BACK TO GALLERIES
Power Rankings: Martinsville to Texas
By Pat DeCola | Published: April 2, 2018 21
NASCAR Creative Design
1 of 21
NASCAR Creative Design
NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers after the race at Martinsville Speedway and before Sunday's race at Texas Motor Speedway.
2 of 21
Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Driver: Daniel Suarez
Rank: 20
Change: +1
Comment: Suarez could be a bit of a dark horse for Texas. His team won there in fall 2016 and the sophomore driver showed improvement in his two races at the intermediate track last year.
Rank: 20
Change: +1
Comment: Suarez could be a bit of a dark horse for Texas. His team won there in fall 2016 and the sophomore driver showed improvement in his two races at the intermediate track last year.
3 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Ryan Newman
Rank: 19
Change: -3
Comment: Newman won at Texas in 2003, then swept both poles at the track in 2005. He's done neither since.
Rank: 19
Change: -3
Comment: Newman won at Texas in 2003, then swept both poles at the track in 2005. He's done neither since.
4 of 21
Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Paul Menard
Rank: 18
Change: +4
Comment: Menard has shown a little more performance this season than we've seen from him in the past, but that could come to a halt at Texas. He has four straight finishes outside the top 20 there.
Rank: 18
Change: +4
Comment: Menard has shown a little more performance this season than we've seen from him in the past, but that could come to a halt at Texas. He has four straight finishes outside the top 20 there.
5 of 21
Jerry Markland | Getty Images
Driver: AJ Allmendinger
Rank: 17
Change: +2
Comment: Don't expect Allmendinger to repeat his Martinsville top 10 at Texas -- he hasn't achieved that at the 1.5-mile track since 2011 and has only two in 18 career starts.
Rank: 17
Change: +2
Comment: Don't expect Allmendinger to repeat his Martinsville top 10 at Texas -- he hasn't achieved that at the 1.5-mile track since 2011 and has only two in 18 career starts.
6 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Austin Dillon
Rank: 16
Change: -1
Comment: For a guy who covets cowboy hats as much as Mr. Dillon, the Richard Childress Racing driver has yet to win -- let alone finish in the top 10 -- at Texas in 10 starts.
Rank: 16
Change: -1
Comment: For a guy who covets cowboy hats as much as Mr. Dillon, the Richard Childress Racing driver has yet to win -- let alone finish in the top 10 -- at Texas in 10 starts.
7 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Chase Elliott
Rank: 15
Change: -3
Comment: Elliott has been elite at Texas throughout his national series career and that's carried into the Monster Energy Series. He knocked out two top-fives in his rookie season and a pair of top 10s last year.
Rank: 15
Change: -3
Comment: Elliott has been elite at Texas throughout his national series career and that's carried into the Monster Energy Series. He knocked out two top-fives in his rookie season and a pair of top 10s last year.
8 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Erik Jones
Rank: 14
Change: -1
Comment: Jones has three career wins at Texas in the Xfinity Series -- his most at any track -- and the No. 20 car was fourth last fall with Matt Kenseth. A win for Jones this weekend isn't a long shot.
Rank: 14
Change: -1
Comment: Jones has three career wins at Texas in the Xfinity Series -- his most at any track -- and the No. 20 car was fourth last fall with Matt Kenseth. A win for Jones this weekend isn't a long shot.
9 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Jimmie Johnson
Rank: 13
Change: -2
Comment: Mr. Black Hat himself has won two of the last three spring races and his seven total Texas wins are five more than any active driver. This is as good a shot as any for Johnson to get back in the win column.
Rank: 13
Change: -2
Comment: Mr. Black Hat himself has won two of the last three spring races and his seven total Texas wins are five more than any active driver. This is as good a shot as any for Johnson to get back in the win column.
10 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Alex Bowman
Rank: 12
Change: +5
Comment: Sunday will be Bowman's sixth race at Texas -- including one spot start for Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- he's coming off a top 10 at Martinsville, and Junior finished runner-up in this race in 2016 with this car. Keep an eye on Bowman this weekend.
Rank: 12
Change: +5
Comment: Sunday will be Bowman's sixth race at Texas -- including one spot start for Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- he's coming off a top 10 at Martinsville, and Junior finished runner-up in this race in 2016 with this car. Keep an eye on Bowman this weekend.
11 of 21
Christian Petersen | Getty Images
Driver: Aric Almirola
Rank: 11
Change: -1
Comment: Almirola has enjoyed much of the success with his new team thus far in 2018, but don't expect him to be the next Stewart-Haas Racing driver to land in Victory Lane this weekend. He's never led a lap at Texas and has just one top 10 in 14 starts.
Rank: 11
Change: -1
Comment: Almirola has enjoyed much of the success with his new team thus far in 2018, but don't expect him to be the next Stewart-Haas Racing driver to land in Victory Lane this weekend. He's never led a lap at Texas and has just one top 10 in 14 starts.
12 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Kurt Busch
Rank: 10
Change: +4
Comment: Busch last won at Texas in 2009, but is among the better drivers there overall despite the 16-race losing drought. He has 17 top-10 finishes and is tied for the most poles with two.
Rank: 10
Change: +4
Comment: Busch last won at Texas in 2009, but is among the better drivers there overall despite the 16-race losing drought. He has 17 top-10 finishes and is tied for the most poles with two.
13 of 21
Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Kyle Larson
Rank: 9
Change: -1
Comment: On the whole, Texas doesn't line up as one of Larson's best tracks. He has four finishes outside the top 20 and two 37ths. That said, he figured something out last year, finishing runner-up in the spring race and leading his first laps -- 74 of them -- before crashing out in the fall.
Rank: 9
Change: -1
Comment: On the whole, Texas doesn't line up as one of Larson's best tracks. He has four finishes outside the top 20 and two 37ths. That said, he figured something out last year, finishing runner-up in the spring race and leading his first laps -- 74 of them -- before crashing out in the fall.
14 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Brad Keselowski
Rank: 8
Change: -2
Comment: Keselowski's 589 Texas laps led are fourth among active drivers, but he's yet to win in 19 tries. All three Team Penske cars were in the top 10 last fall in the midst of a down season, so he should have a strong shot to win now that they're running better.
Rank: 8
Change: -2
Comment: Keselowski's 589 Texas laps led are fourth among active drivers, but he's yet to win in 19 tries. All three Team Penske cars were in the top 10 last fall in the midst of a down season, so he should have a strong shot to win now that they're running better.
15 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Joey Logano
Rank: 7
Change: -2
Comment: Apart from a few hiccups, Logano has been exceptional at Texas since fall 2012. In 10 races since, he has an average finish of 8.0 with a win.
Rank: 7
Change: -2
Comment: Apart from a few hiccups, Logano has been exceptional at Texas since fall 2012. In 10 races since, he has an average finish of 8.0 with a win.
16 of 21
Jerry Markland | Getty Images
Driver: Clint Bowyer
Rank: 6
Change: +3
Comment: It's tough to say if Bowyer will still be riding momentum from a huge Martinsville win with the off-week in between, but his history at Texas won't help him much. He's been locked out of the top 10 since the fall race in 2014, with no laps led.
Rank: 6
Change: +3
Comment: It's tough to say if Bowyer will still be riding momentum from a huge Martinsville win with the off-week in between, but his history at Texas won't help him much. He's been locked out of the top 10 since the fall race in 2014, with no laps led.
17 of 21
Christian Petersen | Getty Images
Driver: Denny Hamlin
Rank: 5
Change: -1
Comment: Texas isn't typically among the tracks that come to mind when thinking of where Hamlin excels, but he's one of just three active drivers with multiple wins there (swept the 2010 races).
Rank: 5
Change: -1
Comment: Texas isn't typically among the tracks that come to mind when thinking of where Hamlin excels, but he's one of just three active drivers with multiple wins there (swept the 2010 races).
18 of 21
Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Ryan Blaney
Rank: 4
Change: +3
Comment: Blaney led a race-high 148 laps last year in this race, and should have a shot to lead laps again this weekend. He's started in the top 10 the last four Texas races.
Rank: 4
Change: +3
Comment: Blaney led a race-high 148 laps last year in this race, and should have a shot to lead laps again this weekend. He's started in the top 10 the last four Texas races.
19 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Kevin Harvick
Rank: 3
Change: --
Comment: Remarkably, Harvick's win at Texas last fall was his first at the track despite a tremendous history of success there. His 337 points earned over the last nine Texas races are most in the series.
Rank: 3
Change: --
Comment: Remarkably, Harvick's win at Texas last fall was his first at the track despite a tremendous history of success there. His 337 points earned over the last nine Texas races are most in the series.
20 of 21
Sarah Crabill | Getty Images
Driver: Martin Truex Jr.
Rank: 2
Change: --
Comment: Truex has never won at Texas, but there's a great chance that changes this weekend. He's led 49 or more laps in four straight races there -- 100-plus in two of them -- and has six straight top 10s.
Rank: 2
Change: --
Comment: Truex has never won at Texas, but there's a great chance that changes this weekend. He's led 49 or more laps in four straight races there -- 100-plus in two of them -- and has six straight top 10s.
21 of 21
Brian Lawdermilk | Getty Images
Driver: Kyle Busch
Rank: 1
Change: --
Comment: Busch won this race in 2016, and is one of just two active drivers with double-digit top-five finishes there. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is a solid pre-race favorite.
Rank: 1
Change: --
Comment: Busch won this race in 2016, and is one of just two active drivers with double-digit top-five finishes there. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is a solid pre-race favorite.