2015 Week 9 Pit Road: Richmond

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Week 9: Toyota Owners 400

By Richard Tix

NASCAR finished up its three out of four race short track stretch at Richmond on Sunday. After a rain delay canceled everything for the Saturday night race it was moved to Sunday at 1 pm ET where we got everything in.

The three short tracks left the door open for some other teams and drivers that have found the speed on the 1.5's yet in 2015. As it turned out two JGR drivers pulled off W's at short tracks (Hamlin and Kenseth) which will give them some time to find some more speed on larger tracks. 

So, the short track swing provided us with some big Chase implications. On top of those two drivers getting a win, Kurt Busch won on Sunday after missing three races to start the season. NASCAR gave him a Chase exception so he is now pretty much locked to get into the Chase. The only difference between he and the two JGR drivers that win is that he has been pretty good on the 1.5's so far this year. The win for Kurt was popular for many and also unpopular for many. With everything he has gone through this season many were either on his side or against him so it was a headline win for NASCAR.

NASCAR now heads to Talladega which can be another wild card track. Many times the big wreck plays into the outcome and a little guy can pull off the upset. That will be the biggest story line this weekend. But, we will touch on that in the preview, lets move onto the Power Rankings.

Pit Road Power Rankings Week 9 (Week 8)

1. Kevin Harvick (LW-1)- Another race and another second place finish for Harvick. He did only led 2 laps on Sunday (which was almost a season low. Daytona he led zero laps). Finish: 2nd
2. Jimmie Johnson (LW-2)- JJ didn't lead a single lap on Sunday but did bring his #48 car from 36th to the front. It was just a really strong points day for that team. Finish: 3rd
3. Joey Logano (LW-4)- Other then Kurt Busch JoLo was really the only other one to led any laps on Sunday (BK lead 9 and JMac 4). JoLo took his 94 led laps on his way to a top 5 finish. Finish: 5th
4. Kurt Busch (LW-9)- Kurt was hands down the best car on Sunday. JoLo had a decent car early and Harvick was strong throughout, but Kurt was just on it. He has just been lacking the finishing stretch each week and this week he got it. Finish: 1st
5. Jeff Gordon (LW-3)- Gordon has 6 straight top 10's, so sorry he isn't higher Gordon fans. The one thing he still lacks is a 2015 win. On Sunday he averaged a 8th place running position and then finished in that exact spot. Finish: 8th
6. Matt Kenseth (LW-8)- The short track stint has been a breath of fresh air for the 20 team. 4th, 1st, and 7th on the three short tracks in the last four races. Those finishes gave them some time to figure out there 1.5 program. Finish: 7th
7. Jamie McMurray (LW-10)- At one point JMac looked to have a car capable of getting and beating Kurt. After some rough luck to start the race he made his way back to the front. Finish: 4th
8. Martin Truex Jr (LW-7)- Rough spot for Truex after notching a top 10 and moving down a spot this week. Nothing against him, he is part of a quality top 12 that has been putting together pretty consistent numbers. Finish: 10th
9. Dale Eanrhardt Jr (LW-5)- Back to back finishes ofr 14th or higher for Jr and the 88. Worse yet, his average running position on Sunday was 14th. At times on Sunday he said he loved the car on the long run, but could never really get the track position he needed. Finish: 14th
10. Kasey Kahne (LW-11)- 2015 has been a step in the right direction, but he still isn't threatening to win enough as he would like. Kahen has only lead laps in two races this season (Martinsville and Texas). Finish: 6th
11. Brad Keselowski (LW-6)- Just one week after BK had a pretty good car and took himself out early (Bristol) he once again had some rough luck. BK had a top 5 car when he lost a cylinder, yet he stayed up front for awhile until yellows started to hit. Finish: 17th
12. Ryan Newman (LW-12)- Newman is already back up to 15th position in the standings after NASCAR reduced his penalty. Don't look now but he could put himself in a spot to get into the Chase again on points. Crazy... Finish: 11th

Dropping Out: No one

Just Missed: Kyle Larson and Clint Bowyer

Honorable Mention: Chase Elliott (16th) and Justin Allgaier (18th)

Power Rankings Notes:

• No one dropped out of the top 12 this weekend but we did have some movers in the middle of the rankings. The top stayed strong with Harvick, JJ, JoLo, and Gordon all continuing strong streaks. The big mover was Kurt Busch as he not only won, but put together a full race. JMac also moved up as he has been showing some strong runs this year. Unfortunatley for guys like Jr and Jr (Dale and Martin) strong runs by guys around them moved them down a few even then they had decent runs on Sunday as well. The middle of the rankings is very strong so the guys from 4 to 10 are very interchangeable. 

No one picked Kurt Busch this weekend so no one is getting added to the season long prediction leaderboard. This week NASCAR heads to Talladega Superspeedway where just about anything can happen. Will an underdog steal a win and a Chase spot? Thanks for checking out NASCAR Behind the Wall. Check back later for the TV Schedule and Entry List for this weekend!