2018 NASCAR Pit Road Week 10: Talladega

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Talladega Superspeedway

By Richard Tix

Nothing to see here. No, seriously, I missed most of the race live and had to catch up via some DVR/twitter updates. I was on a mini vacation in northern Minnesota and for the most part disconnected (except for a few beer posts since I hit up a few local breweries). So, I was either out enjoying the nice weather, driving home, or getting some yard work done since Spring finally has arrived in MN (after an extended, miserable, Winter). So, lets get straight into the rankings.

Pit Road Power Rankings: Week 10 (Week 9)

1. Kyle Busch (LW-1)- He didn't win, he didn't lead. and overall it was just a blah day for the 18 team, but they didn't need a grand showing at Dega. They will look to jump back on track at Dover where Kyle has three wins including the last trip there in the Fall.
2. Joey Logano (LW-1)- Big win for JoLo and Team Penske, however one win is not enough to take the top spot from Rowdy just yet.
3. Kevin Harvick (LW-3)- Another race another top five (seven total in 2018). 
4. Denny Hamlin (LW-7)- Peanut butter and jelly. Macaroni and cheese. Denny Hamlin and pitting penalties. These are the great combo's in life. Seriously Denny, figure it out.
5. Clint Bowyer (LW-3)- A late wreck hurt Clint's day, but he wasn't running inside the top 10 that often on the day anyways. 
6. Kurt Busch (LW-11)- Kurt somehow is fifth in points despite one top five and only four top tens. He does have seven top 15's in 10 races, though.
7. Jimmie Johnson (LW-9)- JJ is slowly climbing back from his slow start. After a 13th place this weekend he moved up one spot in the standings to 14th overall.
8. Chase Elliott (LW-NR)- Elliott now has back to back top fives for the first time in 2018. At Richmond he turned an average car into a top five late and at Dega he brought it home clean.
9. Kyle Larson (LW-6)- Just when Larson was heating up he gets caught up in a wreck at Talladega. Next week could be the time he shoots up these rankings.
10. Martin Truex Jr (LW-5)- Truex was part of an early wreck which I normally try not fading guys too much on at tracks like Dega and Daytona. However, his last four races have all gone poorly in one way or another, so time to fade the No. 78 a bit.
11. Brad Keselowski (LW-8)- BK led some laps and got a stage point before eventually succumbing to Dega (wrecking). He is still 6th in points, but they feel much further away from a win.
12. Daniel Suarez (LW-12)- Back to back top tens and no movement? I know, it's tough but so much was moving a head of him at a hit or miss track like Dega that I wasn't sure he should be moving up in front of guys like BK, Larson, or JJ yet. Don't let that take anything away from how consistent he has been running.

Dropped Out: Ryan Blaney (LW-10)

Just Missed: Aric Almirola, Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Alex Bowman, and Ryan Newman