2015 Pit Road Week 29: Dover

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

AAA 400

By Richard Tix

After a week of worrying about the weather and if the AAA 400 at Dover would be run on Sunday, NASCAR got the race in full. That made life much easier on NASCAR and it's schedulers on trying to figure out when they race could be won, especially since it was the last race of the first round of the 2015 Chase.

That being said, after Sunday a few drivers left the Monster Mile now with no title shot. A few shockers in the elimination after Jimmie Johnson had mid race troubles with his rear axle and it leaves him on the outside looking in. Also, Jamie McMurray had a fantastic "battle" with Dale Earnhardt Jr while trying to get the final spot for next round. The ended up finishing 3rd and 4th where that final position meant a Chase spot as it was Jr's best finish of the first round.

So, after Dover there were 12 left. The next few races will decide who will move onto the final four races of 2015 and who will still have a shot at the title.

2015 AAA 400 Race Results

Remember, the Power Rankings during the Chase are expanded to 16 spots and only Chase driver eligible drivers can be on it. That means when it is cut to 12 drivers we will cut down to the top 12 in the rankings. Each round after that (so say 8 drivers) the final four spots can go to anyone, but the top 8 spots will continue to go to current Chase drivers.

Pit Road Power Rankings Week 29 (Week 28)

1. Kevin Harvick (LW-13)- Harvick was pretty much in a win or go home situation and he rose to the occasion. That is not a good thing for other drivers trying to win a title. He is right back to the top. Finish: 1st
2. Matt Kenesth (LW-1)- No one really had a shot to beat Harvick, but the next closest thing might have been Kenseth. Finish: 7th
3. Joey Logano (LW-3)- JoLo didn't have the best day, but all the 22 team was looking for was to stay out of trouble and advance. Obviously they wanted a win, but a chance at a title is worth more. Finish: 10th
4. Kyle Busch (LW-11)- Another strong day for Rowdy and JGR. He was one of three drivers to lead a lap all day, which says something with how dominate Harvick was. Finish: 2nd
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr (LW-15)- Jr was part of one of the biggest storylines on the day during the closing laps. It was between McMurray and Jr for the final spot into the top 12. Both continued to be tied, but Jr was one spot in front of Jamie to win the tie breaker. Time to put behind a rough first round. Finish: 3rd
6. Denny Hamlin (LW-2)- Hard to judge what kind of car Hamlin had, he had nothing to lose, but nothing to gain either. He was already locked into the final 12. Finish: 18th
7. Brad Keselowski (LW-5)- That was a close one for BK. Dover was not BK's best finish and now has two finishes outside the top 10 in a row. Finish: 16th
8. Carl Edwards (LW-4)- Carl and Denny had tough finishes at Dover, but neither matters now heading into the next round. JGR still seem to have an edge on other teams so they should feel confident for the next three races. Finish: 15th
9. Martin Truex Jr (LW-9)- It was a quality first three Chase races, but it only gets harder from here. An average finish of 10.66 might get him by one more round, but he will need to continue to stay consistent to get there. Finish: 11th
10. Ryan Newman (LW-6)- Newman posted two top 10's before a rough finish on Sunday. If he gets back his consistency it is the kind of finishes that helped him move on last year. Finish: 19th
11. Jeff Gordon (LW-8)- Through three Chase races Gordon has been consistent, but not a good enough consistent to be a real threat. He will need to find that to keep advancing. Finish: 12th
12. Kurt Busch (LW-10)- If it wasn't for his 3rd place finish at Chicagoland to start the Chase Kurt would have been booted on Sunday. The 41 will need more to advance to the final 8. Finish: 17th