Week Thirty-One - 2025 StatChat Power Rankings After Kansas
- Adam Carabine
- Oct 2
- 7 min read
By Adam Carabine
With the Cup Series playoffs now in full swing, Power Rankings will now follow only the 16 playoff drivers (even after they’re eliminated) for the rest of this season.
While finishing position is important, it’s not always indicative of the full picture. StatChat rankings are determined using a large number of statistical inputs, with an emphasis placed on the most recent 5 races.
Josh Berry – This week: 35 – Last week: 36 - Eliminated
Another week for Josh Berry, and unfortunately it’s another DNF. This puts him at 8 on the year, tied for 2nd among all drivers. His P2 finish last week at New Hampshire was his only finish better than 33rd in his last five races. It’s been an abysmal run of weeks for Josh Berry, but he can hold his head high knowing that a lot of it has not been entirely within his control, and the 21 car has shown some speed.
Austin Dillon – This week: 28 – Last week: 27 - Eliminated
Dillon drops another spot on the Power Rankings this week after a rough weekend at Kansas. He was involved in one of the bigger wrecks near the end of the race, and wound up finishing two laps down – but he had been running poorly all day and his track position left him vulnerable to the carnage of a late race wreck.
SVG – This week: 25 – Last week: 23 - Eliminated
I fully expect to see SVG rocket back up the Power Rankings one last time after next week’s race at the Charlotte Roval. He’s always a threat on road courses. And despite his Top 10 finish at Kansas, he falls a few spots on the Power Rankings this week.
Austin Cindric – This week: 22 – Last week: 28
Austin Cindric had a forgettable day in Kansas this past weekend, finishing P30 after getting caught up in some carnage. Pair that with a P17 last weekend, and he’s the worst looking playoff driver heading into the dreaded Charlotte Roval this weekend. He’s essentially in must-win territory, as he’s 48 points below the cut line. While his road course prowess hasn’t exactly translated to the Cup Series, he once was a ringer on the lefts and rights down in the Xfinity Series, so it’s not completely out of the question.
Alex Bowman – This week: 18 – Last week: 25 - Eliminated
Bowman actually jumps up a few spots in the Power Rankings this week, despite a less-than-stellar performance at Kansas. His P28 finish shows much worse than his stats on the day, as he had an average running position of 16th. While that’s still not good enough for the Hendrick driver, his underlying stats helped him in the Power Rankings this week.
Ross Chastain – This week: 14 – Last week: 11
Ross Chastain was in the conversation at different times during last weekend’s race in Kansas. Unfortunately for him it didn’t work out the way he hoped, and a respectable P11 wasn’t enough to keep him higher in the Power Rankings. He’s got his work cut out for him next weekend, as he enters the Roval -13 to the cut line.
Tyler Reddick – This week: 10 – Last week: 8
It was a valiant effort for Reddick in the car last weekend in Kansas, battling some bad track position early on, but also battling some personal family distractions as well. Reddick was in the mix at the end, but ultimately couldn’t pull out a win, and will likely need one to continue his playoffs next weekend at the Charlotte Roval.
Bubba Wallace – This week: 9 – Last week: 18
This week’s biggest gainer in the Power Rankings, Bubba Wallace battled a difficult car early on in Kansas, but some key adjustments had him in the mix at the very end. His boss/team owner Denny Hamlin got into him on the last lap and opened the door for a Chase Elliott victory in the end, but it was a solid day for the 23 team. Unfortunately, the hole that was dug the week prior in New Hampshire means he’s still 26 points away from the cutline, and will need a miracle at the Charlotte Roval to be able to move on.
William Byron – This week: 8 – Last week: 5
An uncharacteristically slow day for the 24 team eventually turned around in the end, but it was too little, too late for Byron. While the P9 finish looks respectable, his average running position was actually 17th all day. Luckily he had a good points cushion, so he’s going into the Roval with a +40 to the cut line, but Byron likely expects better from himself and his team.
Chase Elliott – This week: 7 – Last week: 9
It seems funny to see Chase Elliott win this weekend and to only move up two spots to 7th in the Power Rankings, but he was far from the dominant car. He qualified well, which was a nice change of pace for the 9 team, and was able to translate that into being at the right place at the right time. I’m sure Elliott doesn’t care how the victory came, though, and is happy to not have to worry about the Roval next weekend, despite being one of the best in the field at that track.
Kyle Larson – This week: 6 – Last week: 4
A solid outing for Kyle Larson at Kansas, and yet it does still feel like something is missing with this 5 team. Gone are the days where we’ve seen Larson dominate a race from start to finish. The fans might be happier to see him struggle, but Larson knows he can be better. P6 in Kansas is good, and he’s likely a lock to make it into the next round at +56 to the cut line, but he’s not operating at full tilt.
Joey Logano – This week: 5 – Last week: 3
A bit of a stumble for Team Penske after a great race last weekend in New Hampshire. Qualifying near the rear, and having a lot of work cut out for him to get any points in Kansas, Logano managed to finish P21. He actually a bunch of the race up farther than that, but he wound up on the wrong side of the strategy near the end of the race and finished outside of the Top 20. Logano’s only +13 to the good right now, and with the unpredictability of the Charlotte Roval next weekend, he should be concerned.
Christopher Bell – This week: 4 – Last week: 6
Christopher Bell looks to have rediscovered some of his form from earlier in the season. After three wins in a row early on this year, he didn’t return to Victory Lane until Bristol a few weeks ago. However, he’s finished inside the Top 10 in the last four races, and this is certainly the right time to be peaking. His P3 at Kansas was the result of a strong Toyota showing again, and he’s +44 to the cut line heading into next weekend.
Denny Hamlin – This week: 3 – Last week: 7
Hamlin likely had the strongest car of the weekend at Kansas, but unfortunately fumbled it in the red zone. With power steering issues in the last stint, he got super tight and got into Bubba Wallace, opening the door for Chase Elliott to steal the victory from him. However, he was the dominant car for most of the day, leading the most laps, winning both stages, etc. He’s comfortably +48 to the cut line heading into next weekend at the Charlotte Roval – a track he notoriously despises.
Ryan Blaney – This week: 2 – Last week: 1
Blaney and Briscoe seem to keep swapping the lead in the StatChat Power Rankings. This week, chalk it up to a rough finish for the 12 team, after a solid day in a backup car. Any time you’re starting from the rear, especially in a backup car, you’re already behind the eight-ball. However, Blaney battled and rode around in the Top 10 for much of the day. What was essentially a testing day for the 12 team after Blaney locked himself into the Round of 8 last weekend in New Hampshire, his P24 finish shouldn’t concern any of his fans, but Briscoe was able to capitalize and take the top spot from him this week.
Chase Briscoe – This week: 1 – Last week: 2
The qualifying king of 2025, Briscoe earned the pole again this past weekend in Kansas. While it didn’t translate to a victory, it did earn him some more opportunities to move up in the Power Rankings again. He finished P4, earned points in both stages, and had an average running position of 5th. Briscoe hasn’t finished outside of the Top 10 since starting the playoffs, and has a solid lead of +21 to the cut line heading into next weekend.
Biggest Movers
Justin Haley – This week: 31 – Last week: 24
Falls 7 places
Bubba Wallace – This Week: 9 – Last Weekend: 18
Gains 9 places
Best of the Rest:
11. | Brad Keselowski | LW: 13 | +2 |
12. | Carson Hocevar | LW: 16 | +4 |
13. | Chris Buescher | LW: 12 | -1 |
15. | Ryan Preece | LW: 10 | -5 |
16. | Ty Gibbs | LW: 14 | -2 |
17. | Erik Jones | LW: 17 | -- |
19. | Kyle Busch | LW: 21 | +2 |
20. | Michael McDowell | LW: 19 | -1 |
21. | JH Nemechek | LW: 15 | -6 |
23. | Zane Smith | LW: 22 | -1 |
24. | Todd Gilliland | LW: 20 | -4 |
26. | Noah Gragson | LW: 30 | +4 |
27. | AJ Allmendinger | LW: 26 | +1 |
29. | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | LW: 31 | +2 |
30. | Ty Dillon | LW: 32 | +2 |
31. | Justin Haley | LW: 24 | -7 |
32. | Riley Herbst | LW: 34 | +2 |
33. | Cole Custer | LW: 29 | -4 |
34. | Daniel Suarez | LW: 35 | +1 |
36. | Cody Ware | LW: 33 | -3 |
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