He’s back (enter Jaws music). After enduring a 13-race winless streak, Johnson has pulled back-to-back victories to cement himself as the favorite for when The Chase starts.
His dominant victory at Dover was no surprise to everyone as the man has owned the place in his career.
Now with Dover in the rear-view mirror, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series will hit the 2.5 mile Pocono triangle for some fantastic racing. But before they go racing, let’s see where Johnson stands in this week’s Power Rankings:
1. Jimmie Johnson — +2
Two weeks ago, everyone was wondering what was wrong with the 48. Two weeks later, those doubts have flown by the window. Johnson was simply unstoppable at Dover as he dominated The Monster Mile and easily captured his 9th victory at the track. With the victory, Johnson is now tied with Harvick and Logano for the most in the season. He’s right where he wants to be.
2. Kevin Harvick — +/-0
After having arguably his best car ever at Dover, no one could be more disappointed than Harvick after Sunday. Harvick led over 20 laps in the mid stages and seemed to be the only car that could outrun Johnson once he got out front. But a cut valve stem in his right front tire took him out of contention with about 170 laps to go, thus ending his chances for victory. Tough break for Harvick who could have five or six wins already.
3. Matt Kenseth — +1
Second week in-a-row that Kenseth ran strong and came home 3rd. This team performing solid, but they don’t seem to have the raw speed they had last year, at least for now. He now leads the points.
4. Jeff Gordon — -3
Like Harvick, Gordon experienced great disappointment at the end of Sunday’s race. Gordon started 6th and worked his way to 2nd in the mid stages of the race. He ran in 2nd until his pit stop with about 78 laps to go. Then something in his car’s chassis began to fail and Gordon eventually faded to 15th with a racecar that could not turn at all in the corner. Tough end to what was a great drive.
5. Joey Logano — +/-0
At times, Logano looked he had a top 5 car. Other times his car looked so bad that it looked like he was going to get lapped. Fortunately for Logano, his car was working well in the final run to get himself a top 10. Decent result considering how inconsistent his car was all race.
6. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. — +/-0
After running in the top 5 in the mid stages, Earnhardt, Jr. was undone late by some slow pit stops which cost him track position. The end result was a 9th place showing for Earnhardt who ran much better than that.
7. Denny Hamlin — +4
A strong 5th place showing for Hamlin who had been struggling with performance since his big win at Talladega. Hamlin performed consistently all race long and that’s what his group has to focus on during the rest of the season.
8. Brad Keselowski — +5
One of the biggest comebacks on Sunday went to Keselowski. After starting on pole, Keselowski faded to outside the top 10 in the first half with an extremely loose racecar. Crew chief Paul Wolfe slowed tweaked on it in the second half and Keselowski charged throw the field. He worked his way to 2nd late but Johnson was just too much for him. This has been Keselowski’s best finish since winning at Las Vegas in March.
9. Kyle Larson — +1
Another race at a tough track and another top 10 for Larson. This rookie continues to shine. And these performances will only boost his team’s confidence in the second half.
10. Carl Edwards — -2
After winning the first concrete race of the year at Bristol, Edwards struggled mightily at Dover. Edwards qualified mid pack and could go no higher then 15th or 16th most of the race. And that’s pretty much where he ended up at the end. Reports have also come out that he and teammate Greg Biffle have begun to shop the market. Things are not looking good right now at Roush.
11. Kyle Busch — -4
After sweep the first two races of the weekend, things looked good for Kyle on Sunday. He started 2nd and rocketed out to the lead in the first run of the race, leading about 80 laps. But his car began to fade after lap 100 and then his day ended when Busch and Bowyer got together off turn 4 while battling for 3rd. The contact with killed Kyle’s steering and he pounded the outside wall just seconds later. The end result was a DNF and an angry Busch.
12. Jamie McMurray — +2
The perseverance award has to go to Jamie McMurray. After hitting a large piece of concrete after the track came up, McMurray and crew lost a lap making repairs. They did not panic, got the car fixed and made up the lap late in the going. Once on the lead lap, McMurray was able to minimize the damage (pun intended) and came home with a respectable 13th place finish.
13. Brian Vickers — -4
After running so strong all year long, Vickers and crew experienced their first major hiccup of the season. Vickers suffered and engine failure before the race reached its 100-mile mark and finished 43rd on the day, the worst result of the season. Time to see how this group recovers at Pocono.
14. Paul Menard — +1
Back-to-back top 10s for Paul Menard who continues to have a solid season thus far. Time will tell if he and his No.27 team can turn these top 1os into potential victories.
15. Tony Stewart — +5
After struggling for most of the season with performance, Stewart and his No.14 team showed up on Sunday. Stewart ran in the top 10 most of the day and made a late charge to 3rd in the final run of the race. He faded out of the top 5 after a sequence of late restarts but the top 10 was well-needed for Stewart and crew in terms of confidence.
16. Ryan Newman — -4
After running decently for the first 300 miles, Newman’s transmission failed as he came down for his final pit stop. The end result was a trip to the garage for repairs and a very poor finish for Newman and crew.
17. Kasey Kahne — 1
After surging to the top 5 in the mid stages, Kahne’s faded badly with about 140 laps to go when his car became extremely loose. Kahne’s car got so bad that was eventually lapped by Johnson with less than 100 laps to go and he wound up in 19th. Kahne and crew continue to struggle to put complete races together.
18. Austin Dillon — -1
Another top 20 for Dillon who continues to be consistent. But the biggest problem this rookie has is speed. Larson is running in the top 10 and top 5 almost every week, while Dillon is struggling to just finish in the top 15. Dillon and crew need to find speed if they are to contend for Rookie of the Year and make The Chase.
19. Kurt Busch — +/0
Another week, another issue for Kurt. This week it was a loose wheel past halfway that dropped Kurt from the top 15 to a lap down. Fortunately, Kurt was able to finish in the top 20 by the end of the race. Incredibly, this was only the third top 20 finish for Kurt in the year.
20. Clint Bowyer — NEW
After tangling with Busch and receiving minor damage in the process, Bowyer was able to come from the middle of the pack to 4th at the finish. A great rebound for Bowyer who was at no fault for the incident. Let’s see if this top 5 can finally launch this group’s season.
Notables: Dropped Out — Greg Biffle.
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