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Power Rankings: Christopher Bell heating up with summer stretch on the horizon

By Pat DeCola | Published: 3 May, 2022 21

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NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 NASCAR Cup Series drivers after the race at Dover Motor Speedway and before Sunday's race at Darlington Raceway (3:30 p.m. ET, FS1).

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

20. Denny Hamlin (-1)

Season-high: 5

Season-low: 20

Comment: With a win in hand, Hamlin is still a more-than-likely playoff driver, but, man, things could be going better for the No. 11 group. Darlington should hopefully be a sight for sore eyes for them, as not only is he the most recent winner there, he has picked up three of his four South Carolina wins from 2017 on.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Austin Cindric poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

19. Austin Cindric (-4)

Season-high: 10

Season-low: 19

Comment: Cindric has seen better days as well, with Dover producing yet another finish outside the top 10 (he has just one since his Daytona 500 win) for his worst result of the season. He has no Cup starts at Darlington, though he did turn in a top-three finish in his last race there in the Xfinity Series last fall.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Chris Buescher poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

18. Chris Buescher (Not ranked last week)

Season-high: 18

Season-low: Out

Comment: Buescher put together his most complete race of the season (maybe even of his career?) at Dover, leading 18 laps from the pole before settling in for eighth and nabbing his best points day of the year. In terms of average finish, Darlington (17.6) ranks third-best among tracks where he has more than two starts, and he has notched back-to-back top 10s there.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

17. Tyler Reddick (-3)

Season-high: 7

Season-low: 17

Comment: After nearly securing his first win a few weeks ago at Bristol, Reddick has collected just eight total points in the past two races with a pair of finishes 30th or worse. He hasn't been awful at Darlington — 14.6 average finish — but he has yet to land in the top 10 there since his first shot at it in 2020 (four races).

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Daniel Suarez poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

16. Daniel Suárez (+4)

Season-high: 13

Season-low: Out

Comment: At some point, you'd think some of teammate Ross Chastain's good fortune will shift over to the No. 99 car, which continues to be not far off the pace of the better performing No. 1. Darlington would be a good time for it to happen for him, as it stands as one of his worst tracks (no top 10s in eight starts, 23.9 average finish).

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Austin Dillon portrait

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

15. Austin Dillon (-5)

Season-high: 10

Season-low: 20

Comment: As expected, Dillon's slew of strong runs ended at Dover (one of his worst tracks) but could easily get back on track this weekend at Darlington, arguably his best venue. At tracks with more than two starts it stands as his best in terms of average finish (12.2) and a runner-up in the 2020 Southern 500 points to a potential win coming this weekend.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Erik Jones poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

14. Erik Jones (+2)

Season-high: 14

Season-low: Out

Comment: Jones continues to race with the big boys, and it's obvious GMS hopping on the Petty train has benefitted the organization tremendously. He has been stellar at Darlington historically (had never finished worse than eighth there before last year), and we shouldn't be surprised if he turns in a third-straight 2022 top 10 on Sunday.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Aric Almirola poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

13. Aric Almirola (-1)

Season-high: 11

Season-low: Out

Comment: Almirola's final season started off quite promising with three straight top sixes, but he has just one top 10 since. Still, he's hovering around the top 10 in points and had a pair of solid runs at Darlington in 2020, so it could buck the trend.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Chase Briscoe poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

12. Chase Briscoe (+1)

Season-high: 10

Season-low: 15

Comment: Briscoe has started to slip a bit, with no top 10s in his last three races, though Monday's P13 at Dover was a nice solidifier. He was shut out of the top 10 at Darlington in his first two starts last year but did finish 11th in this race and won there in the spring in the Xfinity Series in 2020.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

11. Kevin Harvick (--)

Season-high: 5

Season-low: 12

Comment: Dover wasn't anything to write home about for Harvick, but he did secure back-to-back top 10s for the first time this season. It could offer just the momentum he needs to break through for his first 2022 win at one of his best tracks — Harvick hasn't finished outside the top nine at Darlington since 2012, picking up three wins in that span.

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DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 15: NASCAR driver Christopher Bell poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2022 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

10. Christopher Bell (+8)

Season-high: 10

Season-low: Out

Comment: Don't look now, but Bell has four finishes inside the top seven in the past six races for an average finish of 10.33 in that span. He has yet to land in the top 10 at Darlington but it wouldn't be shocking to see him snag his first on Sunday; he led laps in both races there last year.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Joey Logano poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

9. Joey Logano (-2)

Season-high: 2

Season-low: 9

Comment: After back-to-back top threes and his first 2022 win appearing imminent, Logano has now turned in a pair of sub-10 points days at Talladega and Dover. He's not likely to stay down for long, however, and his first Darlington win certainly could be in play on Sunday.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Martin Truex Jr. poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

8. Martin Truex Jr. (+1)

Season-high: 4

Season-low: 9

Comment: Truex essentially squandered a top-three day on the final lap at Dover to finish outside the top 10, and he's now on pace for his worst average finish (13.5) since 2016 (13.9), the last time he finished outside the top 10 in points. He also picked up a strong four wins that year — one of which was at Darlington — so who knows?

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver William Byron poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

7. William Byron (-2)

Season-high: 1

Season-low: 16

Comment: The good news is Byron is one of just two multi-winners in 2022. The bad news is he somehow only has four top 10s despite obvious speed throughout the entirety of the season. He crashed at Darlington last fall, but his two previous races there netted a pair of top fives.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Kyle Larson poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

6. Kyle Larson (--)

Season-high: 1

Season-low: 6

Comment: Larson appears to be settling in quite nicely, if not just a tick off the winner's pace each week — but his time will come, and likely soon. He has been nearly lights-out at Darlington lately with a trio of runner-ups in the last three races there, so he should be viewed as Sunday's favorite to win.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Alex Bowman poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

5. Alex Bowman (+3)

Season-high: 5

Season-low: 13

Comment: Bowman continues to be a top-10 machine, turning in his sixth in the last seven races (the one that wasn't was a P12). He does have a runner-up at Darlington as recently as 2020, but overall it has been a tough track for him with just two top 10s in nine starts and an 18.1 average finish.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Ryan Blaney poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

4. Ryan Blaney (-1)

Season-high: 1

Season-low: 10

Comment: Blaney was once again fast at Dover — he has led in every race except Bristol — but saw his race go sideways and end with a 26th-place finish. It'll be interesting to see how he fares at Darlington, a track he has yet to figure out, with just one top 10 in 10 starts (though it was this race last year).

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 19: NASCAR driver Kyle Busch poses for a photo during NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 19, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

3. Kyle Busch (+1)

Season-high: 2

Season-low: 11

Comment: Busch had a good shot to win on his birthday again — would've been the third time in three tries — but ultimately fell short despite the strong finish. He's super strong at Darlington much more often than not, and given his history there (10 top 10s in the last 13 races), it's surprising he only has one win and it came in 2008.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Ross Chastain poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

2. Ross Chastain (--)

Season-high: 2

Season-low: Out

Comment: Chastain is absolutely on fire right now, and his seven top fives through 11 races are not just two more than any other driver in the series — they're more than double the amount he collected in his career prior to 2022 (three in 115 starts). Guess where one of those three previous top fives was. Darlington. Last year.

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CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 18: NASCAR driver Chase Elliott poses for a photo during the NASCAR Production Days at Clutch Studios on January 18, 2022 in Concord, North Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images

1. Chase Elliott (--)

Season-high: 1

Season-low: 4

Comment: It took 11 races, but this season's best overall driver is finally in the win column after being atop the standings since Atlanta. He'll try to keep it rolling at Darlington, where he has had a rough go of it lately — the 2020 champ has averaged a 19.83 finish in the most recent six races there.