2015 Week 12 Pit Road: Charlotte

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Week 12: Coca-Cola 600

By Richard Tix

This weekend NASCAR stayed in Charlotte after the Sprint Cup All Star Race. This week, NASCAR Behind the Wall went camping and did not catch much of the race... What I did catch was a lot of race view and tweets with updates from sources at the track.

After missing much of this weeks race i will not get into much of a race review, but instead head directly to the power rankings for the week.

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Pit Road Power Rankings Week 12 (Week 11)

1. Kevin Harvick (LW-2)- Lots of parity this season, but one constant remains....Kevin Harvick. The Coca-Cola 600 wasn't his best race of the season, but he still finished in the top 10 and lead a few laps (26). Finish: 9th
2. Martin Truex Jr (LW-3)- Two top fives in his last four races and four straight top 10's for Truex. He is still second in points 12 races into the season and has 11 top 10's. Finish: 5th
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr (LW-4)- Jr's last three finishes? 1st, 3rd, and 3rd. Many could make a case for him in the #1 or #2 spots. Sorry, Jr Nation. I held back a bit and only moved him to the third spot as he did not lead a lap in those last two 3rd place finishes. Finish: 3rd
4. Jimmie Johnson (LW-1)- Sunday night was a rough one for Jimmie Johnson. JJ took a few turns and got loose a few times on his way to a bad finish. What is weird is how well he has run on the 1.5's this year and how good he has been at Charlotte in his career. Finish: 40th
5. Kurt Busch (LW-5)- Now that Kurt got his win he doesn't have to worry too much about the Chase. But, he just keeps having quality runs. Again on Sunday he had a great car but managed to finish just inside the top 10, reminds me of Harvick's non Chase races in 2014. Finish: 10th
6. Matt Kenseth (LW-8)- Other then some bad luck at Talladega Kenseth has really kept his hot "short track run" going since NASCAR left the small track swing. He now has back to back top 10's on 1.5 mile tracks. Maybe the 20 team has found something? Finish: 4th
7. Ryan Newman (LW-9)- Newman has 10 finishes of 12th or better in 12 races so far, including 8 top 10's. This team just keeps putting together top finishes and it is showing with Newman sitting 11th in points even after his penalty. Finish: 6th
8. Jeff Gordon (LW-6)- Gordon just didn't have the car to run up front on Sunday. Other then Deg, it was his first finish outside the top 10 since Las Vegas. Finish: 15th
9. Brad Keselowski (LW-10)- After a few rough finishes from Bristol through Talladega, BK has jumped back with two 7th place finishes with very good cars. The past two races he could have easily finished top 5, but didn't close the deal. Finish: 7th
10. Joey Logano (LW-7)- The cream of the crop is in the top 10, which is shown by JoLo all the way in 10th. But really, he has been a bit less of a factor as of late than he was to start the season. Finish: 13th
11. Carl Edwards (LW-NR)- One win and Carl is back in the top 12? Well, the last two spots are wide open compared to the top 10. Guys like JMac, Almirola, Menard, and Hamlin are all in the talks, but Carl locking in a spot while NASCAR was at a 1.5 is big news for JGR. Finish: 2nd
12. Kyle Busch (LW-NR)- Same thing goes for Rowdy as did Carl, one finish of 11th and he is in the top 12? Well, I really don't have too many great cases for the top 12 and a comeback after his injury seems like a good spot. Now, if he doesnt back it up he will drop out just as fast. Finish: 11th

Dropped Out: Jamie McMurray and Aric Almirola

Just Missed: A bunch of guys.

Well, this week no one added there name to the leader board list after Carl Edwards nailed the come out of no where win. This week we head to Dover to see if anyone can dethrone Jimmie Johnson at the Monster Mile.