Darlington Raceway hosted the regular season finale with the Cook Out Southern 500. With the playoff drama building, the race lived up to the hype. The cutline battle between Bubba Wallace and Chris Buescher took center stage for most of the race. However, that became irrelevant as Chase Briscoe pulled out the upset to lock himself into the playoffs. A tame Southern 500 for the majority of the race, the final stage saw a bit of chaos take over. However, the drivers who ran well most of the night managed to stay in solid positions. Now that the playoff field is set, how many of those drivers will feature in the FitStop Performance Week 26Â Power Rankings compared to Week 25?
#10 – Ryan Blaney
Previous Ranking: 8
Bad luck sometimes is all that can be said for a weekend. Ryan Blaney had a short Southern 500, wrecking out on Lap 3. Due to no fault of his own, Blaney got sandwiched into the Turn 2 wall after Martin Truex Jr got loose under him. Despite a Top-10 qualifying effort, Blaney did not get to enjoy the benefits of a fast race car. Still, he looks forward to a playoff schedule that is favorable to the reigning champion.
#9 – William Byron
Previous Ranking: 10
Up one spot from last week, William Byron ran well most of the race. While still lacking that race winning speed from earlier this season, Byron found himself running Top-10 all day. Both stages saw Byron scoring points, with a Top-5 finish for Stage 2. However, Byron got caught up in the big accident toward the end of the race. Looking ahead, Byron hopes that his two summer wins at Atlanta and Watkins Glen can be replicated in the playoffs.
#8 – Bubba Wallace
Previous Ranking: 9
It was a roller coaster of emotions for Bubba Wallace and the 23 team on Sunday. Starting out on pole, Wallace led every lap leading to the first green flag pit stop. Although Kyle Larson took the lead from him, Wallace managed to ride well in second place. However, Stage 2 was not as kind as Wallace spun his tires on the restart and ran in the back half of the Top-10. During most of the final stage, it looked to be too little, too late for his playoff hopes. Then he surged ahead while Chris Buescher fell down the leaderboard. Ultimately, the Chase Briscoe win nullified Wallace’s ruined chances after getting caught up in the Lap 345 wreck.
#7 – Chris Buescher
Previous Ranking: 7
The Southern 500 represented the downfall of Chris Buescher’s playoff hopes in 2024. While a lot of talk is circling around Kansas and spring Darlington, the simple fact for the 17 team was how stage points killed them this year. This past weekend was no different. Buescher missed out on the playoffs by 6 points thanks to Chase Briscoe’s win. If Buescher could have managed to pull ahead in the Top-10, he would have had a shot at pointing his way despite the upset win. Instead, 1 point scored across both stages helps Buescher fall short despite a sixth place finish.
#6 – Chase Elliott
Previous Ranking: 4
What a mediocre race for Chase Elliott. During Stage 2, Elliott fell a lap down and never demonstrated that Hendrick speed. It felt reminiscent of last year where Kyle Larson and William Byron had great speed while Alex Bowman and Elliott lagged behind. Thanks to the cautions during the final stage, Elliott managed to get back on the lead lap and finish with a respectable eleventh. Heading into the playoffs, Elliott is a bit of a mystery driver. He has been consistent, but the lack of winning will make some pause in predicting a deep playoff run.
#5 – Christopher Bell
Previous Ranking: 6
Since Christopher Bell helped push Chase Briscoe to the win, does this mean Toyota is upset that he helped another Ford get into the playoffs? Jokes aside, Bell had a quietly strong Southern 500. A consistent presence in the Top-5, Bell managed to have a chance to win at the end on the final restart. A championship favorite heading into the next 10 races, will Christopher Bell be able to continue his streak of Championship Four appearances?
#4 – Brad Keselowski
Previous Ranking: 3
Despite winning the spring race at Darlington, Brad Keselowski felt off the mark throughout the Southern 500. While he was consistently a Top-15 entry, he struggled to break into the Top-10 with much vigor. Dropping down a spot this week, Keselowski enters the playoffs as the only RFK driver there. The big question for Keselowski is if he can survive the road courses in the first two rounds via the superspeedways.
#3 – Denny Hamlin
Previous Ranking: 5
Shooting up to two spots this week, Denny Hamlin and Chris Gabehart utilized a different strategy than most on Sunday. Running a bit longer on the green flag runs, Hamlin used his newer tires to knife his way through the field. At the end of the race, he was restarting in the Top-3 before pitting during the Lap 337 caution. That decision ended up putting Hamlin in the mid-pack and helping to start the big wreck on Lap 345. For the playoff run, Hamlin will have to get rid of the bad luck that has lingered around him. The 11 car has been fast all season, but the finishes lately have not reflected that speed.
#2 – Tyler Reddick
Previous Ranking: 1
Down from number one this week is Tyler Reddick. Although he managed to nab the (drivers) regular season championship, Reddick slips out of the top spot this week. Not so much for how well he drove Sunday, but due to how dominate the new number one performed. Reddick’s drive on Sunday needs to be commended though, as the 23XI Racing driver was dealing with a severe illness in the car. Once that sickness clears, Reddick will look to make his first Championship Four appearance of his career.
#1 – Kyle Larson
Previous Ranking: 2
After sweeping the stages and leading 263 laps, Kyle Larson regains his crown as the number one driver in the FitStop Performance Power Rankings. Chaos was the only way that Kyle Larson could have lost the Southern 500. Once the cautions started to fly, the dominance of Larson’s night started to matter less. Truly, Larson was undid by Ross Chastain pulling a Hail Mary in an attempt to win his way into the playoffs. That allowed Chase Briscoe to slingshot around Larson (and others) to make essentially the pass for the win. Now for the playoffs, the big question (as per usual with Larson) is can he prevent the race-ruining mistakes? Also, will Larson survive the superspeedways?
Honorable Mention
Ty Gibbs – Before the late wreck, Ty Gibbs was on his way to picking up a third straight Top-5 finish.
Ross Chastian – As mentioned earlier, Ross Chastain attempted to pull some desperate pit strategies to find victory lane. Ultimately, a Top-5 finish is too little for the Melon Man to compete for a championship.
Carson Hocevar – After qualifying on the front row, Carson Hocevar’s race went downhill quickly after the drop of the green flag. A self-spin followed by heavy right side damage in two different incidents saw the 77 finish behind the wall.
The brainchild of Hunter Smith, FitStop Performance is dedicated to training the toughest around – from motorsports athletes to multi-tasking soccer moms. He desires to help everyone who walks through the doors of his gym to perform optimally throughout life. FitStop Performance jumped on board with Pit Pass Network in 2024 to sponsor the weekly FitStop Performance Rankings which tracks the highest performing NASCAR Cup Series drivers throughout the season. Give them a follow (Facebook, Instagram, X) and thank them for their sponsorship!
