Sunday's Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway presented "The Big One," with several drivers near the top of our NASCAR Power Rankings crashing out in Stage 2. With first-time winners and changes in results, there has been some change in our rankings of the best NASCAR drivers.
Let's dive into our latest NASCAR Power Rankings, evaluating the 10 best drivers in NASCAR right now.
1. Tyler Reddick (First: 1)
How? how exactly? Despite suffering some damage in the first "The Big One" and then a tire blowout and hit the wall on the final stage, Tyler Reddick finished 14th at Talladega on Sunday. To reach this high after all the damage the No. 45 car suffered shows that everything is going Redick's way this season. Through 10 races, he leads the Cup Series in top five (six), top 20 (10) and both average starts (5.6) and finishing positions (5.9).
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2. Denny Hamlin (First: 2)
Denny Hamlin led the most laps at Dega (28) and finished 15th. This happened because the No. 11 car got stuck at high speed in the first section at its pit stop in Stage 1, requiring a pass-through. He spent the entire day trying to get that lap back, but finally did. Fortunately for the future Hall of Famer, staying behind in Stage 2 helped him avoid "The Big One", which took out Kyle Larson, William Byron and Ryan Blaney. So, Hamlin has retained his spot in the NASCAR Power Rankings.
Read more: NASCAR Cup Series all-time winners leaderboard
3. Chase Elliott (First: 3)
Chase Elliott may not have won at Talladega, but he was the only top-10 driver entering the weekend, finishing in the top 13 of the Jack Link's 500. On the positive side of things for the No. 9 team, Elliott has claimed the third-best average finishing position (8.7) in the last six races. However, he ranks fifth in laps led (109) during that span, and a lack of stage points on Sunday prevented him from overtaking Ryan Blaney for points this season. However, this performance was needed, as it gives Elliott consecutive top 10 finishes after finishing 15th or worse in three of his previous five races.
Read more: Best NASCAR races 2026, ranking every race this season
4. Chris Buescher (previously: unranked)
Chris Buescher came very close to breaking his winless streak, but his second-place finish added to his excellent run of late. He ranks fourth in average finishing position (9.8) over the last six races, and has the second-most top 10s (four) with 64 laps (eighth) during that span. RFK Racing is also getting consistent results, which could make that elusive victory that much closer for the No. 17 team.
Read more: The state of NASCAR after Talladega
5. Carson Hocevar (previously: unranked)
After coming so close to reaching the victory lap several times over the past calendar year, Carson Hocevar finally got his long-awaited moment at Talladega. They celebrated in a way that will be remembered for ages. Hocevar and the No. 77 team clearly have the pace to win many races this season and the experience he has gained since becoming a full-time Cup Series driver is being reflected in the improved results. Hocevar ranks sixth in average finishing position (11.2) over the last six races and we're really starting to see signs of him becoming a superstar.
6. Kyle Larson (1st: 3)
It's getting stuck in debris as we saw on Sunday, which made the self-inflicted DNFs at Echopark and Darlington even more costly for Kyle Larson and the No. 5 team. Larson scored just one point at Degas on Sunday, giving him 33 points in those three races. He has also not won a race since May 11, 2025. Had he wrecked while still at the front of the field, we wouldn't have dropped him so far in the NASCAR Power Rankings, but the strategy at Dega wasn't working even before the crash.
RELATED: Huge NASCAR wreck at Talladega Superspeedway
7. Ryan Blaney (First: 5)
It's consecutive outside the top 20 for Ryan Blaney, who has a combined 20 points at Kansas and Talladega. There was an accident resulting in a DNF on Sunday, while there was a damaged splitter issue due to a collision on pit road last week. At his peak, Blaney has arguably been NASCAR's best driver this season. Unfortunately, the No. 12 team's pit crew is not up to that standard, and now he has had consecutive races where a collision effectively ended his day.
8. William Byron (1st: 7)
William Byron's No. 24 car initially returned to the track after being damaged at Talladega on Sunday, but it was ultimately determined that he would not make the rest of the race. That second DNF of the season came just two weeks after an inexplicably terrible performance at Bristol (30th). We know Byron is capable of long periods of dominance, both in wins and top-five finishes, but he has finished 28th or worse three times this year.
9. Ty Gibbs (First: 6)
It was a bit of a surprise to see the No. 54 car sent back after the heavy damage it sustained in "The Big One" on Sunday. A few minutes later, the above damage caused a front tire to blow out and Ty Gibbs' car crashed into the wall. This ended Gibbs' streak of seven consecutive top-10 finishes, but he had led 17 laps before the crash on Sunday.
10. Christopher Bell (First: 4)
It's been a strange situation for Christopher Bell lately. In the last three races, he has started outside the top 10 each time and has achieved an average finishing position of 21.3. However, Bell has also scored 78 points over that three-week period, one of the higher average scoring positions in the Cup Series. Penalties and bad luck have been the downfall of the No. 20 team recently, but his numbers in 10 races – 303 laps led (third) – paired with how often he has led in stages, are far better than his recent finishes.
RELATED: NASCAR Cup Series Stage Winners 2026
