Sporting News Power Poll after Indianapolis
Sporting News NASCAR Wire Service
(August 2, 2011)
Brickyard 400 winner Paul Menard was the biggest mover in this week’s Sporting News Power Poll, jumping 11 spots to No. 12. Menard wasn’t the only driver on the move. Jeff Gordon, who finished a strong second Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, climbed five spots to No. 2. Sprint Cup Series points leader Carl Edwards, who finished 14th Sunday, remained No. 1 in the poll, a weekly collaboration of Sporting News, SceneDaily.com, Rowdy.com and NASCAR Illustrated.
1. Carl Edwards (last week: 1st) Contract or no contract, Edwards actually expanded his points lead with a 14th-place finish at Indy.
2. Jeff Gordon (7th) Gordon was one lap shy of his fifth win at the Brickyard, but his performance rekindled hope of a fifth championship.
3. Kyle Busch (4th) Busch finished 10th in a beat-up car Sunday, another testament to his talent.
4. Jimmie Johnson (2nd) Johnson was shuffled back to 19th after a fuel gamble went awry. The 48 team has yet to hit its full stride.
5. Matt Kenseth (9th) Kenseth was good enough to win at Indy, a sign that his Roush Fenway team might be ready to peak.
6. Kevin Harvick (6th) With an average finish of 13th in his past six races, it sure looks like Harvick has gone into test mode for the Chase.
7. Ryan Newman (5th) Newman salvaged a 12th-place finish and held onto his eighth-place spot in points, so the Indy weekend wasn’t a total washout.
8. Kurt Busch (3rd) Kurt was hot under the collar at Indy. His team better hope he cools off before the next race.
9. Tony Stewart (10th) Smoke led a combined 58 laps over the past two races, nine more than he led over the previous 13.
10. Denny Hamlin (8th) A 27th-place finish was bad enough to push him out of the top 10. Even if he were running better, the fragile JGR engines don’t portend a 2011 championship.
11. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (13th) Pocono was the site of Junior’s last top 10, and as we head back, he sure could use another.
12. Paul Menard (23rd) Who’s laughing now? Menard silenced the doubters with his Brickyard win and sudden emergence as a Chase wild-card candidate.
13. Clint Bowyer (15th) Bowyer has but two top-10 finishes in his past nine races after finishing 13th at Indy.
14. Kasey Kahne (14th) Kahne led the most laps at Indy before he got caught up in a crash. This team will be peaking just in time for the driver’s move to Hendrick.
15. David Ragan (11th) Ragan won the pole and looked stout for much of the race. Despite finishing 23rd, the No. 6 team has some good things to take from Indy.
16. Greg Biffle (17th) The Biff got a much better finish than he deserved at Indy, but sometimes luck—good or bad—can start a trend.
17. Joey Logano (12th) Logano finished 25th after getting mired midpack through pit strategy. He dropped a spot to 19th in the standings.
18. Mark Martin (20th) Martin ran dry on fuel exiting Turn 3 on the final lap but coasted home eighth. The decision not to stop late for gas paid off with his first top 10 since June at Michigan.
19. Brad Keselowski (22nd) Keselowski posted a strong top-10 finish, but Menard’s win made BK’s path to the Chase much more difficult.
20. AJ Allmendinger (16th) With all the first-time/surprise winners this year, AJ can only hope he’s next.
21. Juan Pablo Montoya (21st) Montoya’s first race with interim crew chief Jim Pohlman wasn’t remarkable: Their top-10 car wound up 28th.
22. Regan Smith (NR) Smith needs six more third-place finishes in the final six regular-season races if he is going to have any chance of parlaying his one win into a spot in the Chase.
23. Martin Truex Jr. (19th) That NAPA know-how was more like NAPA no way after Truex’s 24th-place finish at the Brickyard.
24. Marcos Ambrose (18th) Four race winners are outside the top 10 yet ahead of Ambrose. A win at Watkins Glen won’t be enough to propel him into the Chase.
25. Jamie McMurray (NR) A fourth-place finish means the weekly comment written about his race actually might be read as he cracks the top 25.
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