Power Rankings: Texas to Phoenix

NASCAR.com ranks the Monster Energy Series Playoffs drivers after the race at Texas Motor Speedway and ahead of the race at ISM Raceway in Phoenix.

Driver: Clint Bowyer

Rank: 8

Change: --

Comment: The Stewart-Haas Racing driver has one mission on Sunday: win. Anything short, and his shot at a title is over. It's unlikely, however, as his ISM Raceway results just haven't been there, with just one top 10 since 2013. The most speed we've seen out of Bowyer at Phoenix over the last several years came when he was chasing down Jeff Gordon on foot in 2012.

Driver: Aric Almirola

Rank: 7

Change: --

Comment: Almirola issued a warning that if he's not in the Championship 4, he'll make it really hard for Joey Logano to win the title. Luckily for him, he'll likely get that shot -- as he basically needs to win at Phoenix, and has just three top 10s in 15 starts there. Two of those have come in the last two races, however.

Driver: Chase Elliott

Rank: 6

Change: -1

Comment: Elliott is another who finds himself in close to the must-win ballpark with who he needs to leapfrog, but Phoenix actually lines up as a pretty good shot for the Hendrick Motorsports driver. His average starting position there (6.8) actually matches his average finishing position ... which just so happens to be the best in the series. Elliott was third in the spring, runner-up in this race last year and could find himself in Victory Lane with a ticket to Miami in his pocket on Sunday.

Driver: Kurt Busch

Rank: 5

Change: +1

Comment: Apart from a brief intermission of finishes of 25th and 21st in 2017, Busch has been pretty stellar at Phoenix for most of his recent history there. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver has been sneaky-fast throughout the playoffs and could certainly rise up and steal a win on Sunday. He needs a strong day and a little help to advance to the Championship 4.

Driver: Kyle Busch

Rank: 4

Change: -2

Comment: In three of the past six races, Busch has finished 17th or worse, with an overall average finish of 14.83 in those starts. While he's still in the hunt -- hello, playoff points -- a rebound this weekend is necessary if the No. 18 team is going to have any mojo going into Miami. With eight top fives at Phoenix and a P2 showing with 128 laps led in the spring race, it very well might happen.

Driver: Martin Truex Jr.

Rank: 3

Change: --

Comment: Also in need of a good run from start to finish this weekend is Truex, whose overall history at Phoenix isn't as good as Busch's. He was the spring pole winner, however, and finished top five in each of the past two races there. The Furniture Row Racing driver's three laps led in the spring were his first at the track since since 2012, though, so take that for whatever it's worth.

Driver: Joey Logano

Rank: 2

Change: -1

Comment: Regardless of the means he's taken to get there, Logano's average finish through the eight races of the NASCAR Playoffs so far is a clean 6.0 -- with no signs of slowing down. The 2016 Phoenix fall race winner has a good shot at blocking the path to an automatic title berth from his fellow playoff competitors this weekend, too. As we've learned, even though he doesn't have to, Logano is still intent on winning.

Driver: Kevin Harvick

Rank: 1

Change: +3

Comment: And then there's this guy. The most recent winner at Phoenix -- appears set to dominate again this weekend. Everyone knows that Phoenix might as well belong to Harvick, since he owns a whopping nine wins. What's more remarkable is that the rest of the playoff field -- combined -- has just three. A 10th isn't a certainty, but it's the most likely outcome of the weekend.