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Power Rankings: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. rumbles at ‘Dega, reenters ranks
By Pat DeCola | Published: June 24, 2020 21
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NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series after the race at Talladega Superspeedway and before the races at Pocono Raceway.
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20. Bubba Wallace (-1)
Comment: Wallace showed signs of being sporty at Talladega -- and has in general since the sport returned last month -- but his best finish at Pocono is 21st.
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19. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (NR)
Comment: Ricky was Ricky at Talladega, and Stenhouse appears to be getting even better at superspeedways. Will that big track energy carry over to the 2.5-mile Pocono? In 14 races there, he has yet to land in the top 10.
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18. Chris Buescher (+2)
Comment: Pocono, of course, is the site of Buescher's lone -- but memorable -- win, in 2016. He's certainly not one to rule out this weekend, but that stands as his only top 10 in eight tries.
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17. Erik Jones (+1)
Comment: Jones has had a quiet 2020, but Pocono weekend marks perhaps the best spot for him to break out. Last year's spring runner-up (led 10 laps) has four top fives in just six starts at the "Tricky Triangle."
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16. Matt DiBenedetto (-2)
Comment: DiBenedetto has never seen the top 10 in 10 Pocono races and owns a 29.6 average finish, but he placed 17th in the races last year in better equipment than he'd driven previously. He's in even better stuff now at Wood Brothers Racing, so a top 10 is not out of the equation.
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15. Tyler Reddick (--)
Comment: Reddick has no Cup Series starts at Pocono because he's a rookie. So, naturally, at some point this weekend we'll see him racing at the front of the field with the champions of the sport, right? Also probably worth noting: He was the runner-up in the Xfinity Series race last year.
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14. William Byron (+3)
Comment: Byron must have Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson's notes on Pocono, because he has taken to it immediately in his young career with an average finish of 9.2.
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13. Clint Bowyer (-1)
Comment: Bowyer is 0-for-28 in his career at Pocono, joining his Stewart-Haas Racing teammates for a combined 0-for-82 in the wins department there. That said, he does have two top-six finishes since joining the team in 2017.
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12. Aric Almirola (+1)
Comment: Almirola, like Bowyer, has been shut out of Victory Lane at Pocono and hasn't seen the front of the field much, either, with just two top 10s in 15 races. Still, he finished third at Talladega backwards, so he kind of gets a pass right now.
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11. Jimmie Johnson (--)
Comment: Johnson has notched three wins at the Pennsylvania track in his career and owns a solid 12.4 average finish to go along with a series-best 743 laps led. With two shots at it, there's a strong chance he could come out of the weekend with a dub.
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10. Kurt Busch (--)
Comment: Busch's average finish at Pocono (14.4) isn't among the very best, but he's still managed to rack up a series-high 14 top fives to coincide with three wins. He'll be another one to watch this weekend.
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9. Kyle Busch (-1)
Comment: It's hard to believe Busch is on the precipice of dropping out of the top 10 here, but I really, really don't think that'll be the case by next week. With his team's overall strength at Pocono and the fact he has won two of the last three races there, I'm pretty confident he won't leave the weekend winless.
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8. Martin Truex Jr. (-1)
Comment: Truex is another tremendously strong bet to significantly bolster his playoff positioning by Sunday evening with two shots to celebrate. The 2018 spring winner also won in 2015 with Furniture Row Racing in a Chevrolet.
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7. Alex Bowman (+2)
Comment: With a P3 on his resume in 2018 and how well he fared at Auto Club Speedway earlier this year, this weekend feels like we could see a sneaky Bowman win after being hit-or-miss since NASCAR's return.
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6. Brad Keselowski (-2)
Comment: Keselowski should make a wish, because he has identical average starts and finishes of 11.1 at Pocono. He hasn't won there since 2011, but the Team Penske driver has been a consistent presence in the top five.
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5. Joey Logano (--)
Comment: Here's a rarity: Pocono stands as the lone track Logano has won at with Joe Gibbs Racing -- but not Team Penske. That win was his last with the team, in 2012, and he has just three top fives since.
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4. Ryan Blaney (+3)
Comment: You're looking at an elite-level driver here, folks. Blaney has officially made it. He has six top-four finishes in his last seven races, and the 2017 Pocono winner should not only be considered a favorite to win at least one race this weekend, it's time we start plugging him into way-too-early Championship 4 projections.
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3. Chase Elliott (-1)
Comment: And Blaney's pal, Elliott, might as well be penciled in right next to him. Elliott looked primed to contend for another win at Talladega before being spun out of contention, but he shouldn't have to wait too long to have a shot at Victory Lane again. He has six top 10s in eight races at Pocono.
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2. Denny Hamlin (+1)
Comment: Hamlin has found that same about-to-turn-40 gear Kevin Harvick shifted into a few years back and has rounded into the same expert-in-his-field veteran class as the 2014 champ. His 2019 average finish and the pace he's on in 2020 would be the best of his career, and as Pocono's most recent winner and series leader in wins (five), there's a strong chance he betters that mark this weekend.
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1. Kevin Harvick (--)
Comment: And perhaps Harvick finally finds a way to come through at the "Tricky Triangle" because it has certainly been just that for him historically. The top driver in 2020 has yet to pick up a victory at Pocono in 38 tries, though he did lead a race-high 62 laps from the pole last July.