NASCAR Power Rankings: 10 Best Drivers after Darlington

Tyler Reddick dominated another NASCAR race this week, driving his way to the fourth win of the season and we’re just six points races into the year. Reddick is clearly the best NASCAR driver right now, so really the question is who is chasing behind him this season?

Let’s dive into our NASCAR power rankings right now, evaluating the 10 best drivers after Darlington.

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1. Tyler Reddick (Previously: 1)

The No. 45 car was clearly the fastest throughout the weekend at Darlington Raceway. What stood out from Tyler Reddick‘s performance in the Goodyear 400 was his ability to overcome electrical issues that required a new battery and dropped him to the rear of the field, only for him to race back through the pack to reach victory lane for the fourth time this season. It should come as no surprise that Reddick leads the Cup Series in average starting position (7.33) and average finishing position (4.17), while boasting the second-most quality passes (664) in the series. With a 95-point lead over second, winning the regular-season championship feels inevitable, which would be Reddick’s second in three years.

Related: NASCAR Cup Series Standings Right Now

2. Ryan Blaney (Previously: 7)

Frustration has to be mounting in the No. 22 car. For the second time in three weeks, Ryan Blaney had to drop to the rear of the lead-lap field because his tire changer didn’t get a left wheel on securely, forcing him to pit in a teammate’s stall. As FOX noted, Blaney’s pit crew ranked 33rd among the 36 full-time teams coming into Sunday’s Goodyear 400, and their performance at Darlington will presumably only drop them further. It’s a testament to Blaney that he keeps overcoming this, most recently on Sunday with a third-place finish and 42 points. Blaney boasts an average finishing position of 5.6 in the last five races and has accrued 194 points during that span. He’s tied for the second-most top 10s (four) and is one of only three drivers to record stage points in all six races this season.

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Related: Winners, Losers from Goodyear 400, including Ryan Blaney’s Pit Crew

3. Bubba Wallace (Previously: 4)

It certainly will seem absurd to some for Bubba Wallace to be moved up a spot coming off a season-worst finish (34th) at Darlington. However, take a closer look at what happened this past weekend. Wallace qualified second in the No. 23 car and then finished fourth in Stage 1, positioning himself for another top-five points day. Unfortunately, during the pit stop under caution after Stage 1, the 23 team’s pit crew messed up the left-front tire change. Wallace had to reverse back into his stall, halfway through his exit, for the tire to be secured. It dropped him outside the top 15, and just as he started to climb back up—showcasing the car’s speed—Denny Hamlin got into Erik Jones and then came up into the No. 23 car and it slammed into the wall. There was no real control of the car after that, but Wallace still finished with the race’s fastest lap, he leads the Cup Series in stage points (60), and he’s tied for the second-most top 10s.

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Related: Bubba Wallace Addresses NASCAR Fighting Penalties after Daniel Suarez Incident

4. William Byron (Previously: 8)

It hasn’t exactly been a banner start to the season for Hendrick Motorsports. However, William Byron and the No. 24 team are at least doing their best to get things back on track. While the car setup was clearly never going to be good enough to win the Goodyear 400, Byron still came out of Darlington with a third consecutive top-10 finish, and he’s accrued 115 points during that span. Let’s also keep in mind that he was the only HMS driver to finish inside the top 10. Through six races, Byron ranks top five in both average finishing position (11.83) and average mid-race position (10.5) while ranking seventh in stage points (40).

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Related: Goodyear 400 Results from Darlington, Points Totals and Stage Results Today

5. Denny Hamlin (Previously: 3)

After three consecutive top-10 finishes, including the win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the No. 11 car had to settle for an 11th-place finish at Darlington without any stage points. Denny Hamlin got lucky that when he got into the back of Erik Jones, the No. 11 sustained the least amount of damage. However, he later reported a rattling sound coming from the car, and that required an extended pit stop to check it out. An 11th-place finish is adequate, and it certainly won’t hurt Hamlin too much on a day when Kyle Larson fell back. Still, Hamlin may want to consider himself fortunate for coming out of this with 26 points.

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Related: NASCAR Cup Series Stage Winners 2026, Stats for Entire Season

6. Ty Gibbs (Previously: 9)

The hot streak continues for Ty Gibbs, and this has to be an incredible feeling for Joe Gibbs Racing and the No. 54 team. After a rough showing in qualifying, Gibbs overcame his 28th-place starting position to work his way up to 16th in Stage 1 and then ninth in Stage 2. He kept climbing from there, using the closing quarter of the Goodyear 400 to snag a sixth-place finish, just narrowly missing out on making it four consecutive races inside the top 5. While that streak ended, JGR will happily take 156 points and a 4.75 average finishing position in the last four races after they accrued 15 combined points and finished 23rd or worse in the first two races.

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7. Christopher Bell (Previously: 2)

Whatever plan was put together for the No. 20 car at Darlington failed miserably and the in-race adjustments didn’t help. It might not have been to Joey Logano levels, but it certainly felt like that considering how much better the other Joe Gibbs Racing cars fared this weekend. Christopher Bell qualified 22nd, right ahead of teammate Chase Briscoe. In Stage 1, Briscoe finished 14th and Bell was 18th. In Stage 2, Briscoe placed fourth and Bell was 14th. Finally, Briscoe ended the day in 12th, whereas Bell was 19th. It was a massive disappointment coming off three consecutive races where the No. 20 finished fourth or better.

8. Chase Elliott (Previously: 5)

For the second time in three races, the No. 9 team found a way to prevent Chase Elliott from snagging a top-10 finish. Elliott qualified third at Darlington and he picked up 4 points in Stage 1, but whatever calls crew chief Alan Gustafson made with the No. 9 didn’t work. Elliott had to fight just to finish 15th on Sunday, wasting an outstanding starting spot. We can’t really fault Elliott here, but it also feels like every few weeks there’s something with the team that costs him.

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9. Kyle Larson (Previously: 6)

Kyle Larson looked strong early at Darlington, finishing fifth in Stage 1 and third in Stage 2 to secure himself the third-most stage points (14) heading into the final 50 laps of the Goodyear 400. Unfortunately for the No. 5 team, something went wrong again. Sitting in 11th place, Larson suffered a right-rear flat in the final stage, and he had to nurse it around the track before he could finally get down into the pits. By the time the checkered flag waved, a potential top-12 finish turned into 32nd. The issue snapped a three-race stretch of top-10 finishes and robbed him of 20-plus points. Between the tire issue and the wreck he caused a few weeks ago, Larson has cost himself enough points that he currently sits 10th in the standings.

10. Brad Keselowski (Previously: Unranked)

Brad Keselowski didn’t have the fastest car on Sunday at Darlington Raceway, but the veteran certainly made the most of his trip to the iconic track. The No. 6 picked up its first two stage wins of the season, with both great strategy and some fortunate timing helping him do that. He’s now placed top 10 in each of the last two races, and he’s got a pair of top-five finishes on the year. Now headed to one of his best tracks, another top five could be coming for Keselowski.

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