2018 NASCAR Pit Road Week 19: Kentucky

Weekly Review and Power Rankings

Kentucky Speedway

By Richard Tix

Wow, has it been a long time! What can I say, I started the season with a warning about how hit or miss this year might be, and I sure have delivered! Time is harder to come by these days and with this just being a fun hobby that I started just to keep me more engaged in the sport it has been one of the first things weekly to fall to the wayside. Remember to follow me on Twitter at @NASCARBTW, because I still stay pretty active on there during the season.

Anyways, it has been since Michigan that I have released Power Rankings so we are starting fresh this week! No matter, we know the three drivers who will sit on top of the rankings.

Pit Road Power Rankings: Week 19

1. Martin Truex Jr - 1st, 4th, 2nd, and 1st are the makeup of Truex Jr's last four races. He now has won back to back Kentucky races and has four wins on the season (Just behind Busch and Harvick with five).
2. Kyle Busch - Just another top five on the season (15 total) and he also ended with 50 points on the day despite not leading and only scoring 40 when he won just a a couple weeks ago at Chicagoland.
3. Kevin Harvick - Harvick also finished in the top five and has 15 total top fives in 2018. 
4. Clint Bowyer - And here is where the next tier starts. Bowyer finished outside the top ten, but is still sixth in the points with two wins in his bounce back season.
5. Joey Logano - JoLo is fourth in the standings with a win that isn't "cucmbered." He and his Penske Teammates still do not have the same winning speed of the top guys this season, but they have still been fast most weeks.
6. Kyle Larson - Larson still hasn't won a Cup race this year, but it feels like one should be coming soon.
7. Brad Keselowski - Talk about a guy who hasn't won yet, this is the longest BK has gone into a season without winning since 2013 when he didn't win until race 31 at Charlotte.
8. Erik Jones - Erik survived the wreck fest at Daytona for his first career win, but some are overlooking that he also has four straight top tens including 7th Sat. night.
9. Denny Hamlin - Hamlin just can't pull it together week by week.
10. Kurt Busch - Kurt is still 7th in points, but without a win.He has also led the 6th most laps this season.
11. Aric Almirola - Aric grabbed another top ten on Saturday (his eighth this year), but he still doesn't have a top five.
12. Ryan Blaney - Blaney has the most laps led behind "the big three" (sorry I almost made it the whole way through without using it). Yet, he doesn't have a win and is just 10th in the standings mostly due to inconsistency. 

Just Missed: Jimmie Johnson