2018 NASCAR Pit Road Week 6: Martinsville

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Martinsville Speedway

By Richard Tix

Doubleheader Monday! That is what race fans ended up getting after snow stopped the truck race and then completely wiped out the Cup race on Sunday. The track shots on Sunday were actually really cool, even if they ruined our day of racing.

Monday races are always tough because many folks who bought tickets can't make it and many others who want to watch from home on Sunday get stuck at work on Monday. But, sometimes Mother Nature gets in the way of our plans and we have to do the best with what we got. Now, I personally would have loved a later start for Cup so much of it could have been on after work ours, I do understand NASCAR wants to get the show on the road for next week. It's a tough spot either way, but how cool would a Monday night race under the lights at Martinsville have been?

With that out of the way, lets get updated on this weeks Power Rankings.

Pit Road Power Rankings: Week 6 (Week 5)

1. Kyle Busch (LW-3)- Martinsville was Rowdy's third second place finish of 2018. Eventually, Kyle is going to start rattling off wins.
2. Kevin Harvick (LW-1)- Harvick wasn't much of a player for the win on Monday, but then again only about three guys really were late in the day. 
3. Martin Truex Jr (LW-2)- Truex has five top fives in six races to start 2018. He has seven playoff points already and is pretty much already a lock to go deep into the playoffs.
4. Joey Logano (LW4)- Another top ten run for the 22 team. JoLo has had good speed, but not a ton of winning speed yet.
5. Ryan Blaney (LW-7)- Blaney did seem to have winning speed during stage two, but others caught him and they didn't seem to adjust enough. Still, Blaney lead 145 laps and finish 3rd in a strong run.
6. Brad Keselowski (LW-6)- BK had a strong car early and then faded late. They hung on for a top 10 while sliding down the board during the final laps.
7. Clint Bowyer (LW-10)- What a wait.. Bowyer finally broke through and got his first win in what feels like a decade. SHR in general seems to have made huge strides in 2018, but specifically Clint Bowyer really has taken another step with the team.
8. Denny Hamlin (LW-5)- It's crazy to see Hamlin this low, but the team just haven't finished races off like they should have. Whether it is a pitting penalty or tempers getting in the way and pushing a guy like Harvick to the edge. However, the No. 11 has been pretty fast this season so they have that to fall back on.
9. Kyle Larson (LW-8)- Just another "meh" week for Larson and the No. 42. Still, this team is 9th in the points and should get rolling eventually.
10. Erik Jones (LW-9)- Not a great day for the No. 20 team, but it happens. Erik gets a one week pass.
11. Aric Almirola (LW-12)- Monday at Martinsville was Aric's worst finish of 2018, which was 14th. That's pretty damn good especially considering where this 10 team and Aric (in the 43) were last season.
12. Kurt Busch (LW-NR)- Kurt just missed the top ten (11th) on Monday, but the team is making strides. They just have to finish in the final stage to lock in some better finishes.

Dropped Out: Austin Dillon (LW-11)

Just Missed: Alex Bowman, Paul Menard, and Chase Elliott