Power Rankings: Speedy Blaney more than due for massive 2025 breakout

Analysis: Larson led a race-high 90 circuits at Texas and was in position late to capitalize on win No. 3 of the year; the only negative here is that, well, he didn’t. Can’t win ‘em all, though, and he has just as good of a shot -- if not better -- in his return to the site of last year’s closest finish ever, which he prevailed in.

Analysis: Byron hasn’t won a race since February, yet he’s had the top of the Cup Series standings on lock all year. His teammate in the No. 5 car is coming for that top spot, though, but last fall’s runner-up should have plenty of speed this weekend to hold off Larson ... for now.

Analysis: Reddick led just a single lap and finished outside the top 20, but Texas wasn’t a whiff for him -- No. 45 scored just one fewer point than runner-up Ross Chastain. He now heads to a track his team has owned in recent history ... while his personal results have been mixed. He does have a win and has led in each of the last six Kansas races, but finish-wise has just two top 10s in that span.

Analysis: Hamlin was on fire earlier this season and nearly won three straight races, and at Texas, well, he was just on fire and finished dead last. It’s probably no surprise that the team he owns has found loads of Kansas success, as he, himself, has turned in four victories overall with three wins and seven top 10s since 2019.

Analysis: While he never quite was in position to battle for the win at Texas, Bell did rebound from a rough Talladega result to collect his fourth top 10 in the last five races. A Kansas win is surely coming at some point for him, and possibly as soon as Sunday -- No. 20 has started on the pole in four of the last six races there and led 122 laps in last fall’s playoff race.

Analysis: The fact Blaney is on pace for his worst average finish while under the Team Penske banner is truly ridiculous, because what do your eyes tell you every Sunday afternoon? For me, I’m seeing perhaps the fastest week-to-week driver/car combo in the series right now, and it’s only a matter of time before Blaney takes multiple trips to Victory Lane. That said, though it could happen, don’t expect it to be this weekend at Kansas where he has just two top 10s and six laps led since 2020.

Analysis: Well, alright then. Every year, Joey Logano is doubted at some point, and every year, Joey Logano makes all the doubters look silly. The defending champ can now actually defend his title in this year’s playoffs, and as a three-time Kansas winner might even bolster his postseason positioning with another strong weekend ahead.

Analysis: Elliott is still looking to find the dominance that his teammates seem to be able to enjoy this year, but the fact that he’s still hanging around in the top four of the standings and not “missing” any weekends thus far leads one to think a win or two could still come in the regular season, even with a tough Texas weekend. It very well may happen just a few days from now, as Elliott has been among the elite at Kansas and has essentially averaged a top 10 there (10.1) across his 18 starts.

Analysis: Chastain has flown a bit under the radar in 2025, for good reason, but he’s actually not trailing too far off his revelatory 2022 season when he turned in a career-best 21 top 10s and finished runner-up in the standings. His 13.5 average finish (in, perhaps, a car that should finish well south of that) is just shy of the 13.3 he posted that year, and as the most recent winner at Kansas, you’d think he has a great chance to whittle that down further.

Analysis: Wallace appeared headed toward a solid weekend at Texas with a fast car but was left with just 10 points after crashing out in the second half of Sunday’s chaotic afternoon. It would sting a little more if he didn’t also have a great shot ahead of him this weekend, heading to a track where he expects to compete for the win -- and finished the job in 2022.

Analysis: Despite his hot start and six top 10s, Bowman is on pace for his worst average finish (18.1) in Hendrick Motorsports equipment, landing outside the top 30 in three of the last four races. He needs a stopper race, and thankfully for him Kansas has been a strong track for Bowman, who is riding five straight top 10s there. 

Analysis: Cindric may have had the car under him at Texas to snag a second straight win -- he led a season-best 60 laps on Sunday -- but got shuffled back to outside the top 20 when all was said and done. All of that forward momentum could be about to come to a screeching halt, however, as Cindric has never finished in the top 10 at Kansas and has four straight finishes of 31st or worse. 

Analysis: Stenhouse hasn’t had a bad race all season, nearly turned in his second top five of 2025 on Sunday at Texas and is nearly on pace to match his career-high average finish set in 2017 (17.1). Unfortunately, there’s a good chance he takes a hit in that department this weekend, as No. 47 has just one top 10 at Kansas in his 24 starts dating back to 2013.

Analysis: It’s easy to look at Briscoe’s four top 10s and be a little underwhelmed given he's with JGR now, but let’s not forget that future Hall of Famer Martin Truex Jr. only landed 11 of them in this car in a full season last year. However, with a 21.5 average finish across his eight Kansas starts with Stewart-Haas Racing, it’s unlikely Briscoe’s fortunes will turn this weekend.

Analysis: Buescher looked fast early on and appeared to finally have a solid run going at his home track before, of course, being derailed and finishing 18th. You already know he’ll be itching to get back to Kansas and create a new highlight reel for this year’s spring race, and, hopefully for Buescher, with him coming out on top of this one.

    Analysis: The finishes have yet to be a consistent part of the Texas pole winner's arsenal, but it’s clear that Hocevar will be a factor in more races than he isn’t, whether his fellow drivers like that or not. His three Kansas starts have netted progressively worse results thus far, though he did lead five laps in the most recent running there.

Analysis: Busch finished outside the top 10 for the sixth time in the past seven races, but there was at least a glimmer of hope at Texas before ultimate disappointment. He’s been competitive for most of the past decade at Kansas, so he could potentially rebound to a degree this weekend. 

Analysis:  Allmendinger had a great shot at a solid weekend, qualifying in the top 10, but instead was saddled with a P36 and exactly one point after wrecking out in the final stage. Kansas could be interesting for him -- he’s running better overall this year and did net a pair of top 10s there in 2016, though they’re just two of the four he has across 20 starts.

Analysis:  It’s quite remarkable that there are two drivers who have combined for just four top 10s this year who also have combined for two wins and more than 400 laps led, with Berry and his Ford stablemate Logano. No. 21 is clearly going to be a force on 1.5-milers this year and, wouldn’t you know, there’s another one this weekend. 

Analysis: Sure, Dillon has just three top 10s this year ... but did you know they’ve all come in the last three races? There’s a tremendous chance he keeps it rolling this weekend at Kansas, too, where No. 3 has seven top-15 finishes in the past nine races.