The Daytona 500 is set for green flag racing on Sunday, February 14, 2021! That means it’s time to look at the power rankings for the upcoming NASCAR Cup Series season. Several drivers jump out as being the best in the series while a handful of others could step up into the Championship limelight.
On the other hand, there are plenty of questions with multiple teams and drivers. I think that before we even get started with the power rankings it’s worth noting a HUGE change that has occurred since last year.
Schedule Change and Road Courses
Yes, there are new teams and driver changes. But, to me, the biggest change is the schedule! Several tracks were eliminated while new venues were added. Gone are Chicagoland, Kentucky, and the famed four corner turns of Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS). Plus, one of the two scheduled Bristol races will be on the Bristol track surface covered in dirt.
Added to the schedule are Nashville Superspeedway and the IMS road course. In addition to the road racing at historic IMS, there are two other road courses, Road America and Circuit of The America’s, new to the schedule. That’s three new road courses for a total of six on the schedule.
The reason I mention road courses? Chase Elliott – who leads off my 2021 Cup Series Power Rankings.
Top Five NASCAR Power Rankings for 2021
No. 1 Chase Elliott: The driver of the No. 9 Chevrolet came of age last season by winning the NASCAR Cup Series Championship and he seems to excel at road racing. Last season Elliott won five races including both the Daytona and Charlotte road courses. In 2019 he also won two road course races including Watkins Glen. He also won on large, intermediate, and small tracks. Chevrolet seems to have finally dialed in the Cup Series Camaro.
No. 2 Kevin Harvick: Kevin Harvick piloted the No. 4 Stewart – Haas Ford Mustang to nine Cup Series wins in 2020. It seemed as if he and his team would cruise to a Championship. However, they didn’t grab a win during the final stretch to make it through the playoffs. That being said, Harvick was a threat to win just about every weekend. He finished the year with 20 top-five and 27 top-ten finishes. There’s no reason to think Harvick will skip a beat.
No. 3 Denny Hamlin: The season kicked off as normal at Daytona with the 500 and Denny Hamlin took the checkered flag. It was his second Daytona 500 in a row and his third overall in five years. The driver of the No. 11 Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing won a total of seven races including the fall race at Talladega. Like Harvick, Hamlin failed to win towards the end of the playoffs but still managed to be a threat. This should continue this season.
No. 4 Joey Lagano: 2020 saw Joey Logano win three races with two of them coming at the first of the season. He then pulled off a great win at the end of the season at Kansas to make him a Championship contender. That ability to win at a critical time combined with a bunch of points made the No. 22 Ford for Team Penske a threat week to week.
No. 5 Brad Keselowski: Take just about everything I said about Joey Lagano and apply it to Brad Keselowski. The driver of the No. 2 Ford for Team Penske won four races in 2020 including a clutch checkered flag at Richmond which pushed him deeper into the Championship playoffs. Keselowski finished in the top-ten 24 times and 13 times in the top-five. He finished 4th , 6th , 4th , and 2nd in the last four races of the season.
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Oh So Close Power Rankings
Ryan Blaney: For some reason, Ryan Blaney seemed to be close to winning almost every other race. That’s because the driver of the No. 12 Ford for Team Penske ran upfront all of the time! The downside was five DNF’s. Over the last seven races of the season, Blaney finished in the top-ten six times with six of the seven runs finishing 7 th or better. Blaney needs to eliminate the DNF’s for 2021.
Martin Truex Jr: Martin Truex Jr won the 2017 NASCAR Cup Series Championship for Frontrow Motorsports. Then, Frontrow shuttered. The team was a satellite team for Joe Gibbs Racing so Truex made the move to the main shop for JGR. He won a single race in 2020 but was a factor in many races. He finished 3 rd or better nine times. Truex needs to turn some of the 2 nd and 3 rd place runs into wins.
2021 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Odds
Wait and See
Kyle Busch: After winning the 2019 Championship is seemed as if Kyle Busch ran into a wall – pardon the wreck reference. But it’s true. Busch crashed out of races six times last season and his team put him in horrible positions several times. I have to see if the younger of the Busch brothers can return to his prior form.
Darrel Bubba Wallace Jr.: Bubba Wallace has won in the NASCAR Truck Series, had amazing runs in both the Xfinity and Cup Series, and drove for one of the most legendary teams in NASCAR – Richard Petty. However, Petty did not have the best equipment. Now, Wallace moves to the new team owned by NBA Legend Micheal Jordan and Denny Hamlin. It will be fun to see what Bubba can do in a well-funded ride.
Kyle Larson: He was dropped from NASCAR following a racially charged statement during an IRacing event. Now he’s back for the 2021 season behind the wheel of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. He’ll be in Championship equipment and a teammate to the defending Cup Series Champ Chase Elliott.
Ready for the 2021 NASCAR season? Don’t forget to check out our 2020 NASCAR season recap.
