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Power Rankings: Can Ross Chastain sneak his way into playoffs?
By Pat DeCola | Wednesday, July 21, 2021
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NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola ranks the top 20 Cup Series drivers after the race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and before Watkins Glen International.
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20. Chris Buescher (-4)
Season-high: 13th
Season-low: Out
Comment: Buescher is still enjoying the best season of his Cup career, but he's fading from playoff contention quickly at the very worst time, with seven straight finishes of 16th or worse. He's been knocking on the door of the top 10 at Watkins Glen the past few times out there, and it's looking like he may need to win one of the remaining four races to sneak back into the postseason.
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19. Michael McDowell (-1)
Season-high: 10th
Season-low: Out
Comment: McDowell knows he's headed in the wrong direction after three straight finishes of 25th or worse and was in the simulator bright and early Monday morning following New Hampshire, per his Twitter account. He has some really good shots to capitalize on some momentum in the remaining regular-season races, with two road courses and a superspeedway ... that he's the most recent winner at.
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18. Matt DiBenedetto (-1)
Season-high: 14th
Season-low: Out
Comment: We don't know where he'll be racing next year (he doesn't either, it appears) but we do know that DiBenedetto and the No. 21 team have looked a little better the past few weeks and could still make some noise in their remaining races together. He finished sixth at Watkins Glen in the No. 95 in 2019, so he could surprise some people when we return to the track.
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17. Ross Chastain (+3)
Season-high: 17th
Season-low: Out
Comment: Chastain has five top 10s in the last nine races, three of which were at road courses and perhaps we should be looking him as a legitimate playoff contender with two of the four remaining races being on tracks that turn left and right. He's only gotten better as the season has progressed, and his CGR teammate won just two races ago. Why not?
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16. Aric Almirola (Not ranked last week)
Season-high: 16th
Season-low: Out
Comment: Perhaps a big part of the struggles Almirola has seen this year stem from his starting position — only three times has it been inside the top 10 this year — so it'll be interesting to see if he can keep it rolling from a good spot at Watkins Glen. That said, while he's started inside the top 10 the last two trips there, he's never finished inside the top 10 in nine tries.
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15. Austin Dillon (-1)
Season-high: 11th
Season-low: 16th
Comment: Dillon hasn't been racing poorly but doesn't seem to have the oomph lately that some of the Chevrolets displayed earlier in the season after a seventh straight finish outside the top 10. It's a streak unlikely to end at Watkins Glen, where he's finished 26th or worse in five straight.
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14. Christopher Bell (+1)
Season-high: 8th
Season-low: 16th
Comment: It's starting to become outwardly clear again just how talented Christopher Bell is, and he's now collected a pair of runner-ups the past three weekends in addition to stomping the field in the Xfinity Series on Saturday. With the speed he's displaying and a road-course win already in his pocket this year, he should be quite competitive at The Glen.
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13. Tyler Reddick (--)
Season-high: 12th
Season-low: Out
Comment: Reddick is still on the right side of the bubble and likely racing just well enough to keep his spot if nothing gets too crazy in the postseason picture. He'd certainly like to win, though, and with some of the strength he's shown at road courses it certainly could happen in upstate New York.
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12. Kurt Busch (-1)
Season-high: 6th
Season-low: Out
Comment: Busch was unable to keep his Atlanta win momentum going, but didn't really need to with his fate now basically sealed with a playoff spot. He's finished top six in three of the road-course races this year, so he has a good shot to get back on it at Watkins Glen.
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11. Kevin Harvick (+1)
Season-high: 1st
Season-low: 12th
Comment: That No. 4 looked right at home in New Hampshire this past weekend, and you have to wonder if Harvick might be returning to form. That could spell trouble for his competitors hoping he doesn't catch fire at some point this season, considering the championship still takes place at his best track.
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10. Brad Keselowski (--)
Season-high: 2nd
Season-low: 12th
Comment: Keselowski's future has now finally become fully clear, but he's still got the present to focus on, and he has three top 10s — two were top threes — in the past four races. He's still a championship contender despite his impeding Penske exit, but don't expect him or the No. 2 team to lay over in their final races together.
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9. Martin Truex Jr. (-2)
Season-high: 2nd
Season-low: 10th
Comment: Truex was unable to string together a third straight 2021 top 10 at one of his better tracks after early damage, and this team continues to seemingly over- and under-perform at random stretches. Expect them to come back to life the next few races, however, with a pair of road-course races on tap.
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8. Ryan Blaney (+1)
Season-high: 5th
Season-low: 15th
Comment: Blaney has basically been a top-five machine lately and it's probably a sign another win is coming before the end of the regular season. He finished fifth at The Glen last time out there and the strong road racer could certainly make it happen in the next race.
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7. Joey Logano (+1)
Season-high: 2nd
Season-low: 8th
Comment: Logano always loves racing at his home track and it showed on Sunday with yet another top five there. The New England native and championship contender gets another shot at the northeast in a few weeks at Watkins Glen, where he won in 2015 but has finished 23rd or worse in the last three races.
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6. William Byron (--)
Season-high: 3rd
Season-low: 18th
Comment: Byron has certainly fallen on hard times a bit, with four straight finishes outside the top 10 now. He led double digits in two of those, though, and he's been a more than capable road-course racer. He'll be fine.
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5. Alex Bowman (--)
Season-high: 5th
Season-low: 17th
Comment: Bowman hasn't really seemed to fall off his pace at all and could be a threat to win a race before the end of the regular season. Might not happen at Watkins Glen, however, with no finishes better than 14th in four tries.
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4. Chase Elliott (-1)
Season-high: 1st
Season-low: 10th
Comment: It's almost not even worth mentioning his 18th-place finish at Loudon, because that will soon be forgotten with two road courses right around the corner. Elliott has two wins and a runner-up the past three road-course races and it would be a true shock if he didn't win at least one of the two coming up.
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3. Denny Hamlin (+1)
Season-high: 1st
Season-low: 6th
Comment: Sunday would've been interesting to see how it would've played out had there not been any rain — Hamlin likely would have had a finish better than 10th. We don't live in that fantasy world, though, and for now he remains winless. One of the best drivers at Watkins Glen from 2016-on, he certainly could put that stat to bed in a few weeks.
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2. Kyle Busch (--)
Season-high: 2nd
Season-low: 14th
Comment: Same can be said for Busch, who had a streak of four straight top threes snapped because his car lost control on a wet track while leading — not his fault in the slightest. He has a pair of wins and five straight top 11s at Watkins Glen, so he should get back on the right foot soon.
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1. Kyle Larson (--)
Season-high: 1st
Season-low: 14th
Comment: While it wasn't flashy compared to his dazzling streak several weeks ago, Larson snapped a mini-skid and got back in the top 10 at New Hampshire. It would be an absolute surprise if he doesn't win at least one of the remaining four regular-season races following the break.
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