Pit Road Preseason

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Preseason

By Richard Tix

NASCAR Fans rejoice, the wait it almost over! With that note out of the way, this is the first Power Rankings of the season, the Preseason addition. NASCAR Behind the Wall will rank the drivers going into 2014 based on past performance, future season potential, new rides, and most of all just pulling a name out of a hat! It's the preseason so don't take these too seriously, but seriously will Danica make the cut? (After this week Power Rankings will be included in all Pit Road articles, which takes a look at the last race every week)

Pit Road Preseason Power Rankings

1. Jimmie Johnson- No where else to start this list. He just won his 6th Championship and will have his eyes on tying Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt. NASCAR Media will talk about this story all year while Petty and Earnhardt fans close there eyes and cross there fingers (unless they happen to also like JJ). Chasing History
2. Matt Kenseth- He will now be in year two with Joe Gibbs Racing after finishing second in his first year. He won the first two Chase races so he should get off to a good start in 2014. Can he get his second Championship and first one during the "Chase Era?" Kenseth's Driver Spotlight
3. Kyle Busch- Will Rowdy improve on his 4 wins in 2014? NASCAR Behind the Wall thinks he can. Will he compete for a Championship in 2014? That is always the big question. He did have his best Chase of his career finishing 4th, so I think 2014 could be the year he finally contends. Either way, we should see some more sweet post race burnouts. Kyle's Driver Spotlight
4. Kevin Harvick- Harvick had another quality season in 2014, but as the seasons go by it seems his chances at a Championship slip father away. In 2014 he is one of two new drivers at SHR and maybe a change of scenery will have the same effect on him as it did to Matt Kenesth. Harvicks Driver Spotlight
5. Denny Hamlin- Hamlin started off 2013 like any other season, pretty darn well, and then he got injured and the season was never the same. He missed the Chase for the first time in his career as well. DH did however win the last race of 2013 and will look to come back strong. DH's Driver Spotlight
6. Tony Stewart- Smoke was another victim of an injury in 2013 that cut his season short. In 2014 his whole team will be mixed up and fresh faced at SHR. Can Tony contend again before his career is over? NASCAR should see this season a 13th driver added to the 50 win list (Smoke is at 48). Smokes Driver Spotlight
7. Kurt Busch- The second new driver at SHR and its third driver in the top 10, Kurt could end up the highest of them by the end of the season. Kurt ran the Furniture Row Chevy last year as well as almost anyone in NASCAR could and now is back with a winning team. This could be the spark that gets him back towards the top. Kurts Driver Spotlight
8. Dale Earnhardt Jr-Eighth seems like a long ways down until you look at who is ahead of Jr. June Bug will look to have a season like last year but add some wins to it and he will be just fine. Will he ever contend for a title or will he just be one of NASCAR's good drivers to never win a Championship? Jr's Driver Spotlight
9. Joey Logano- 2013 was a breakout season for JoLo so to speak. He made the Sprint Cup Chase for the first time in his career in his first year with new team Penske. In 2014 he will look to take that experience and improve apon it. Crazy to think, he is still just 23 years old. JoLo's Driver Spotlight
10. Brad Keselowski- The elder man at Penske, BK is just 29 years old and has one championship already, but if you watched him in 2013 you would never know that. It was a long and rough year and BK will be hoping to bounce back in 2014. I think he could shoot up these standings but if he hits bumps at the beginning of the season it will be interesting to see how the team reacts. BK's Driver Spotlight
11. Jeff Gordon- 12 Wins, 12 wins separate Gordon and 100 career wins. 2014 will be a big season in factoring if he will ever get there. He needs a huge year this year if he wants to get there. 100 wins isn't the only thing Gordon is thinking about, I'm sure he has another Championship in mind. Is it too late to think he could do it one more time? Gordons Driver Spotlight
12. Clint Bowyer- NASCAR Behind the Wall's second Wild Card spot and final Power Ranking spot goes to Rawhide. Bowyer falls down here because of all the drama the end of his season had in 2013 (and for that matter he also ended 2012 in drama with Gordon). Bowyer is now the lone big dog at MWR with Truex Jr on his way out, so can he hold up? Or will he take off being the man in the spotlight? I think another Chase appearance is in the cards, plus he should pick up a win in 2014 unlike 2013. Clint's Driver Spotlight

In the Preseason too many drivers can make a case to be in the to 10, so NASCAR Behind the Wall started out with 12 Drivers (No we will not except a 13th). In 2014 we will keep the 11th and 12th spots open as Wild Card spots. NASCAR fans, we are so close to Daytona!

Check out some previous articles and look out for the Daytona Preview

• Chasing 50
• NASCAR Sprint Cup 2014 Headlines
• Daytona 500 Entry List
• Speedweek Schedule
• 2014 Contract Year: NASCAR Drivers
• Driver Spotlight (2014 Previews)

Also check out Twitter for even more updates and to communicate back with NASCAR Behind the Wall