BACK TO GALLERIES
Power Rankings: Richmond to Talladega
By Pat DeCola | Published: April 16, 2019 21
Cindy Gonzalez | NASCAR Digital Media
1 of 21
Cindy Gonzalez | NASCAR Digital Media
NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers after the race at Richmond Raceway and ahead of Talladega Superspeedway.
2 of 21
Daniel Shirey | Getty Images
Driver: Kyle Larson
Rank: 20
Change: -6
Comment: Larson and the No. 42 team are lost right now, so the break is coming at the perfect time. Still, the remedy might not come at Talladega where the Chip Ganassi Racing driver has no top fives and just two top 10s in 10 starts.
Rank: 20
Change: -6
Comment: Larson and the No. 42 team are lost right now, so the break is coming at the perfect time. Still, the remedy might not come at Talladega where the Chip Ganassi Racing driver has no top fives and just two top 10s in 10 starts.
3 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: William Byron
Rank: 19
Change: +1
Comment: Byron's first two finishes at Talladega left plenty to be desired, but don't discredit the fact that he led laps in both for a total of 19. He's bound to break out at some point in 2019. Why not at NASCAR's biggest track?
Rank: 19
Change: +1
Comment: Byron's first two finishes at Talladega left plenty to be desired, but don't discredit the fact that he led laps in both for a total of 19. He's bound to break out at some point in 2019. Why not at NASCAR's biggest track?
4 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Rank: 18
Change: -1
Comment: Stenhouse won this race two years ago and has since been regarded as one of the best -- and most-aggressive -- superspeedway racers. His team needs a spark and it could come at 'Dega.
Rank: 18
Change: -1
Comment: Stenhouse won this race two years ago and has since been regarded as one of the best -- and most-aggressive -- superspeedway racers. His team needs a spark and it could come at 'Dega.
5 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Erik Jones
Rank: 17
Change: +1
Comment: Jones has just one top 10 since Atlanta, and -- though he notched one at 'Dega last fall -- another might be hard to come by in Alabama. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has seen his fair share of bad luck there, wrecking out of his first three attempts.
Rank: 17
Change: +1
Comment: Jones has just one top 10 since Atlanta, and -- though he notched one at 'Dega last fall -- another might be hard to come by in Alabama. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has seen his fair share of bad luck there, wrecking out of his first three attempts.
6 of 21
Jerry Markland | Getty Images
Driver: Paul Menard
Rank: 16
Change: +3
Comment: After notching just one top 10 through his first 14 Talladega races, Menard has six in his last 11 (three of which he crashed out). Don't sleep on the 'Nard Dog at 'Dega.
Rank: 16
Change: +3
Comment: After notching just one top 10 through his first 14 Talladega races, Menard has six in his last 11 (three of which he crashed out). Don't sleep on the 'Nard Dog at 'Dega.
7 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Ryan Newman
Rank: 15
Change: --
Comment: Newman has started at Talladega 34 times and won exactly zero times. The Roush Fenway Racing driver has a top 10 in just six of his last 19 starts there, with just 35 laps led since 2010.
Rank: 15
Change: --
Comment: Newman has started at Talladega 34 times and won exactly zero times. The Roush Fenway Racing driver has a top 10 in just six of his last 19 starts there, with just 35 laps led since 2010.
8 of 21
Matt Sullivan | Getty Images
Driver: Austin Dillon
Rank: 14
Change: +2
Comment: Last year's Daytona 500 winner looked primed to be a notorious superspeedway racer after that capped off two straight top 10s at 'Dega in 2016. He's had a rough go of it in every other Talladega race, though, with no top 10s and no laps led.
Rank: 14
Change: +2
Comment: Last year's Daytona 500 winner looked primed to be a notorious superspeedway racer after that capped off two straight top 10s at 'Dega in 2016. He's had a rough go of it in every other Talladega race, though, with no top 10s and no laps led.
9 of 21
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Driver: Daniel Suarez
Rank: 13
Change: -1
Comment: Suarez has just one top 10 at Talladega, but it came in this race last year. It'll be interesting to see if he fares any better working the draft with his Stewart-Haas Racing teammates after a couple of years at Joe Gibbs Racing.
Rank: 13
Change: -1
Comment: Suarez has just one top 10 at Talladega, but it came in this race last year. It'll be interesting to see if he fares any better working the draft with his Stewart-Haas Racing teammates after a couple of years at Joe Gibbs Racing.
10 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Jimmie Johnson
Rank: 12
Change: +1
Comment: Johnson hasn't won at 'Dega since 2011 and has just three laps led since 2015 -- but he does have a top 10 in two of the last four races there. Plus, he just ran the Boston Marathon so he's got that mojo going.
Rank: 12
Change: +1
Comment: Johnson hasn't won at 'Dega since 2011 and has just three laps led since 2015 -- but he does have a top 10 in two of the last four races there. Plus, he just ran the Boston Marathon so he's got that mojo going.
11 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Aric Almirola
Rank: 11
Change: -1
Comment: Almirola won at Talladega last fall, leading only the last lap. Don't think it was a fluke, though -- it was his fifth consecutive top 10 there after notching just one through his first 13 starts.
Rank: 11
Change: -1
Comment: Almirola won at Talladega last fall, leading only the last lap. Don't think it was a fluke, though -- it was his fifth consecutive top 10 there after notching just one through his first 13 starts.
12 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Chase Elliott
Rank: 10
Change: -1
Comment: Elliott set the bar high in his first 'Dega start, placing fifth after starting on the pole. He has just one top 10 since, though he's never started worse than eighth in six races.
Rank: 10
Change: -1
Comment: Elliott set the bar high in his first 'Dega start, placing fifth after starting on the pole. He has just one top 10 since, though he's never started worse than eighth in six races.
13 of 21
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Driver: Ryan Blaney
Rank: 9
Change: -3
Comment: Like his good pal Elliott, Blaney had quick success at Talladega (fourth in his second try) but that's about it (one top 10 since). He'll likely work with his Team Penske teammates, though, so he'll have a good shot.
Rank: 9
Change: -3
Comment: Like his good pal Elliott, Blaney had quick success at Talladega (fourth in his second try) but that's about it (one top 10 since). He'll likely work with his Team Penske teammates, though, so he'll have a good shot.
14 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Kurt Busch
Rank: 8
Change: -1
Comment: The bad: Busch's 36 winless Talladega starts are most in the series. The good: He led 108 laps last fall, was the runner-up in last year's running of this race and he has more top fives and top 10s there than any active driver.
Rank: 8
Change: -1
Comment: The bad: Busch's 36 winless Talladega starts are most in the series. The good: He led 108 laps last fall, was the runner-up in last year's running of this race and he has more top fives and top 10s there than any active driver.
15 of 21
Donald Page | Getty Images
Driver: Clint Bowyer
Rank: 7
Change: +4
Comment: Bowyer has seen a good deal of success at Talladega, with two wins and top 10s in half his 26 starts. He has led just 22 laps since his last win (2011), however.
Rank: 7
Change: +4
Comment: Bowyer has seen a good deal of success at Talladega, with two wins and top 10s in half his 26 starts. He has led just 22 laps since his last win (2011), however.
16 of 21
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Driver: Brad Keselowski
Rank: 6
Change: -2
Comment: With a series-leading five wins, Keselowski is a perennial favorite to win at Talladega. His stats have been hit or miss, though, with top 10s in just more than 50 percent of his starts (11 for 20). He finished 33rd and 27th in two races last year.
Rank: 6
Change: -2
Comment: With a series-leading five wins, Keselowski is a perennial favorite to win at Talladega. His stats have been hit or miss, though, with top 10s in just more than 50 percent of his starts (11 for 20). He finished 33rd and 27th in two races last year.
17 of 21
Matt Sullivan | Getty Imagess
Driver: Martin Truex Jr.
Rank: 5
Change: +3
Comment: Now that he's gotten that short-track monkey off his back, why not go bananas and knock out that superspeedway drought while he's at it? Truex is a combined 0-for-56 at Daytona and Talladega, which is unfathomable given how talented he is.
Rank: 5
Change: +3
Comment: Now that he's gotten that short-track monkey off his back, why not go bananas and knock out that superspeedway drought while he's at it? Truex is a combined 0-for-56 at Daytona and Talladega, which is unfathomable given how talented he is.
18 of 21
Sean Gardner | Getty Images
Driver: Kevin Harvick
Rank: 4
Change: +1
Comment: Harvick has just one win at Talladega, and it came nearly a decade ago (2010). That said, he has been in contention plenty of times since, with laps led in eight of his last 10 starts at the Alabama track.
Rank: 4
Change: +1
Comment: Harvick has just one win at Talladega, and it came nearly a decade ago (2010). That said, he has been in contention plenty of times since, with laps led in eight of his last 10 starts at the Alabama track.
19 of 21
Chris Graythen | Getty Images
Driver: Denny Hamlin
Rank: 3
Change: -1
Comment: Hamlin won this race in 2014, but has just one top 10 in the spring race since. Still, the JGR driver is coming off a Daytona 500 win and is one of the sport's superior superspeedway racers.
Rank: 3
Change: -1
Comment: Hamlin won this race in 2014, but has just one top 10 in the spring race since. Still, the JGR driver is coming off a Daytona 500 win and is one of the sport's superior superspeedway racers.
20 of 21
Matt Sullivan | Getty Images
Driver: Joey Logano
Rank: 2
Change: +1
Comment: The race's defending winner has been nothing short of exceptional at Talladega the past few years. He crashed out in the '16 and '17 spring events, but has three wins and five top-five finishes in the last seven overall here.
Rank: 2
Change: +1
Comment: The race's defending winner has been nothing short of exceptional at Talladega the past few years. He crashed out in the '16 and '17 spring events, but has three wins and five top-five finishes in the last seven overall here.
21 of 21
Matt Sullivan | Getty Images
Driver: Kyle Busch
Rank: 1
Change: --
Comment: Though he won in 2008, Talladega is arguably Busch's least-favorite track, with just seven top 10s in 27 starts. He's also the best driver in the world at the moment and has led laps in six of the last seven races there so, hey, he might have a chance.
Rank: 1
Change: --
Comment: Though he won in 2008, Talladega is arguably Busch's least-favorite track, with just seven top 10s in 27 starts. He's also the best driver in the world at the moment and has led laps in six of the last seven races there so, hey, he might have a chance.