Power Rankings: Las Vegas to ISM Raceway in Phoenix

NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers in the NASCAR Power Rankings Las Vegas to Phoenix.

Driver: Ryan Newman

Rank: 20

Change: -3

Comment: Newman is coming off a 24th-place Vegas finish, but could get it going at Phoenix. The 2017 winner of the race has 10 top fives at ISM, but just one (the win) in his past seven starts there.

Driver: Chris Buescher

Rank: 19

Change: --

Comment: Buescher continues to hang around the top 20 and now heads to a track out west at which he's increased his finishing position the last three races from 37th to 29th to 18th.

Driver: Jimmie Johnson

Rank: 18

Change: -3

Comment: Johnson's four wins at ISM are second-most to Kevin Harvick's nine, but the seven-time champ hasn't won there in a decade. It's tough to tell where and when he'll get it going, we just know he likely will at some point.

Driver: Daniel Suarez

Rank: 17

Change: +1

Comment: Suarez has a great opportunity to spark his season this weekend at Phoenix, where the SHR driver notched two top 10s in his first three races before crashing out last year.

Driver: William Byron

Rank: 16

Change: --

Comment: Byron performed well at ISM last year in his rookie season, averaging a finish of 10.5 and leading 15 laps in his two starts. A step forward this year is possible.

Driver: Ryan Blaney

Rank: 15

Change: -4

Comment: Blaney notched a pair of top 10s at Phoenix in his rookie year, but he has none since. At some point, his average start of 6.5 will better his current average finish there of 18.0. Given how well Penske is running at the moment, it could be Sunday.

Driver: Clint Bowyer

Rank: 14

Change: -4

Comment: Bowyer was unable to back up a great Atlanta showing at Las Vegas, and Phoenix might not be the place he gets things going in the right direction again. His 27 starts there without a win are most among active drivers.

Driver: Alex Bowman

Rank: 13

Change: +1

Comment: Bowman's 194 laps led at ISM are the most among all active drivers without a win here -- though they all came in one race in 2016 while filling in for Dale Earnhardt Jr. The sixth-place finish he notched in that race is one of just two Phoenix finishes better than 30th on his resume.

Driver: Chase Elliott

Rank: 12

Change: +1

Comment: Elliott started and finished third in this race last year and -- given his propensity for succeeding on 1-mile tracks -- I have a sneaking suspicion we could see him battling for the lead on Sunday. And maybe taking the checkered.

Driver: Aric Almirola

Rank: 11

Change: +1

Comment: Almirola has just four top 10s in 16 ISM starts -- but they all came in his last seven races there. He's also increased his finishing position from 22nd to 17th to ninth to seventh to fourth over his last five, to boot.

Driver: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.

Rank: 10

Change: (Not ranked last week)

Comment: Will this newfound aggressive Stenhouse continue his success this weekend? At a track known for its passing difficulty that caters to those that muscle their way to the front -- ask his teammate about that -- it'll be interesting to see. The veteran driver has just two top 10s in 12 career Phoenix starts.

Driver: Kyle Larson

Rank: 9

Change: -1

Comment: Runner-up in this race in 2017, Larson has earned the fourth-most points (315) over the last 10 races at Phoenix. A top five is a reasonable expectation.

Driver: Erik Jones

Rank: 8

Change: -1

Comment: In every ISM race this far in his young career, Jones has either started or finished in the top 10 -- culminating in start/finish averages of 8.4/11.4. I could see Phoenix becoming a signature track for him in his career.

Driver: Kurt Busch

Rank: 7

Change: +2

Comment: Busch has historically been pretty good in the desert, with a win and 18 top 10s. That said, he's been a little shaky there lately, compiling an average finish of 22.0 over his last four starts.

Driver: Martin Truex Jr.

Rank: 6

Change: -3

Comment: Truex has put together a pair of top 10s his last two 2019 races, but in total he's led an uncharacteristic four laps this year. Perhaps the defending pole winner of this race will find his way to the front for Sunday.

Driver: Denny Hamlin

Rank: 5

Change:-1

Comment: Hamlin has been a fixture in the top 10 so far this year, and has earned a top five finish in 41 percent of his career starts at ISM. He's only notched one over his past five races there, but there's a good chance he gets another on Sunday.

Driver: Kevin Harvick

Rank: 4

Change: -2

Comment: The defending winner of the race -- because, of course -- has won seven of the last 13 at Phoenix and nine total. He won the pole last fall and finished a miserable, by his standards, fifth.

Driver: Brad Keselowski

Rank: 3

Change: +3

Comment: Keselowski is on fire to start 2019 and, though he doesn't have a win at Phoenix, has been consistently among the elite there since his championship season of 2012. In the last 14 ISM races, he has eight finishes of sixth or better.

Driver: Joey Logano

Rank: 2

Change: +3

Comment: Vegas winner Logano has had some misfortune at Phoenix over his last four there, but enjoyed an average finish of 7.0 in the seven prior. That stretch culminated in a win (fall 2016) and it wouldn't be a shock to see him go back-to-back on Sunday.

Driver: Kyle Busch

Rank: 1

Change: --

Comment: The most recent Phoenix winner also led 128 laps in this race last year. Busch has notched a top 10 in 19 of his 27 ISM starts and nine in his last 10. Over the last seven races there, his 312 points are most in the series -- even more than Harvick's 283. So, yeah, he's going to be good on Sunday.