Power Rankings: Season's End

Power

Rankings

Here we are, the final Power Rankings of the 2012 season believe it or not. It was another great season of thrills and spills in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and we can only hope that the sport we all love will have a progressive offseason and come back better than ever in 2013 with the new car and new teams. In light of that, let's see where the rankings stand at season's end.

Season Finale:

1. Brad Keselowski (No Change, from last week)

It's official, Keselowski is your 2012 Sprint Cup Champion, his first championship at the age of 28. It is also the first Sprint Cup championship for legendary team owner Roger Penske. Keselowski and Penske racked up 5 wins this season at Bristol, Talladega, Kentucky, Chicagoland, and Dover. They switch from Dodge to Ford for the 2013 season due to Dodge's departure from NASCAR.

2. Clint Bowyer (+3)

Bowyer ends the 2012 season with his best points finish of 2nd. Despite the Phoenix fiasco, Bowyer edged out Jimmie Johnson for 2nd in points and tallied up a career best three wins on the year at Sonoma, Richmond, and Charlotte. Not bad for a team in its very first year of existence!

3. Jimmie Johnson (-1)

Johnson, otherwise known as "5-time", was unable to score championship number six with a tire and a mechanical issue in the last two races and he slipped back to third in points. Regardless, Johnson ended the season tied for the most wins with Keselowski and Denny Hamlin, scoring victories at Darlington, Dover, Indianapolis, Martinsville, and Texas, along with the All-Star win.

4. Kasey Kahne (-1)

A pretty solid first season for Kahne at Hendrick Motorsports. He earned his best points finish ever by ending the season in 4th. Not to mention, he picked up two wins this season at Charlotte and New Hampshire. One would think that he could truly be a championship contender next season.

5. Greg Biffle (+3)

Biffle had a great regular season, then a terrible first half of the Chase, then a very solid end to the Chase. Roush Fenway was a very up and down team all season and that included Biffle, though he was able to score victories at Texas and Michigan.

6. Denny Hamlin (-2)

Aside from Hamlin's five wins at Phoenix, Kansas, Bristol, Atlanta, and New Hampshire, he underperformed. I know that sounds stupid because of his five wins, but I say this because he should've been competing for the title with Johnson and Keselowski. Maybe Hamlin can finally close the deal in 2013.

7. Matt Kenseth (-1)

Kenseth's season was all too similar to his teammate Biffle's, thus resulting in his 7th place position in the standings. Kenseth did capture his second Daytona 500 win however, to go with wins at Talladega and Kansas. He'll be at Joe Gibbs Racing in 2013.

8. Kevin Harvick (-1)

Harvick, and Richard Childress Racing as a whole, had a less than stellar 2012 season. Fortunately for Harvick, he was able to put one bright spot on the season with a win at Phoenix in the penultimate race of the year. He has one final season at RCR before he moves to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014.

9. Tony Stewart (No Change)

The follow up season to Stewart's dramatic championship win fell short of matching up. I think that was expected though, and Stewart did earn three wins at Las Vegas, Fontana, and Daytona. He'll have his hands full in 2013 with three full-time cars now that Danica Patrick will be in Sprint Cup.

10. Jeff Gordon (No Change)

Gordon was able to end the season on a high note by winning at Homestead (he also had a Pocono win), instead of leaving the Phoenix debacle as his last big moment of the season. If Gordon can have a little less bad luck in 2013, he might be able to make one more run at a championship.

11. Martin Truex Jr. (No Change)

Truex wasn't able to finally add that second career win to his resume, perhaps next year. Maybe he needs to talk to his teammate in Bowyer to get some advice on how to win with his Michael Waltrip Racing team.

12. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No Change)

The good news of 2012 for Earnhardt: he broke the winless streak with his Michigan win in June. The bad news of 2012 for Earnhardt: the concussion that ended his Chase chances. This team to strides in the right direction all season though, something that Junior hasn't been able to do in year's past.

Power Rankings will return at Daytona in February of 2013! See you all then!

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