Once again, Martinsville Speedway lived up to its reputation. Short tempers? Check. Payback? Check. Lots and lots of contact? Check.
Matt Kenseth – once thought to be one of the most even-tempered drivers in the garage area – wrecked Joey Logano while several laps down at Martinsville Speedway. Though he claimed it was unintentional, NASCAR wasn’t buying it and penalized Kenseth for the next two races. Meanwhile, Logano’s championship chances are now in jeopardy.
Jeff Gordon went on to win the race at Martinsville, which turned out to be one of the most popular wins of the season. Gordon will now race for the championship in Homestead despite an otherwise lackluster end to his racing career.
How did all of this Martinsville mayhem impact our rankings this week? Keep reading to find out.
How The Rankings Are Calculated: Frontstretch does our power rankings similar to how the Associated Press does them for basketball or football. Our expert stable of NASCAR writers, both on staff and from other major publications will vote for the top 20 on a 20-19-18-17… 3-2-1 basis, giving 20 points to their first-place driver, 19 for second, and so on. In the end, Mike Mehedin calculates the points, adds some funny one-liners, and… here you go!
Rank |
Change |
Name |
Total Votes |
1 |
 +5 |
                       Kyle Busch
|
56 |
2 |
 +2 |
                           Jeff GordonOne man’s fury is another man’s victory. Kenseth inadvertently gave Gordon a huge gift when he wrecked Logano. Summer Bedgood, Frontstretch First Place Votes: 1 |
55 |
3 |
+2 |
                          Kevin Harvick
|
50 |
4 |
-3 |
                           Joey Logano
|
48 |
5 |
+3 |
                          Martin Truex Jr.
|
48 |
6 |
 +9 |
                        Denny Hamlin![]() |
43 |
7 |
 +2 |
                          Dale Earnhardt Jr.
|
42 |
8 |
-5 |
                          Carl Edwards
|
38 |
9 |
 -7 |
                           Brad Keselowski
|
36 |
10 |
 N/A |
                           Jamie McMurray
|
36 |
11 |
 +2 |
                           Ryan Newman
|
34 |
12 |
 -5 |
                          Kurt Busch
|
30 |
13 |
 -3 |
                           Jimmie Johnson
|
30 |
14 |
 N/A |
                           Kasey Kahne
|
16 |
15 |
-4 |
                           Paul Menard
|
13 |
Others Receiving Votes: Aric Almirola (12), Kenseth (11), AJ Allmendinger (9), Kyle Larson (9), Tony Stewart (8), Casey Mears (4), Austin Dillon (2)
Participants:Â Phil Allaway, Frontstretch;Â Summer Bedgood, Frontstretch; Tony Lumbis, Frontstretch
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