In the most unique race of the season, the Bristol dirt race provided an interesting set of Top-10 finishers. The usual contenders found themselves down the running order, either for being bad on dirt or having issues that caused they to retire early. For the power rankings, Bristol dirt is a bit difficult to factor into the overall picture of the season. There is not a similar race to it on the schedule, which means success or failure at this race does not indicate anything moving forward. When looking at the looping data, even teams with the best equipment could not overcome driver issues. Despite this, the Bristol dirt race did have an impact on the power rankings. Does Kyle Larson remain number one two weeks in a row? Did a driver fall out of the Top-10? How does this week’s power rankings shape up?
#10 – Chris Buescher
Previous Ranking:Â Honorable Mention
Chris Buescher cracks into the power rankings at number ten. For some, it may be a surprise to see Buescher in the top ten. Through eight races, Buescher has only collected two Top-10s. However, Buescher has run much better than what his finishes show. Outside of Las Vegas, Buescher has brought speed to every track. Even his poor finish at Richmond was not down to lack of speed, rather a bad pit stop (Buescher ran 45 of the fastest laps).
Bristol dirt was another example of a good race spoiled by a poor finish for the RFK driver. After working to improve his car all day, Buescher was about to crack the Top-10 until the last caution of the race. Then, Buescher got caught behind Ryan Blaney’s spin that did not bring out a caution. In one moment, Buescher went from a potential Top-10 to an eighteenth place finish. If Buescher is to remain in the power rankings though, he needs a good showing at Martinsville. There were a handful of drivers who were under consideration for this spot.
#9 – Brad Keselowski
Previous Ranking:Â 8
Unlike his RFK teammate, Brad Keselowski never found a rhythm on the dirt. Keselowski spun out a couple of times during the race. He failed to run a single lap inside the Top-15. Yet, he still had a better finish than Chris Buescher. Racing can be like that at times. Keselowski’s spot in the power rankings is secured by drivers struggling behind him. Much like COTA, Bristol dirt seems to be a race where Keselowski simply did not have the ability to maintain speed. Both RFK drivers could use a strong Martinsville run to help them secure their spots in next week’s power rankings.
#8 – Kevin Harvick
Previous Ranking:Â 6
Dropping a couple of spots this week is Kevin Harvick. Despite his Top-10 finish, Harvick was not a Top-10 driver on the day. Only 8% of his laps for the race were run inside the Top-15. If not for the late race restart, Harvick’s finish would have likely been on the edge of the Top-15 rather than the Top-10. Even with his mediocre dirt race, Harvick is still securely the top Ford in the field.
#7 – Tyler Reddick
Previous Ranking: 10
Second place finishes on Bristol dirt and Tyler Reddick seem to go hand-in-hand. For the second year in a row, Reddick finishes runner-up on the dirt. In this year’s edition of the Bristol dirt race, Reddick was seemingly setting up Christopher Bell for a last lap pass before Ross Chastain’s spin brought out the caution (thanks Ross). After a mediocre running at Richmond, Reddick climbs the power rankings to seventh this week with his strong performance on the dirt.
#6 – Kyle Busch
Previous Ranking:Â 7
Moving up one spot is Kyle Busch. If not for his suspension breaking late in the race, Busch would have added another Top-10 finish to his 2023 season. Busch ran up front for the majority of the race (while he was running). At the end of Stage 2, Busch battled Tyler Reddick for the stage win. Both drivers traded slide job passes, with Reddick getting the better of the two. This was the first race since Auto Club where Busch looked to have race contending speed.
#5 – Ross Chastain
Previous Ranking:Â 3
Although he might be a farmer, Ross Chastain did not seem to enjoy his time in the dirt on Sunday. Bristol dirt marks the first time Chastain did not run at least one fastest lap this season. Plus, this is the least amount of time Chastain ran in the Top-15. His average running position was twenty-second. As mentioned in the introduction, Bristol dirt is a one-off race where the results do not imply much for the remainder of the season. Chastain will likely bounce back at Martinsville with a Top-10 run.
#4 – Alex Bowman
Previous Ranking: 4
Much like Ross Chastain, Bristol dirt marks the worst race of the season (so far) for Alex Bowman. His worst finish of the season ballooned his average finish to 9.8. Bowman ran slightly better throughout Easter’s race compared to the Melon Man, which is why Bowman edges Chastain for fourth on the ranking. As with a lot of drivers on this list, Bowman’s dirt adventures will surely be a one-off and Martinsville will see the return of a good performance.
#3 – William Byron
Previous Ranking:Â 2
It was a tough decision on how to rank the top three drivers. Based on Bristol dirt alone, the choice would be clear. However, factoring in the entire season up until now made it difficult. With that said, William Byron finds himself ranked third this week. Byron’s dirt run was slightly better than mediocre. He averaged a twelfth place running position at the race and managed to finish in the Top-15. When the differences between the top three drivers are minimal, a mid-level race can see the former top driver slip down to third.
#2 – Christopher Bell
Previous Ranking: 5
The highest climber this week is this week’s race winner, Christopher Bell. As mentioned with William Byron, Bell barely slipped by Byron based on the strength of his Bristol dirt run. What made the largest difference for Bell was choosing not to pit at the stage break after Stage 2. That gave him the lead, which he did not give up for the remainder of the race. Bell lead the final 100 laps to nab his first win of 2023. This is also his fifth Top-5 this season.
#1 – Kyle Larson
Previous Ranking: 1
Kyle Larson remains on top of the power rankings for one more week. While Christopher Bell dominated the last stage, Kyle Larson dominated the early portion of the race. Leading the second most laps (75) on the night, Larson collected the Stage 1 win. Where Larson ran into trouble was with Ryan Preece.
On Lap 79, Larson ran Preece into the outside wall, causing Preece to lose control and spin out. Almost 100 laps later, Preece returned the favor by squeezing Larson into the outside wall. What happened next was either Larson trying to turn down into Preece or Larson’s car broke based on the damage from hitting the wall and the car drove down into Preece. That contact caused Larson to hit the outside wall again before retiring for the event. Larson’s self spin prior to his second run in with Preece brought him back into the pack.
Despite his DNF, Larson’s early run speed and the overall strength of his performances this season keep him atop the power rankings for this week.
Honorable Mentions
Joey Logano – Due to a miserable Sunday night, Logano falls out of the power rankings. This will likely be a short reprieve outside the power rankings though.
Ty Gibbs – Ty Gibbs has four straight Top-10s. He was contender for the tenth spot, but his looping data hurts him. While he has those Top-10s, he has not been a Top-10 driver for the duration of the race.
Ryan Blaney – Similar to Gibbs, Ryan Blaney was heavily considered for that tenth spot. Prior to late contact with Chase Briscoe, Blaney was shaping up for a Top-5 finish. Despite his great run prior to that, Blaney is coming off back-to-back poor weekends.
