NASCAR welcomed back a crown jewel race this past weekend. The Brickyard 400 returned the Cup Series to the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. With the prestige of said race back, did the race weekend live up to the anticipation? Well, sort of. For the majority of the race, it was a bit of a slog. However, the closing laps turned into a very compelling affair. Brad Keselowski was stretching gas to the maximum. Ryan Blaney seemed to be in the best position, but Kyle Larson lurked right behind him in third. If not for the comedy of errors that is Kyle Busch, that finish might have cemented the Brickyard 400 as a fantastic event. Instead, NASCAR officiating got in the way of the fun. As NASCAR heads into the Olympic break, will Week 21‘s shake up be topped by Week 22 of the FitStop Performance Power Rankings?
#10 – Bubba Wallace
Previous Ranking: Honorable Mention
For the first time since Week 2, Bubba Wallace finds himself in the power rankings. With the flurry of new winners during the summer, Wallace’s path to the playoffs looked unfavorable. After back to back strong runs, Wallace now sits only 7 points out of a playoff spot. A Top-5 and Stage 2 win at Indy were great results for the 23 team. Now, Wallace will return from the Olympic break heading to some of his best tracks.
#9 – William Byron
Previous Ranking: 9
The summer months have not been kind to William Byron in the NextGen era. 2024 has seemingly been especially harsh, as Byron has looked distant from his early season form. Indianapolis was another bad result to add on to the list. Getting shuffled down the leaderboard due to pit strategy, Byron got caught up in an accident for an early DNF.
#8 – Chris Buescher
Previous Ranking: 8
Not much went right for Chris Buescher this past weekend. After a strong practice showing, Buescher qualified 23rd. From there, the 17 car suffered two instances of tire woes during Stage 1. This put Buescher 2 laps down early in the race. Buescher struggled to get his laps back, most excruciatingly missing out to Cody Ware when slowing for Martin Truex Jr getting into the wall. Still, Buescher remains ahead of Ross Chastain in points and will be heading to the three races where he won last year after the Olympics end.
#7 – Christopher Bell
Previous Ranking: 6
After looking like a world beater a month ago, Christopher Bell is slowly sliding back down the rankings. While he did net a Top-5 this weekend, Bell was absent from any serious conversation about being one of the top cars. Running mid-pack most race, Bell managed to pick up 2 points in Stage 2. However, it was a bit of a mundane race for the 20 team. Did Bell peak too early or will he find the clutch gene again in the playoffs?
#6 – Ryan Blaney
Previous Ranking: 7
Despite the whining on the radio and after the race, Ryan Blaney had a solid day in Indianapolis. During the final stint of the race, Blaney looked to be in prime position to pick up his third win on the season. Somehow, Brad Keselowski managed to not run out of fuel until coming to the first overtime restart. Blaney, who chose to line up outside the 6, failed to take advantage of being the control car and lost the lead to Kyle Larson. Still, a podium result at the track his boss owns is not too shabby.
#5 – Brad Keselowski
Previous Ranking: 5
After Indianapolis (and Nashville), NASCAR fans should have learned at least one thing about fuel mileage races: Steve Letarte has no idea what he is talking about. To be fair, the Ford fuel mileage has been impressive when crafty veterans like Brad Keselowski are at the helm. An early blending violation put Keselowski behind the eight ball early. However, the team used strategy to slowly climb their way forward. Keselowski saved enough fuel to make it 400 miles, but the race went into overtime. Despite the poor finish, Keselowski managed to lead 35 laps and was one Kyle Busch away from his second Brickyard victory.
#4 – Denny Hamlin
Previous Ranking: 4
In terms of results, there might not be a driver more unlucky than Denny Hamlin right now. Other than Pocono, Hamlin has failed to finish in the Top-10 since Gateway. That is not for a lack of speed though. During that 7 race stretch, the 11 car has led 165 laps while winning 3 stages. Hamlin still feels like a championship contender. He simply needs more luck when it comes to finishing these races. Rain, fuel, and the mid-pack have not been kind to Hamlin this summer.
#3 – Chase Elliott
Previous Ranking: 2
Down a spot this week, Chase Elliott picked up a Top-10 in the return to the oval. However, it was not without serious frustration from the Hendrick Motorsports driver. During his first pit stop, Elliott exceeded the blending limits placed upon the drivers by NASCAR. Clearly displeased with this penalty, Elliott went on a verbal tirade for multiple laps about the unclear standards set by NASCAR. Despite this, the 9 team managed to recover via strategy to score points in Stage 2 and remain within striking distance of new points leader Kyle Larson.
#2 – Kyle Larson
Previous Ranking: 3
It was fun to watch Kyle Larson knife his way through the field during the long green flag sting at the end of the race. Coming from 23rd, Larson knew he was good on fuel while the entire field ahead of him was saving. This allowed Larson to weave through traffic up to third in quick order. Due to aero blocking and Ryan Blaney no longer saving fuel, Larson stalled out in third. However, Larson become the fortunate son of NASCAR when Brad Keselowski peeled off to pit road coming to the green flag. The preferred lane allowed Larson to pass Blaney on the restart, essentially securing his win.
#1 – Tyler Reddick
Previous Ranking: 1
Although these recent races have made him feel like an “always bridesmaid”, Tyler Reddick remains on top of the FitStop Performance Power Rankings this week. As said last week, no one is hotter in the Cup Series right now than Reddick. Another runner up finish sees his streak of Top-6 finishes extend to 5 races. Over the past 9 races, Reddick has finished worse than 8th only once. It has been an impressive stretch for the 45 team, which is why Reddick heads into the Olympic break as the #1 in these power rankings.
Honorable Mention
Alex Bowman – Dropping out of the rankings, Alex Bowman wrecked out of the Brickyard 400 after a mediocre run.
Todd Gilliland – Todd Gilliland has quietly been putting together a strong summer in the 38 car. His Top-10 at Indy marked his second in 3 races and fourth overall on the season.
Carson Hocevar – Unfairly blamed for a caution caused by Ryan Blaney, Carson Hocevar continues to be a Top-20 machine. His 12th at Indy marks his 7th Top-20 in the past 8 races.
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