2018 NASCAR Pit Road Preseason

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Preseason

By Richard Tix

The 2018 season is almost upon us. Not only will changes be made in NASCAR (new Camaro, no Dale Earnhardt Jr, drives changing places, etc), but changes will be had around the blog. As time goes on and priorities in life change, sometimes things take a back seat. My love for NASCAR hasn't changed, but my free time for running Behind the Wall and producing content is running more and more dry by the season.

Now, I just do this as a hobby and never really saw it going somewhere too serious. I loved the aspect of my own power rankings and keeping a better tab on the sport and because of creating content it made me accountable to myself to stay in the know. I also loved that getting out my opinion also let me engage with many other fans and even make some online friendships through it. Now, if this was a serious ambition towards a career in NASCAR it would end up much higher on my priority list, but as of right now it is not that. So, this season I maybe cutting back on some content (which follows a trend from the end of last season).

However, I will still be here and on Twitter to interact as much as possible. The plan is to still do as many race previews and reviews (with power rankings taking the spotlight) as possible. I will more then likely link the TV schedules and entry lists instead of posting them myself. I am going to add to my weekly power rankings by doing a Team Power Rankings every 3-5 weeks (because week by week team power rankings may not change enough). 

So, no fear, NBTW will still be around... However, I do apologize that the up to date news will not be added to the content near as much and the Paint Schemes pages may take longer to get updated. Hit me up on Twitter (@NASCARBTW) as I will be active on there all season longer (whether it be races or personal content).

As always, lets get ready for a fun 2018! Below are some preseason driver and team power rankings for your enjoyment!

Pit Road Power Rankings: Preseason

1. Martin Truex Jr - Who else would be on top? Truex is still riding high after winning the 2017 Championship.
2. Kyle Busch - Toyota should still be fast, Chevy has to adjust to a new model, Ford hasn't made a change, and none of it matters to Kyle because all he cares about is winning. 
3. Kyle Larson - Larson started his rise into true NASCAR stardom last year and with a new Chevy Camaro it should only continue this season.
4. Denny Hamlin - I'm expecting a quick start to the year for the top Toyota drivers including Hamlin who should be one of the favorites to win the Daytona 500 to start 2018.
5. Kevin Harvick - Childers mentioned that last year they tried to actually reign it in so NASCAR wouldn't put the spotlight on them for being so fast. Rodney also mentioned that he hates that and has zero intention of doing that in 2018.
6. Chase Elliott - Chase has one heck of a season last year and will look to get the win less monkey off of his back. Once he does get a win, I still expect a bunch to pile up.
7. Brad Keselowski - BK made the final four in 2017, but really wasn't in the running at Homestead (except for a brief moment mid race where they gambled on strategy). He remained very vocal all season about the lack of gains Ford has made lately, will he be right? Will it help push Ford to make a move? Or is it a lost cause? NASCAR politics....
8. Jimmie Johnson - This might be the lowest I have ever started JJ out in my preseason rankings. He still put up three wins last season and should still be a threat in 2018 especially if the Camaro is a hit.
9. Joey Logano - Is anyone happier to get a fresh start in 2018? JoLo is ready for a full redemption tour and never has to hear "encumbered" again, well at least in an "official" way...
10. Ryan Blaney - Blaney is switching from the Penske affiliated No. 21 Wood Brothers ride to a new third Penske ride (No. 12). It should be a smooth transition for one of the bright young stars of NASCAR.
11. Erik Jones - Another young gun part of the youth movement, Jones should make a big jump in year two in Cup. 
12. Jamie McMurray - JMac once again pointed his way to the Playoffs in 2017 and will be back with Ganassi in 2018. He and teammate Kyle Larson have a good shot to both make the 2018 playoffs again. 

Team Power Rankings

1. Furniture Row Racing - 2017 Champions, check. Returning the combo of Cole Pearn and Martin Truex Jr, check. Until further notice, the defending Champion team stays on top even with the loss of a second car (No. 77).
2. Joe Gibbs Racing - Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin are in their prime years, meanwhile Daniel Suarez and Erik Jones gain another year of experience. Toyota coming off a dominating 2017 finish so JGR will be towards the top to start 2018.
3. Team Penske - Penske had a final four driver (BK), a win that was encumbered (JoLo), and an affiliated young gun who won his first race and made the playoffs (Blaney) in 2017. Now all of them are part of one team. The only question is will Ford be a step behind the other two manufacturers?
4. Hendrick Motorsports - HMS is now JJ and the young kids. Junior has retired from full time Cup driving and the team and Kasey Kahne separated ways. To put a cherry on top of all the moving parts, Chevy is bringing the new Camaro to Cup this season. Chevy seemed to be at a disadvantage in 2017, so the Camaro move could push them up this list quickly, but it will be a learning curve as will having so many new young names (Elliott, Bowman, and Byron).
5. Chip Ganassi Racing - Ganassi has arguably been the better Chevy team as of late, compared to HMS. They put Larson and McMurray in the Playoffs two years in a row and it looks like Larson is becoming a star in the sport. Can they take the next step and get to Homestead?
6. Stewart Haas Racing - The top end of SHR has been good, actually, great. Harvick has been holding up SHR for years now and Kurt Busch has held his own, but the questions continue to be the other two cars. Same can be said about SHR entering 2018 with Clint Bowyer back and Aric Almirola joining for his first year.
7. Richard Childress Racing - Last season RCR got two cars into the playoffs, but that really skews how well they ran (hint, not very well). Still, we can't look past RCR's two wins (Newman and Dillon) and the fact that they might get new life with the new Camaro.
8. Wood Brothers Racing - Wood Brothers will go from Ryan Blaney to Paul Menard in 2018. Menard should provide them some week to week stability compared to last season, but likely won't be front runners as often either. 
9. Roush Fenway Racing - RFR had a great season for them when comparing to the previous couple years, but work still needs to be done. Superspeedways and short tracks were surprisingly a strength, but the schedule is made up of a ton of 1.5 mile tracks and RFR isn't even close with their 1.5 mile program.
10. Germain Racing - I was surprised when RCR parted ways with Paul Menard and they didn't bring in Ty Dillon from Germain. However, that is a good thing for Germain as Ty gives them stability coming into 2018 with a chance to advance up the standings. 
11. Leavine Family Racing - Leavine made big strides over the years with Michael McDowell and took the plunge to make a larger splash by bringing in Kasey Kahne. If the Kahne signing works out they could be the next Furniture Row (bold statement alert). I am not saying they will, but they're following some of the footsteps FRR made.
12. Richard Petty Motorsports - Rounding out the top 12 is RPM. RPM will once again be a one car team in 2018 but made the big move from Ford to Chevy. They also moved on from Aric Almirola and brought in Darrell Wallace Jr. to take over the legendary No. 43.