NASCAR Power Rankings 2026: 10 Best NASCAR Drivers after Las Vegas

The Pennzoil 400 marked the fifth points race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, delivering a third winner to this point. We also saw some of the best NASCAR drivers perform very well at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, resulting in a bit closer to a return to normalcy in the weekly rankings.

Let’s dive into our latest NASCAR power rankings coming out of Las Vegas.

1. Tyler Reddick (Previously: 1)

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Tyler Reddick finished outside the top 10 for the first time this season, placing 13th in the Pennzoil 400. He did, however, record points in both stages, before there seemed to be a bit of a drop-off in the No. 45 car following the final pit stop. Even after a season-worst finish, Reddick is still tied for the Cup Series lead in top-10s (four) and top-5s (three) with the fourth-most laps led (112) and the top average finishing position (4.8) in the Cup Series. Reddick keeps the No. 1 spot in the NASCAR power rankings right now, but he’s now in a spot where he could be overtaken after Darlington.

Related: NASCAR Standings after Las Vegas

2. Christopher Bell (Previously: 4)

NASCAR Power Rankings — Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Make it three consecutive top-four finishes for Christopher Bell. The No. 20 car didn’t quite have the same speed as teammate Denny Hamlin, but Las Vegas marked consecutive weeks with Bell scoring 50-plus points and getting a stage win. Bell doesn’t just lead the Cup Series in laps led (225); he’s the first driver to clear 200 laps led this season and he’s tied Reddick for the longest streak of top-5 finishes (three) this year. The disastrous showing at Daytona (35th place, 3 points) feels like a distant memory and it might not even take a month before Joe Gibbs Racing has two race winners in 2026.

Read More: Best NASCAR races 2026, Ranking Every NASCAR Race This Season

3. Denny Hamlin (Previously: 6)

No one was beating Denny Hamlin in the Pennzoil 400. After finishing third in Stage 1, he had to drop to the back of the field (31st) at the restart for speeding (50.03 mph) on pit road. It didn’t take the No. 11 car much time to work his way back into the top 15, and he finished Stage 2 in fifth place. It was clear at that point who had the fastest car on Sunday, with Hamlin cruising his way to a victory. After racing near the front of the field at Daytona and Atlanta, only to fall back due to damage to the car from wrecks caused by his peers, Hamlin now has three consecutive top-10 finishes with an average finishing position of 5.33 and 145 total points scored during that stretch. Oh, he’s also now headed to Darlington where he’s the reigning spring winner.

Related: Pennzoil 400 Results

4. Bubba Wallace (Previously: 3)

We’re through five races this season and Bubba Wallace still has the second-most points in the Cup Series. Part of that is certainly because of the stages, as he became the first driver to eclipse 50 stage points this year. With that said, it’s also worth acknowledging that Wallace ranks sixth in laps led (86), he’s tied with Kyle Larson for the highest average position mid-race (7.60) and he leads the sport in quality passes (690). That’s how you get a driver who is tied for the most top 10s (four) with a season-worst finish of 11th place on a road course.

Related: Denny Hamlin Praises Bubba Wallace’s for Specific Improvement

5. Chase Elliott (Previously: 7)

The only driver who made Denny Hamlin sweat a bit on the final stage was Chase Elliott. That says a lot about where this No. 11 car is, because Las Vegas Motor Speedway hasn’t been particularly kind to the team in recent years. While Elliott didn’t fare particularly well on the stages Sunday, (3 total points), the adjustments made put him in a position to challenge Hamlin at the end. Heading to Darlington, Elliott has four finishes 11th or better with 33-plus points in each of those races. Phoenix (23rd) was clearly an instance of just a flawed game plan, but Elliott is back on track and firmly in the mix to win the regular-season championship.

6. Kyle Larson (Previously: 5)

Kyle Larson won his first NASCAR race in 2026, it just came in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. At a track he’s historically dominated, Larson finished second in both stages (18 points) and had the second-most laps led (62), but the balance with the car fell off a bit in the final stage and he finished seventh. Larson does have an average finishing position of 5.333 in his last three races, but the No. 5 team is coming up just short at the finish line. It’s only a matter of time before that changes, and his OARS win on Saturday showed that he can steer his way to victory even when he doesn’t have the best car.

7. Ryan Blaney (Previously: 2)

Coming off a win at Phoenix, Team Penske just didn’t have it at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It’s a testament to Blaney’s driving that he qualified sixth on the same day when Joey Logano qualified 21st, and we saw that carryover into Sunday. Blaney picked up two stage points (ninth in Stage 1), but wound up dropping to the middle of the pack to finish 16th in the Pennzoil 400. Through five races, Blaney has finished outside the top 15 twice with a victory and two top-10 finishes.

8. William Byron (Previously: 8)

William Byron delivered a season-best performance at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, snagging his first top-5 finish of the year and putting up 49 points in the process. While the No. 24 didn’t quite have the speed to catch Hamlin on the long run in the final stage, there was some great battling earlier in the race. Byron and Hendrick Motorsports seem to be righting the ship after three consecutive races outside the top 10, and he’ll likely be climbing up the NASCAR power rankings in short order.

9. Ty Gibbs (Previously: Unranked)

It certainly seems like the commentary surrounding Ty Gibbs in the Spire Motorsports-Joe Gibbs Racing legal battle has lit a fire for the young driver. In the first two races of the season, Gibbs netted 15 total points with an average finishing position of 30.0. The No. 54 car is now coming off a three-race stretch with 123 points and an average finishing position of 4.333. Gibbs, at 23 years old, is certainly starting to look like the driver that his grandfather always believed he could become. The first career Cup Series win remains elusive for Ty, but it’s impossible to ignore how well he’s performed as of late.

10. Chase Briscoe (Previously: Unranked)

Chase Briscoe managing to finish eighth in the Pennzoil 400 is truly one of the most impressive performances from the weekend. Because of his rough start to the season, impacting the metric for qualifying order, he was part of the first qualifying group and started 18th on Sunday. Things only got worse for the No. 19 team, because Briscoe had a speeding penalty in Stage 1 and then a penalty for pitting outside the box in Stage 2, resulting in him spending a majority of this race a lap down. He managed to claw his way back for a top-10 finish. There are still two DNFs on his record this season, but Briscoe’s driving when the car isn’t getting severely damaged has felt reminiscent of last season.

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