A season filled with stellar races, controversial officiating, and the weakest champion in Cup Series history has come to a close. Joey Logano, a driver once eliminated from the playoffs, came through in a clutch moment to hoist his third championship. During a middling Phoenix race, the Team Penske Championshp Four duo dominated, leaving little drama about which team would bring home the title. While the closing laps offered some tension, ultimately the entire race felt underwhelming. It is a bit of a shame, as the 2024 season largely delivered with the majority of the races. As for the power rankings, this will mark another season where the champion will not rank number one at the end. Last week, there was a new number one crowned. Will the FitStop Performance Week 36Â Power Rankings offer up another change at the top?
#10 – Chris Buescher
Previous Ranking: 10
Bouncing back from a disastrous Martinsville weekend, Chris Buescher completed his 2024 campaign with his third straight Phoenix Top-10. Surging through the field during Stage 1, Buescher remained a Top-10 car once Stage 2 commenced. Ultimately, a poorly timed caution trapped Buescher behind the field on the final restart. If not for that, there is a chance he could have driven to a Top-5 finish.
#9 – Alex Bowman
Previous Ranking: 7
Dropping 2 spots this week, Alex Bowman had a quiet season finale. Maintaining within the Top-15, Bowman never rose up the leaderboard too high. Although it was not a poor race, most of the drivers behind him in power rankings had stronger days. A bit of sour note to end the 2024 season for Bowman.
#8 – Joey Logano
Previous Ranking: 9
Complain all you want, Joey Logano earned that championship. When it mattered most, Logano and the 22 team stepped up to win his second championship in 3 seasons. Leading the second most laps, Logano found long run speed late. While he did not have the best car, his moves on the last restart grabbed him the lead and gave him a cushion from his charging teammate. At the end of the day, Logano goes home with the trophy and pride, while everyone else can argue about the playoff format.
#7 – Tyler Reddick
Previous Ranking: 8
A poor playoff run ends with disappointment for Tyler Reddick. It was clear from the onset that Reddick would not be able to compete with his fellow Championship Four drivers. Despite making aggressive moves on restarts, Reddick could not maintain pace. After winning the regular season title, Reddick’s final race ends with a Top-10 and fourth in the standings.
#6 – Denny Hamlin
Previous Ranking: 5
For his final ride with FedEx, Denny Hamlin went out with a whimper. Similar to Tyler Reddick, Denny Hamlin’s playoff run was one of struggle. After missing out on the Championship Four, Hamlin helped extend Joe Gibbs Racing’s win drought. Unable to find himself in the Top-10 by the race’s end, Hamlin will look forward to more litigation with his team’s lawsuit against NASCAR.
#5 – Ryan Blaney
Previous Ranking: 6
Second place has been a familiar result for Ryan Blaney at Phoenix. For the third straight Championship Race, Blaney has been the runner-up driver. Last year, it was good enough to win him the championship. However, this season sees him fall one spot short of going back-to-back. Blaney had the best car of the Championship Four. Unfortunately, Phoenix’s passing limitations and dirty air spoiled Blaney’s final charge for the championship.
#4 – Kyle Larson
Previous Ranking: 4
Hendrick Motorsports could not compete with Team Penske on Sunday. Despite putting in a year’s worth of effort for this race, none of the Hendrick quartet could feasible outpace the Penske duo or Christopher Bell. Kyle Larson managed to run Top-5 in the race, but he certainly lacked race winning pace. After leading the series in wins, Larson finished the year in fourth for the power rankings.
#3 – Chase Elliott
Previous Ranking: 1
Down from the number one spot this week, Phoenix was another 2024-esque race for Chase Elliott. A Top-10 car that never flashed the usual Hendrick speed. After back-to-back weeks of Elliott leading a significant amount of laps, the 9 car only found itself out front for 7 laps. Elliott likely would have slipped out of the Top-10 if the caution did not catch ninth and beyond a lap down, forcing them to take the wave around.
#2 – William Byron
Previous Ranking: 2
Another week where William Byron sees movement around him without sliding up or down the rankings. Although Byron looked more competitive than Tyler Reddick Sunday, he also never stood a real chance against the Penske speed. The Zane Smith caution looked to set Byron up well, as he had pitted right before the caution flew. Leading the restart, Byron could have taken advantage of clean air if he could launch well. Instead, Logano managed to pass him and Byron faded as the run went on.
#1 – Christopher Bell
Previous Ranking: 3
Christopher Bell is the final number one driver of the FitStop Performance Power Rankings. Leapfrogging William Byron, Bell demonstrated why he would have been the favorite to win the championship if he did not get screwed over (according to him). He led the most laps and had the only car that could compete with Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano. However, he got shuffled back during the final restart. Unable to drive forward in traffic, Bell had to accept his fifth place finish. However, he ends the 2024 season as the number one driver in the power rankings.
Honorable Mention
Carson Hocevar – Another driver upended by the late caution, Carson Hocevar looked to be a Top-10 contender before the late caution. Still, congratulations to the 2024 Rookie of the Year, who was the only rookie to make his way onto to the rankings.
Brad Keselowski – A Top-20 result for Brad Keselowski ends his season with an honorable mention.
Bubba Wallace – Despite his crew chief and spotter being suspended, Bubba Wallace piloted his Star Wars paint scheme to a Top-10 finish.
There will be one more FitStop Performance Power Rankings article that will be released next week. It will be the finale, which will be a cumulative total of the 36 weeks and ranking the drivers based on their average ranking.
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!
