be a $1 million prize on the line for first place in the All-Star race. That should provide more than enough incentive for the 20-driver field. There won’t be any points up for grabs in the All-Star race, which makes this the perfect point in the season to establish a power ranking based on what we have seen so far this season.
Taking a look at the current standings, Kyle Larson and his No. 42 Chevrolet have been the best so far this season. He enters the week in first place. In second is Martin Truex Jr., who has had a fairly strong campaign. He’s the only Toyota in the top five and he occupies the No. 2 spot. In third place is Brad Keselowski. His No. 2 car is the only Ford in the top five. As for the remaining two spots, they go to Chase Elliott and Jamie McMurray.
On that note, here is a look at this week’s NASCAR top five power rankings.
1. Kyle Larson
Last Week: –
NASCAR Cup Championship Odds: +800
Larson has been the most consistent driver in the Sprint Cup Series all season with five top-five finishes and seven top-10 results in 11 starts. Larson delivered another strong performance last week when he avoided a major wreck at Kansas City in order to place sixth in the GOBOWLING.com 400. Larson currently owns a 44-point lead over Martin Truex Jr. at the top of the Sprint Cup standings. Now he will turn his attention to the All-Star race and the $1 million prize that will be on the line this Saturday night in Charlotte.
2. Martin Truex Jr.
Last Week: –
NASCAR Cup Championship Odds: +700
Truex Jr. secured his second win of the season at the GOBOWLING.com 400 last weekend. Truex led 104 laps and then pulled away on the final restart to take a lead he would not relinquish the rest of the way. Truex gave all of the credit to his team following his latest win and the reality is that they do deserve kudos for giving him a car that really showed its superiority on the restarts. Truex is second in the Sprting Cup points standings but his 15 playoff points are the most of any driver in the series right now.
3. Brad Keselowski
Last Week: –
NASCAR Cup Championship Odds: +700
Keselowski put on a dominant display at Kansas last week where he recovered from two laps down to finish second in the GOBOWLING.com 400. Keselowski not sits third in the points standings just 67 points back of Larson for top spot. Keselowski should benefit from the return of his crew chief Paul Wolfe in time for the Coca-Cola 600 in two weeks.
4. Jimmie Johnson
Last Week: –
NASCAR Cup Championship Odds: +650
Johnson was well on his way to another top-10 finish when he spun out with four laps remaining. He finished a disappointing 24th at Kansas but that won’t change much in the overall picture. Johnson has shown that he is capable of turning it up when he needs to. He ranks eighth in the points standings but he is one of only three drivers with multiple Sprint Cup wins this season. Johnson is also a four-time All-Star race winner so he will have his eye on the $1 million prize again among the favorites to win in Charlotte this weekend.
5. Chase Elliott
Last Week: –
NASCAR Cup Championship Odds: +1000
Elliott still ranks in the top-five in the points standings. However, he is at risk of falling outside of the top-five in our power rankings if he doesn’t get back on track soon. Elliott hasn’t finished higher than 24th in each of his last three starts, including a disappointing 29th place finish at Kansas last week. Elliott had finished in the top-10 in six of his first eight starts so he can’t be completely overlooked just yet. However, the driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet will need to turn things around or risk falling out of the top-five before the month of May is over.
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