NASCAR Power Rankings After Denny Hamlin’s Win At Dover

For the second year in a row, Denny Hamlin claimed victory in the NASCAR Cup Series racing at Dover Motor Speedway. In doing so, Hamlin cemented his spot atop our weekly power rankings. However, others faltered, and this week’s rankings include a big shakeup from a week ago.

Denny Hamlin entered Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover as the favorite for victory after winning at the track a year ago.

Despite facing some adversity, Hamlin delivered on that favorite status, claiming the win in overtime over teammate Chase Briscoe.

The victory solidifies Hamlin at No. 1 in the rankings, while others in the rankings saw some serious movement.

10) Ross Chastain

Chastain is historically strong at Dover throughout his career, which made Sunday’s clunker all the more surprising.

The Trackhouse Racing star spent more or less the entire day outside the top 10 before a late wreck saw him finish all the way down in 33rd.

He dropped three places in the regular season standings and will now look to rebound next week at Indianapolis.

Last Week: 9th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 11th

9) Tyler Reddick

Given the speed the rest of his Joe Gibbs Racing affiliates showed, you’d have expected Reddick to be better on Sunday.

Instead, he quickly dropped back through the pack after starting the race in fourth and failed to score points in either stage.

Ultimately, Reddick brought home a solid 12th-place finish. While the finish isn’t anything to fawn over, he moves up a spot in the rankings this week after Chastain’s troubles.

Last Week: 10th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 13th

8) Shane Van Gisbergen

Everyone expected Shane Van Gisbergen to come back to Earth on Sunday after leaving the comfortable surroundings of road course racing and returning to the ovals.

But Van Gisbergen’s day went off the rails immediately when a cut tire in the first 10 laps of the race set him behind the eight ball.

Ultimately, the rookie sensation finished seven laps down and in 30th place, sending him tumbling back down the power rankings.

Last Week: 4th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 4th

7) Ryan Blaney

A rainout of qualifying meant that Blaney had to work his way up through the pack from a 31st starting position.

He did so quickly, finishing just outside the top 10 in the first stage before taking 9th place in stage two. Blaney ultimately finished in 8th following a late strategy call, cementing a solid day for his No. 12 team.

While he never seemed to have race-winning speed, it was a productive day that righted the ship after a rough finish in Sonoma.

Last Week: 8th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 6th

6) Chase Briscoe

Briscoe continued his remarkably strong Summer on Sunday, nearly picking up his second victory of the season in the process.

After starting on the front row, Briscoe picked up points in both of the first two stages, and when crew chief James Small made the call to pit for tires following a late-race caution for rain, he gave his driver an unexpected shot at victory.

Ultimately, Briscoe came up one spot shy, finishing second, but it marks yet another strong run in a summer full of them.

Last Week: 7th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 10th

5) William Byron

For much of the day Sunday, it appeared Byron was in for a strong run. He started fifth and notched stage victories of fourth and sixth.

But a late-race spin by Christopher Bell ended up with Byron caught up in the wreckage, leading to a 31st-place finish.

Why is that significant? Because it took Byron out of the regular-season points lead for the first time in several months and strongly emphasized his team’s inability to capitalize on great speed early in the season.

He moves up a spot in this week’s rankings due to Van Gisbergen’s fall. But things aren’t trending great for Byron of late.

Last Week: 6th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 5th

4) Chase Elliott

Meet your new regular season NASCAR Cup Series points leader: Chase Elliott.

Elliott started on the pole Sunday and was one of the favorites to win at a track he’s had immense success on in the past.

He won the first stage, but trouble on pit road mired him back in traffic a bit in stage two. Ultimately, Elliott finished fourth in stage two and sixth in the race.

Still, his 48 points from the day were enough to overtake Byron and continue his ascent up the standings.

Last Week: 5th NASCAR Playoff Standings: 9th

3) Kyle Larson

Make no mistake, Larson had a good day on Sunday. Like Blaney, he started deep in the pack due to qualifying getting rained out. And, like Blaney, he quickly claimed through the pack.

Larson finished 10th in stage one and fifth in stage two before ultimately finishing fourth. But it never really felt like he was a threat for the race win, which was a surprise given the speed of teammates like Elliott and Alex Bowman.

Either way, it’s a solid day for Larson and one that he’d probably gladly expect after a tough week beforehand in Sonoma.

Last Week: 3rd NASCAR Playoff Standings: 2nd

2) Christopher Bell

Talk about a bizarre race from Bell. The Joe Gibbs Racing star started in third and finished second in the opening stage, nearly running down Elliott for the stage win.

He then won stage two after Elliott’s pit road mishap and looked like a threat for the win. However, Bell spun out twice on his own while racing for the lead, with the second coming late in the race and leading to just an 18th-place finish.

The strong stage finishes meant he still had a good day in the points. But things could have been so much better if not for a pair of mistakes.

Last Week: 2nd NASCAR Playoff Standings: 3rd

1) Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin had stood atop our NASCAR power rankings for weeks, and now he sits atop the series’ playoff standings as well after his fourth win of the year.

Hamlin became the first driver to win four races this season and did so at a track where he won a year ago. This time, he had to hold off teammates Bell and Briscoe to do so.

Hamlin is still seeking that elusive first championship in his legendary career. But performances like the one he put on Sunday show that he’s not only a threat to win it, but perhaps the favorite as well.

Last Week: 1st NASCAR Playoff Standings: 1st