Week Two - 2026 StatChat Power Rankings After EchoPark (Atlanta)
- Adam Carabine
- 4 minutes ago
- 4 min read
By Adam Carabine
The StatChat Power Rankings return in 2026! 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. Let's look at the Top 10:
Joey Logano – This week: 10 – Last week: 8
Logano might not have finished as well as his P3 at Daytona the previous week, but he had a solid day in Atlanta. He led 26 laps, earned some stage points, and was in contention for a good chunk of the day. P18 finish after some attrition near the end, but Logano looks good early this year.
Daniel Suarez – This week: 9 – Last week: 7
Atlanta might be Suarez’s favourite track. He’s got one of his two Cup Series wins there, and he finished P5 there this week. He kind of appeared out of nowhere near the end of the race (even the FOX Broadcast commented that they hadn’t mentioned him at all up until that point). I’m not sure I had Suarez in the Top 10 in points after 2 races on my 2026 Bingo Card.
Carson Hocevar – This week: 8 – Last week: 17
Hocevar is a polarizing driver in the Cup Series. He’s exciting to watch, though that comes at a cost sometimes. His aggression and seeming lack of caring about his other drivers out on the track make for some good TV, but some don’t like his tactics. Regardless of how you feel, he finished P4 this week, earned some stage points, and led a couple of laps. He was looking for his first Cup Series win, and I feel it could be coming soon.
Chase Elliott – This week: 7 – Last week: 18
Another somewhat quiet race at EchoPark Speedway, Chase Elliott finished P11 but wasn’t super visible most of the day. He did lead 11 laps, and had an average running position of 10th. That’s two solid weeks in a row for Chase, and he moves up into the Top 10 of the Power Rankings.
Ryan Blaney – This week: 6 – Last week: 15
A solid day for Ryan Blaney in Atlanta puts him in the Top 10 of our Power Rankings as well. Points earned in both stages, 6 laps led, and a Top 10 finish on the day. Blaney looked like he was struggling with the handling of his car through some of the day, but managed to work through it and bring it home P10.
William Byron – This week: 5 – Last week: 4
This goes to show that finishing position doesn’t always dictate how you fare in the Power Rankings. Despite Byron’s P28 finish after a calamitous finish to the race on Sunday, he stays in the Top 5 of the Power Rankings. It was a great day on the track for Byron up until those final few laps. He had the second-most stage points, and the most Quality Passes (288) of anyone in the field. He crashed out 15 laps early of what ended up being the finish of the race, but he’s still looking good to start this season.
Ross Chastain – This week: 4 – Last week: 14
A nice day at EchoPark Speedway for Ross Chastain moves him up into our Top 10 Power Rankings. He finished P3, earned a stage point, and showed a nice mixture of aggression and maturity on the track throughout the race. He was in a position to win it right at the end, but just fell short.
Zane Smith – This week: 3 – Last week: 2
Zane Smith is in the Top 5 of the points standings right now. I know it’s only two races, but still! This is great for the young driver. He and Tyler Reddick are the only two drivers to have two Top 10s in two races to start the year. He didn’t earn any stage points on Sunday, but still finished P7, and even led a lap.
Bubba Wallace – This week: 2 – Last week: 6
Bubba Wallace really is showing he’s one of the cars to beat at these drafting tracks. Two weeks in a row and he has been a threat both times. An ill-timed block on the final lap of the second overtime attempt thwarted his hopes for a victory, but he had a great day nonetheless. He had the most stage points of any driver (which included a win in Stage Two), tied for the best average running position (6th) and led 46 laps on the day. He jokingly said he might be in trouble next week at COTA, but we’ll see how his Power Ranking spot is affected next week.
Tyler Reddick – This week: 1 – Last week: 1
It was probably pretty obvious who would be on the top of the Power Rankings this week. It was hard to go with anyone other than Tyler Reddick, who put together back-to-back wins to start this 2026 season. He’s looked fast, focused, and also smart. He led the most laps at EchoPark Speedway, earned extra points in both stages, and oh right, he also won the race. He’s also no slouch on road courses, could we see him go three in a row next week?
Biggest Movers
Riley Herbst – This week: 26 – Last week: 3
Falls 23 places
Chase Briscoe – This week: 11 – Last week: 31
Gains 20 places
Rest of the List
11. | Chase Briscoe | LW: 31 | +20 |
12. | SVG | LW: 26 | +14 |
13. | Noah Gragson | LW: 10 | -3 |
14. | Ty Dillon | LW: 13 | -1 |
15. | AJ Allmendinger | LW: 24 | +9 |
16. | Ryan Preece | LW: 28 | +12 |
17. | Chris Buescher | LW: 5 | -12 |
18. | Austin Cindric | LW: 25 | +7 |
19. | Kyle Larson | LW: 11 | -8 |
20. | Connor Zilisch | LW: 27 | +7 |
21. | Denny Hamlin | LW: 30 | +9 |
22. | Brad Keselowski | LW: 22 | -- |
23. | Michael McDowell | LW: 19 | -4 |
24. | Kyle Busch | LW: 9 | -15 |
25. | Cody Ware | LW: 20 | -5 |
26. | Riley Herbst | LW: 3 | -23 |
27. | Christopher Bell | LW: 36 | +9 |
28. | Alex Bowman | LW: 32 | +4 |
29. | Erik Jones | LW: 29 | -- |
30. | JH Nemechek | LW: 21 | -9 |
31. | Todd Gilliland | LW: 34 | +3 |
32. | Ty Gibbs | LW: 16 | -16 |
33. | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | LW: 12 | -21 |
34. | Austin Dillon | LW: 35 | +1 |
35. | Cole Custer | LW: 33 | -2 |
36. | Josh Berry | LW: 23 | -13 |
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