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William Byron stole the show on Sunday.
The Daytona 500 champion won his second race of the season in dominant fashion, leading 42 of 68 laps at Circuit of the Americas to claim the first road course victory of 2024.
Byron, 26, now has 12 career victories – including two in six starts this season and eight in his last 40 starts dating back to last year.
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So, how does the field stack up heading into next weekend’s event at Richmond Raceway? Here’s our latest NASCAR power rankings:
1. William Byron
Last week: 6
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Started first, led the most laps and finished first. That’s a perfect day at the office for Byron, even though he was challenged by one competitor in the closing laps. The Hendrick Motorsports star struggled in the four races after winning the Daytona 500, but this performance puts him right back on top.
2. Christopher Bell
Last week: 4
The one competitor who hung with Byron late in the race? That was Bell, who might have won if there were another lap or two. The 29-year-old driver finished second for his third straight top-10 run. Richmond, where Bell has five top-10s in seven career starts, should be another winning opportunity for the No. 20 team.
3. Kyle Larson
Last week: 1
Larson was inside the top-10 in the early stages on Sunday before getting spun later in the race. He finished 17th and was unable to move back up through traffic once he got buried. Larson is a two-time Richmond winner, including last spring when he led 93 laps.
4. Ty Gibbs
Last week: 5
The reigning Rookie of the Year continues to knock on the door to victory lane. Gibbs, 21, now has five straight top-10s after finishing third at COTA. He already has three top-fives in six starts this season after posting four in his entire rookie year.
5. Denny Hamlin
Last week: 3
Last week’s winner didn’t have the same speed at COTA as his teammates Bell and Gibbs did. Hamlin finished 14th, though he did win Stage 2 thanks to a strategy call by his crew chief. Hamlin will be one of the favorites at his hometrack of Richmond, where he has four wins and 18 top-fives in 34 starts.
6. Ryan Blaney
Last week: 2
After three straight top-fives, Blaney has now been outside the top-10 in consecutive races. The defending champion was 12th at COTA on a day where most of the Ford drivers were off the pace. This is a tough part of the schedule for Blaney, as he traditionally struggles in Richmond (20.1 average finish in 15 starts).
7. Ross Chastain
Last week: 9
Chastain snatched the lead at the beginning of the final stage, but his car ultimately wasn’t quick enough to hold it. The 2022 COTA winner led for 10 laps but dropped to finish seventh in what was a solid run. Chastain has now posted five consecutive top-15 finishes heading into Richmond, where he was third last spring.
8. Martin Truex Jr.
Last week: 7
If you’ve watched every race this season, you wouldn’t think Truex was leading the overall points standings – but that’s exactly what he’s doing. Aside from Bristol, he hasn’t had race-winning speed at any track. But his consistency has carried him. Truex has finished 15th or better in all six races this season, including 10th at COTA.
9. Chris Buescher
Last week: 8
The quietest road course ringer in the field did it again at COTA. Buescher finished eighth, his 12th straight top-11 finish at road courses – a streak that dates back to 2022. He’s still yet to win one of those races, but Buescher carried the torch for the Fords on Sunday as their top finisher.
10. Tyler Reddick
Last week: 10
The defending COTA winner likely had higher hopes than finishing fifth. Unfortunately for Reddick, that was all he could muster. While he clearly had one of the best cars on Sunday, he was just a tick slower than Byron, Bell and Gibbs throughout the race.
First four out: Alex Bowman, Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski.
