Power Rankings: Kentucky

Power

Rankings

Kentucky:

Not as big of a shakeup as I thought after Sonoma, but we do have some drivers who are on the rise and some who are on the fall. I can't predict squat for this weekend at Kentucky since there's only been one race there, and that was last year, so your guess for this weekend is as good as mine.

New This Week: Brad Keselowski

Dropped Out: Kasey Kahne

Close, But No Cigar: Jeff Gordon, Brian Vickers, Kurt Busch

1. Jimmie Johnson (+2 spots from last week)

A solid top-5 at Sonoma is enough to put him in the top spot this week after Kenseth and Junior had some not to stellar runs. Johnson always seems to adapt to newer tracks well, so I can see him performing well at Kentucky.

2. Matt Kenseth (-1)

A so-so run at Sonoma kept him from regaining first in the rankings. But the bigger reason is that he announced he will be released from Roush Fenway Racing at the end of the season. How can you do that to the current points leader halfway through the season?

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (-2)

We all knew Sonoma wasn't going to be good for Junior, but he was running decent until he got wrecked at the end and finished 23rd. It's on to another unknown at Kentucky this weekend.

4. Clint Bowyer (+1)

He flat out dominated Sonoma, and he's on a roll right now. We'll see if he can carry the best hot streak in NASCAR onto Kentucky this weekend.

5. Greg Biffle (-1)

Started off the day at Sonoma well, faded quickly, then rallied late for a top-10. It was enough to keep him in front of Stewart for this week.

6. Tony Stewart (No Change)

Came from nowhere to finish second to Bowyer. Like I've been saying, this is Stewart's time of the year to get on a roll, we'll see if that trend continues at the new Kentucky track.

7. Kevin Harvick (No Change)

Some struggles for Harvick at Sonoma where it looked like he was coming to the front. Not much else to say about him right now, he's just kind of blah.

8. Denny Hamlin (No Change)

He was running decent until he was spun by his teammate, Joey Logano. Those problems compounded and he finished horribly. It's been an up and down year for Hamlin, couldn't tell you which way he'll go at Kentucky.

9. Martin Truex Jr. (+1)

I know he finished 22nd, but he was also wrecked by Logano at the end of the race. He was nearly as good as his teammate Bowyer, just had a weird pit sequence going. This guy could be my surprise pick to win at Kentucky this weekend.

10. Brad Keselowski (+1)

He's hanging in the top-10 and running pretty well each week. The two wins he has from earlier this year pretty much guarantee him at least a wild card birth if he does fall out of the top-10. It was about this time last year that Keselowski went on his hot streak that got him into the Chase and I wouldn't be surprised to see a similar trend this season.