Saturday was an interesting night at Kansas Speedway.
Martin Truex, Jr. dominated nearly the entire race just to fall victim to circumstances outside of his control once again. Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski threw their races away going for broke in the late stages. Ryan Blaney drove the kind of consistent, impressive race that the No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford hasn’t seen since legends like David Pearson and Neil Bonnett stepped into the cockpit.
Craziest of all, though, was Kyle Busch, who finally won in Kansas.
With his third victory of the season, the defending NASCAR Sprint Cup Series easily held on to the top spot in the Frontstretch Power Rankings. Beyond Rowdy, though, things get a little murkier.
POWER RANKINGS: GoBowling.com 400
1. KYLE BUSCH (169 POINTS, No Change)
“Who knew the curse of David Reutimann would last as long as it did? Seriously, if Kyle Busch is winning Kansas (Kansas!) you know this No. 18 team is chugging along at about ten cylinders — not eight. Watch out.” – Tom Bowles, Frontstretch
“Nothing gets Busch going like a good challenge. Broken leg? No problem. Come back from that and win your first title? Done. Win at a track you’ve never won at before? Check! OK, what’s next?? Bet we’ll find out in three weeks at Charlotte.” – Pete McCole, AutoRacing1.com
2. KEVIN HARVICK (140 POINTS, No Change)
3. CARL EDWARDS (110 POINTS, No Change)
6. JIMMIE JOHNSON (81 POINTS, -1)
“It seems like this season, Johnson has had two sides – Top-five Jimmie and NOT top-five Jimmie. Four finishes in the top five, and six races where he was ninth or worse. There’s no in-between, yet somehow he’s still in the top-five in points.” – McCole
“What a peculiar season for six-time. At the end of the West Coast swing, most thought Superman was going to be unbeatable. Now he doesn’t seem able to rise above mediocrity. A trip to Dover, Delaware may be just what the doctor ordered.” – Bearden
7. AUSTIN DILLON (46 POINTS, +2)
8. CHASE ELLIOTT (45 POINTS, -1)
9. MARTIN TRUEX, JR (42 POINTS, Prev. Unranked))
10. RYAN BLANEY (29 POINTS, Prev. Unranked)
“HE DIDN’T NEED A CHARTER TO FINISH FIFTH.” – @AnnoyingRaceFan
“He may be a frequent sight on or near the Chase bubble in the coming weeks.” – Gable
CLOSE, BUT NO CIGAR
These two rivers have won two of the last three Daytona 500s, but it’s going to take more than resting on past accomplishments to work their way into the Chase, and up the Power Rankings.
Joey Logano (26 Points, Finished th) – “Wrong place, wrong time for Logano, which is disappointing considering the only other time he got any attention from the media was when they kept bringing up his “feud” with Matt Kenseth” – McCole
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (23 Points, Finished th) – “I THINK HE’S THANKFUL HE’S NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE.” – @AnnoyingRaceFan
Others receiving votes: Denny Hamlin (14), Matt Kenseth (10), Ryan Newman (3), Kyle Larson (2), Tony Stewart (1)
About the author
A graduate of Ball State, Aaron rejoins Frontstretch for his second season in 2016 following a successful year that included covering seven races and starting the popular "Two-Headed Monster" column in 2015. Now in his third year of covering motorsports, Aaron serves as an Assistant Editor for Frontstretch while also contributing to other popular sites including Speed51 and The Apex. He encourages you to come say hi when you see him at the track.
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