Pit Road Week 18: Daytona

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Week 18

By Richard Tix

Before the 2014 season started NASCAR made some big changes to shake up how the standings and race to the Chase would look. The big change, "win and your in." Some fans freaked out at the thought of there favorite driver winning but missing the Chase because he is the 17th winner, or worse yet, not winning and 16 other guys with a win but less points getting in.

After awhile you just come to expect some rash comments from fans when it comes to changes in NASCAR. The NASCAR community (at least on social media) doesn't seem to take change very well as a whole (not everyone is this way). So, news of a huge points change got people rattled. People clamoring for "the good ole days" and "glory years" came out in droves. The thing that gets me is that a lot of time back in "these days" drivers would come close to lapping the whole field and winning Championships 4 races before the end of the season. Yet, fans get upset when one in five races ends up being a fuel mileage race.

Yes, NASCAR had a great run in the 90's and early 2000's when it was fully booming, but that does not mean the sport is dead today. A huge peak in popularity happens in all major sports. After the boom things tend to level off but that doesn't mean that NASCAR is going to die. Its what that sport does after its regression that molds how fast it gets back to another boom. 

NASCAR is in good standing in America. Even on bad weekends when it comes to attendance tracks still bring in over 60,000 fans. What other sport can do this weekend to weekend in the USA? I for one enjoy NASCAR and the way it is today. Yes, its great to look back at the good ole days (which I also enjoyed the 90's when I first became a fan as a kid) but don't look past what is in front of you now.  Don't wait until the day you are saying "wow 2014-2024 were the good ole days," and realize you missed all the good racing while complaining about the sport. Sure, NASCAR has some problems to fix but that does not mean it is completely broken beyond repair. So enjoy it!

The greatest part of this New Era in NASCAR? Well we just got to see it at Daytona this weekend. True, it was rain shortened and a crappy race weekend (things happen and you can not stop mother nature) but a win by RPM in the #43 is something to remember. Aric Almirola is a nice guy and a class act so even in a rain shortened, crash riddled race, it was great to see him get his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup win at Daytona. So congrats Aric, now onto this weeks Power Rankings! (Note: Changes wont be too drastic as it was an odd weekend at an already wildcard type track.)

Firecracker 400 results (Coke Zero 400)

Pit Road Power Rankings: Week 18 (Week 17)

1. Jeff Gordon (LW-4)- Yes, I said I wont make too many drastic changes because it was an unpredictable race that then ended in rain, but Gordon still finished 12th and I feel gets a bit of a reward for making it through mostly unscathed. 
2. Dale Earnhardt Jr (LW-1)- What a strange race for Jr. He was caught up in a few different wrecks on Sunday but still made his way back up to 14th. Not a bad finish for a forgettable race.
3. Brad Keselowski (LW-3)- BK was the first guy one lap down when the last red flag came out. He and JR were running with the leaders during this race but no one was complaining this time? That is probably because Jr was one of the guys a lap down running with them, but as Jr showed you can get back in the lead lap and have a nice finish (14th). Crazy how the difference in a driver makes the difference in opinion.
4. Clint Bowyer (LW-10)- Yes, a drastic jump but Clint finished 9th on Sunday and other then his 23rd place finish at Kentucky has been on a quiet tear. He is up to 12th in points and could be a contender this weekend at NH.
5. Jimmie Johnson (LW-2)- JJ finished 42nd but it wasn't his fault. Unfortunatley there will still be mini hits even in a wild card week. He should jump back up quickly.
6. Paul Menard (LW-7)- Menard wasn't really running amazing on Sunday but he managed a 16th place finish in a demo derby. He is still having his best season in his career and is up to 10th in the points standings.
7. Joey Logano (LW-8)- JoLo is another guy on a countless list of drivers moving up even though they finished 15-20th (17th to be exact). But, Daytona was a crazy weekend and these rankings got all mixed up. 
8. Kurt Busch (LW-NR)- Its been a long time coming for Kurt Busch and the NASCAR Behind the Wall power rankings. He has been on the fringe for awhile now, but he definitely gets the nod after finishing 3rd on Sunday.
9. Kevin Harvick (LW-5)- Not much to see here, just another guy involved in the carnage that was Daytona and finished 39th.
10. Kasey Kahne (LW-6)- Last weeks big mover is this weeks big faller. That's unfortunate too, because Kasey won on Friday just to get caught up in a wreck on Sunday. Still, maybe his Nationwide win can give him extra momentum to finally get a Cup win? 
11. Marcus Ambrose (LW-NR)- One RPM driver gets the win and the other gets into the top 12 for the first time in 2014 on NASCAR Behind the Wall. 12 points out of 16th place in the Chase standings, Ambrose really needs a good showing at Watkins Glenn (probably needs the win to get in). How crazy would it be to get both RPM into the Chase?
12. Matt Kenseth (LW-9)- Hanging onto the last spot, Kenseth finished 20th on Sunday. When you look at the recent results it really is tough to justify him in the rankings, but I still am giving him a pass for another week because he is 5th in points and seems due for a win.

Dropped out: Kyle Busch and Ryan Newman

Just Missed: Denny Hamlin

Honorable Mention: Brian Vickers (2nd), Casey Mears (4th), Austin Dillon (5th), Michael McDowell (7th), Danica Patrick (8th), Marcus Ambrose (10th), Terry Labonte (11th),  and Alex Bowman (13th).


With a wreck fest and rain shortened race a lot of drivers made there way onto the Honorable Mention list. But, just because it was rain shortened does not mean these guys did not deserve the mention. Most of them all stayed out of each wreck during the day, which even when you are trailing behind isn't the easiest thing to do.

As you could guess, no one predicted Aric Almirola this week on Twitter so no shout outs for predicting the winner. This weeks leading vote getter was Dale Earnhardt Jr followed closely by Jimmie Johnson and then Kasey Kahne. Better luck next week! As always thank you for reading.