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Power Rankings: Auto Club to Martinsville
By Pat DeCola | Published: March 19, 2019 21
Cindy Gonzalez | NASCAR Digital Media
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Cindy Gonzalez | NASCAR Digital Media
NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers after the race at Auto Club Speedway and ahead of the race at Martinsville Speedway.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Daniel Suarez
Rank: 20
Change: (Unranked last week)
Comment: Suarez had a tough time adjusting to Martinsville in his first race -- as most rookies do -- finishing 32nd. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver has averaged a 14.0 finish in his other starts, however, culminating in a top 10 last fall.
Rank: 20
Change: (Unranked last week)
Comment: Suarez had a tough time adjusting to Martinsville in his first race -- as most rookies do -- finishing 32nd. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver has averaged a 14.0 finish in his other starts, however, culminating in a top 10 last fall.
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Presley Ann | Getty Images
Driver: Austin Dillon
Rank: 19
Change: (Unranked last week)
Comment: Dillon gutted out a top 10 at Auto Club under some less-than-ideal circumstances, but Martinsville isn't shaping up to be a good race for him. Yes, his two top 10s there are top fives, but those are the only ones he has in 10 starts with just six total laps led.
Rank: 19
Change: (Unranked last week)
Comment: Dillon gutted out a top 10 at Auto Club under some less-than-ideal circumstances, but Martinsville isn't shaping up to be a good race for him. Yes, his two top 10s there are top fives, but those are the only ones he has in 10 starts with just six total laps led.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Driver: Ryan Newman
Rank: 18
Change: -2
Comment: Newman won at Martinsville in 2012, but he's been far from Victory Lane since. In the past 13 races, there have been 6,505 laps, and Newman has led just two of them.
Rank: 18
Change: -2
Comment: Newman won at Martinsville in 2012, but he's been far from Victory Lane since. In the past 13 races, there have been 6,505 laps, and Newman has led just two of them.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Driver: Alex Bowman
Rank: 17
Change: --
Comment: Bowman could be sneaky-good at Martinsville, a track that historically favors Hendrick Motorsports. Look past his career average finish of 24.7 -- Bowman had an average finish of 12.0 last year at Martinsville with a seventh-place result in this race.
Rank: 17
Change: --
Comment: Bowman could be sneaky-good at Martinsville, a track that historically favors Hendrick Motorsports. Look past his career average finish of 24.7 -- Bowman had an average finish of 12.0 last year at Martinsville with a seventh-place result in this race.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Driver: William Byron
Rank: 16
Change: +2
Comment: Byron's first starts at Martinsville didn't go so well, with finishes of 20th and 39th last year. The sophomore has Chad Knaus atop his pit box now, however, and Knaus has been a part of a win or two (or nine) at the Virginia track in his day.
Rank: 16
Change: +2
Comment: Byron's first starts at Martinsville didn't go so well, with finishes of 20th and 39th last year. The sophomore has Chad Knaus atop his pit box now, however, and Knaus has been a part of a win or two (or nine) at the Virginia track in his day.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Clint Bowyer
Rank: 15
Change: -3
Comment: Bowyer had a frustrating day at Auto Club, so Martinsville should be a sight for sore eyes. The defending winner of the race had three straight top sevens there before a front-row start last fall ended in a 21st-place finish.
Rank: 15
Change: -3
Comment: Bowyer had a frustrating day at Auto Club, so Martinsville should be a sight for sore eyes. The defending winner of the race had three straight top sevens there before a front-row start last fall ended in a 21st-place finish.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Driver: Jimmie Johnson
Rank: 14
Change: +1
Comment: Johnson has accrued exceptional stats at most tracks, and Martinsville is perhaps peak among them (nine wins). Those days are starting to feel distant, however, as "Seven-Time's" 2016 victory there was just one of two top 10s in his last nine starts at the "Paperclip."
Rank: 14
Change: +1
Comment: Johnson has accrued exceptional stats at most tracks, and Martinsville is perhaps peak among them (nine wins). Those days are starting to feel distant, however, as "Seven-Time's" 2016 victory there was just one of two top 10s in his last nine starts at the "Paperclip."
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Matt Sullivan | Getty Images
Driver: Erik Jones
Rank: 13
Change: +1
Comment: Jones got off to a hot start to 2019, but has cooled in the last three races. That's very similar to his stats at Martinsville, where he opened his career there with a 12th placer, followed by three straight finishes outside the top 15. It's not shaping up to be a rebound weekend for him.
Rank: 13
Change: +1
Comment: Jones got off to a hot start to 2019, but has cooled in the last three races. That's very similar to his stats at Martinsville, where he opened his career there with a 12th placer, followed by three straight finishes outside the top 15. It's not shaping up to be a rebound weekend for him.
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Matt Sullivan | Getty Images
Driver: Chase Elliott
Rank: 12
Change: +1
Comment: Elliott has a mediocre average finish at Martinsville (16.6) but in reality he's been pretty good there. The sport's Most Popular Driver has three top 10s in his last four starts with 143 laps led and, of course, that near-win in fall 2017.
Rank: 12
Change: +1
Comment: Elliott has a mediocre average finish at Martinsville (16.6) but in reality he's been pretty good there. The sport's Most Popular Driver has three top 10s in his last four starts with 143 laps led and, of course, that near-win in fall 2017.
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Daniel Shirey | Getty Images
Driver: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Rank: 11
Change: --
Comment: Though he's seen some good runs at fellow short track Bristol, success at Martinsville has been hard to come by for Stenhouse. The Roush Fenway Racing driver has just two top 10s in 12 career starts, both of which came in 2017.
Rank: 11
Change: --
Comment: Though he's seen some good runs at fellow short track Bristol, success at Martinsville has been hard to come by for Stenhouse. The Roush Fenway Racing driver has just two top 10s in 12 career starts, both of which came in 2017.
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Daniel Shirey | Getty Images
Driver: Kyle Larson
Rank: 10
Change: -3
Comment: Larson has just one top 10 in 10 Martinsville starts. After swinging and missing at one of his best tracks this past weekend, a rebound at the Virginia facility isn't likely.
Rank: 10
Change: -3
Comment: Larson has just one top 10 in 10 Martinsville starts. After swinging and missing at one of his best tracks this past weekend, a rebound at the Virginia facility isn't likely.
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Matt Sullivan | Getty Images
Driver: Kurt Busch
Rank: 9
Change: --
Comment: Busch has been rolling of late, but it could come to a halt at Martinsville. Though he owns two wins there and has two more starts than any active driver, all that experience has resulted in a rough average finish of 21.0.
Rank: 9
Change: --
Comment: Busch has been rolling of late, but it could come to a halt at Martinsville. Though he owns two wins there and has two more starts than any active driver, all that experience has resulted in a rough average finish of 21.0.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Ryan Blaney
Rank: 8
Change: +2
Comment: Blaney finished third in this race last year, leading 145 laps. Given how good Team Penske is in 2019, expect him to be near the front of the field again -- especially since he's started in the top seven in each of the past four Martinsville races.
Rank: 8
Change: +2
Comment: Blaney finished third in this race last year, leading 145 laps. Given how good Team Penske is in 2019, expect him to be near the front of the field again -- especially since he's started in the top seven in each of the past four Martinsville races.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Driver: Aric Almirola
Rank: 7
Change: +1
Comment: Almirola's last top 10 at Martinsville came way back in 2014, but he came close last year. In his first two races there with Stewart-Haas Racing, the veteran notched finishes of 14th and 11th.
Rank: 7
Change: +1
Comment: Almirola's last top 10 at Martinsville came way back in 2014, but he came close last year. In his first two races there with Stewart-Haas Racing, the veteran notched finishes of 14th and 11th.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Driver: Martin Truex Jr.
Rank: 6
Change: -1
Comment: Truex Jr.'s 26 starts at Martinsville are the most among all active drivers without a win there, which is not so good. He (obviously) came very, very close to cracking Victory Lane last fall before Joey Logano intervened, and he'll likely still be a threat on Sunday.
Rank: 6
Change: -1
Comment: Truex Jr.'s 26 starts at Martinsville are the most among all active drivers without a win there, which is not so good. He (obviously) came very, very close to cracking Victory Lane last fall before Joey Logano intervened, and he'll likely still be a threat on Sunday.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Driver: Brad Keselowski
Rank: 5
Change: +1
Comment: The 2017 winner of this race has been nothing short of exceptional at Martinsville of late. He's led at least a lap in six of the last eight races, six of which also resulted in top fives. The only bad result in that eight-race window was a 32nd-place result in 2015 in which he led 143 laps.
Rank: 5
Change: +1
Comment: The 2017 winner of this race has been nothing short of exceptional at Martinsville of late. He's led at least a lap in six of the last eight races, six of which also resulted in top fives. The only bad result in that eight-race window was a 32nd-place result in 2015 in which he led 143 laps.
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Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Driver: Denny Hamlin
Rank: 4
Change: -1
Comment: Hamlin was the runner-up at Martinsville in the fall and, with five wins, the Virginia native calls this one of his best tracks. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has top fives in half of his 26 starts there.
Rank: 4
Change: -1
Comment: Hamlin was the runner-up at Martinsville in the fall and, with five wins, the Virginia native calls this one of his best tracks. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has top fives in half of his 26 starts there.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Kevin Harvick
Rank: 3
Change: +1
Comment: Harvick has a shot to win any weekend, of course, but Martinsville doesn't line up as a great opportunity -- he hasn't led a lap there since spring 2016. Plus, in terms of Fords right now, SHR is great in a world where Penske is excellent.
Rank: 3
Change: +1
Comment: Harvick has a shot to win any weekend, of course, but Martinsville doesn't line up as a great opportunity -- he hasn't led a lap there since spring 2016. Plus, in terms of Fords right now, SHR is great in a world where Penske is excellent.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Driver: Joey Logano
Rank: 2
Change: --
Comment: Logano won at Martinsville in the fall, has the most poles there among active drivers (four) and has led a lap in every race at the "Paperclip" except one since 2014. He'll be strong on Sunday.
Rank: 2
Change: --
Comment: Logano won at Martinsville in the fall, has the most poles there among active drivers (four) and has led a lap in every race at the "Paperclip" except one since 2014. He'll be strong on Sunday.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
Driver: Kyle Busch
Rank: 1
Change: --
Comment: Busch has just two Martinsville wins, but of his 16 top 10s there -- in just 27 races -- 15 of them were top fives. Oh, and if you hadn't noticed, he's completely untouchable right now.
Rank: 1
Change: --
Comment: Busch has just two Martinsville wins, but of his 16 top 10s there -- in just 27 races -- 15 of them were top fives. Oh, and if you hadn't noticed, he's completely untouchable right now.