Power Rankings: 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season look ahead
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NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 25 NASCAR Cup Series drivers as the focus turns to 2024 and a new season offers a fresh start.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
25. Corey LaJoie
2023 season-high: 18
Comment: Gains, gains, gains. LaJoie continued his methodical climb up the Cup ranks in 2023, turning in career highs in essentially every conceivable counting stat, resulting in his best-ever points finish, too (25th). If the trajectory continues, it could put him into sleeper playoff contender status. Just saying.
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24. Josh Berry
2023 season-high: N/A
Comment: It's nearly impossible to forecast what Josh Berry's rise to the Cup Series will entail as Stewart-Haas Racing has fallen on difficult times in the past few years and seem to be lagging behind other Ford teams. Then again, the car he's inheriting just nearly beat the Championship 4 drivers at Phoenix with Kevin Harvick behind the wheel, and a somewhat unexpected Xfinity Series championship with Cole Custer could certainly revive spirits in the building at large. Berry is one of the most seasoned rookies we'll ever see, and he could surprise. Rodney Childers atop the box sure doesn't hurt, either.
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23. Ryan Preece
2023 season-high: 18
Comment: Preece returned to the full-time Cup ranks in '23 in the best opportunity he's had yet ... and turned in only a slightly better average finish and half as many top 10s as his last season at JTG Daugherty Racing. That said, it feels like SHR is putting together the future of its franchise with the current lineup, and they'll all be given space to grow. We know the talent is there with Preece -- it's just a matter of time before it translates to results.
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22. Chase Briscoe
2023 season-high: 14
Comment: Briscoe's drop from a ninth-place playoff run in 2022 to a P30 in the standings this year is, obviously, less than ideal. It's not as bad as it looks on the surface, though, as a major penalty not of his doing — 125 points — dropped him significantly. There's still plenty to like about Briscoe's driving acumen; the car performance just needs to catch up to his talent, and with Ford's expected performance gains in 2024, it could happen.
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21. Austin Cindric
2023 season-high: 10
Comment: Though he had a few bright spots, 2023 was a step back for the 2022 Daytona 500 winner in almost every conceivable way. His stock is down as the season comes to a close, but the 2020 Xfinity Series champion has shown capable in big moments and could theoretically make it three titles in a row for Team Penske with three different drivers. The No. 2 Team Penske car certainly comes along with a certain standard of excellence, though, so he'll need to step on it.
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20. Erik Jones
2023 season-high: 19
Comment: Coming off a P18 in last year's standings, I expected more from the two-time Southern 500 winner than the 27th-place showing in the final 2023 standings. However, I did not expect team co-owner Jimmie Johnson -- and seven-time champion behind the wheel of a Chevrolet -- to announce midseason an impending switch to Toyota for next year, which I would imagine impacted '23 majorly for Legacy Motor Club but will pay huge dividends in '24 and beyond.
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19. Daniel Suárez
2023 season-high: 10
Comment: Given his teammate was a 2022 Championship 4 contender and he broke out with his first win, 2023 -- on paper -- should have gone much better for the No. 99 driver. Team co-owner Justin Marks touched on this in his Sunday press conference, and they're going to take a long look at how to bring that squad up to the level of the No. 1. If that happens, watch out.
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18. Alex Bowman
2023 season-high: 2
Comment: What a tremendously weird season Bowman had. He looked like one of the title favorites through the first few months — see: his 2023 high ranking — but just absolutely could not put together any sort of consistent runs after coming back from injury at Charlotte in May. All the pieces are still here to compete, however, so maybe an offseason refresh is just what's needed and No. 48 will come back roaring in '24.
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James Gilbert | Getty Images
17. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
2023 season-high: 12
Comment: Stenhouse had a few wins already, but it was cool to see this Cup veteran finally get his "moment" by winning the Daytona 500. No. 47 backed it up throughout the year, turning in his second-best season to date and setting a career-high in lead-lap finishes (25).
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Meg Oliphant | Getty Images
16. Michael McDowell
2023 season-high: 14
Comment: No, McDowell didn't win another Daytona 500 ... but he did kiss the bricks at Indy for his second career Cup win in another above-average campaign. This guy can clearly drive and hangs with the big dogs at the front of the field when he has the car under him to do so. Expect more consistent, albeit incremental, gains in 2024.
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Chris Graythen | Getty Images
15. Ty Gibbs
2023 season-high: 16
Comment: With so many interesting story lines this year, Gibbs' strong Rookie of the Year campaign flew a bit under the radar, but he turned in an average finish (18.4) better than several full-time veterans. A sure-fire playoff driver in 2024, in my mind.
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James Gilbert | Getty Images
14. Chase Elliott
2023 season-high: 4
Comment: What can you say? There were plenty of times Elliott looked like a title contender on the race track, it was just his place in the standings that said he wasn't even a playoff driver. Let's see what he does with a full 2024 campaign; it would shock literally nobody to see him pick up title No. 2 next year after a down, winless season.
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James Gilbert | Getty Images
13. Kyle Busch
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: Early in the season -- he was a three-time winner before we hit the halfway mark -- it looked like Busch remarkably would be a Championship 4 contender in his first year with RCR. It was really a tale of two halves, though, as Busch turned in nine finishes of 20th or worse from Loudon-on. Which version will we see in 2024?
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
12. Bubba Wallace
2023 season-high: 9
Comment: How big of a step up in 2023 did Wallace take this year? Well, for starters, he finished higher in points (10th) than the Regular Season Champion. The arrow is pointing up here for sure, and there's no reason to think he won't be a perennial playoff contender for years to come at this point.
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James Gilbert | Getty Images
11. Brad Keselowski
2023 season-high: 4
Comment: After a clear outlier year as he learned the driver/owner ropes -- no, really, look at his Racing Reference page -- Keselowski looked much more like himself in 2023 and put in a respectable playoff run to finish eighth in points. A win seems like a certainty for him in 2024 and, to be honest, it wouldn't be the biggest shocker to see the 2012 champ make his third career Championship 4.
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10. Joey Logano
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: While I'm sure he's happy for his teammate, Logano -- the 2022 champ -- could not have been thrilled with his first-round exit only to see Ryan Blaney go on to win the whole thing. If there's one driver to expect racing with a vengeance in 2024, you're looking at him. Third title incoming? It will be an "even" year, after all.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
9. Chris Buescher
2023 season-high: 2
Comment: The title wound up going to perennial powerhouse Team Penske, of course, but for a good while there, Buescher and boss Brad Keselowski had the garage anointing RFK Racing as the Ford team to beat in 2023, which is just wild to think about. He's come so far and seemingly ruffled exactly zero feathers throughout his career, and if Buescher continues to have fast race cars, he might be the next Jimmie Johnson (in that he's the guy everyone likes too much to rough up and he keeps winning). Lofty, yes, but there's so much potential here.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
8. Martin Truex Jr.
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: Ah, what could've been. Another season came and gone in which Truex Jr. looked like a championship candidate, only to fall short for dozens of wild and wacky happenings on the track. Still, this was a major rebound year for him after being held winless and missing the playoffs in 2022. Next season could potentially be his last, so we'll see what he brings to the table in '24.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
7. Ross Chastain
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: It was a bit of an up-and-down year for Chastain, who we saw plenty of at the front of the field ... and who those at the front of the field probably wish they saw less of. Either way, he's here to stay and compete for race wins, and he'll have a shot to land back in the Championship 4 again after missing it this year.
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Jared C. Tilton | Getty Images
6. Denny Hamlin
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: Alright, so we have our answer -- 2023 wasn't Denny Hamlin's year. Title No. 1 will have to wait ... again ... after Hamlin's latest "best shot to win a championship." He's a threat to do it every year, though, so it's likely only a matter of time. He's running out of it, though.
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Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images
5. Christopher Bell
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: It's hard to discount a Championship 4 run, but Bell and crew chief Adam Stevens themselves indicated their displeasure with the No. 20's overall 2023 campaign. There's a lot to clean up here, but there's no denying Bell is fast and is the only driver with a Championship 4 streak going, so the ceiling is still super high in 2024 despite -- mainly pit road -- mistakes.
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
4. Tyler Reddick
2023 season-high: 2
Comment: Reddick's overall numbers are kind of eerily similar to his last season at RCR, but his No. 45 Toyota just never seemed to lack speed throughout the year and, as such, wound up sixth in the standings. He'll -- somehow -- be in his fifth Cup campaign next year, and with roughly 150 starts under his belt, he's set to take off in a big way. Sort of feel like anything short of a shot at Phoenix will be a disappointment for this team in '24.
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Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images
3. William Byron
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: Byron got strong consideration for No. 1 -- after all, he visited Victory Lane way more than anybody else in 2023 -- but ultimately, it feels like the top two here just have more momentum heading into the offseason. That said, Byron makes a fine choice as a potential 2024 champion, and after what we saw, he's more than deserving -- and capable. No. 24 in '24?
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Sean Gardner | Getty Images
2. Ryan Blaney
2023 season-high: 3
Comment: What an incredible playoff run. What an incredibly underwhelming lead up to it. Look, Blaney just did an amazing thing and something we all thought he was capable of. For most of 2023, though, it looked like just another above-average-but-nothing-special kind of season for No. 12, well into the period of his career when most had him pegged as a title contender. A first-round playoff exit seemed likely -- and almost was -- and yet this team kept fighting until, literally, the last checkered flag of 2023. They could absolutely run it back, but there's plenty to reflect and improve on from this season, too. Still, respect to the champs. They earned it big time.
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Jonathan Bachman | Getty Images
1. Kyle Larson
2023 season-high: 1
Comment: It wasn't as dominant as 2021, and 2024 won't be like 2023, but I still feel that when the conditions were right, Larson was the tip of the spear in the Cup Series this season. I expect that trend to continue next year -- and anticipate perhaps several more than the impressive four wins he compiled in '23 -- as Larson enters the offseason as the man to beat come February. Onto 2024!