Kevin Harvick remains the unanimous No. 1 for a second consecutive week in the NBC Sports NASCAR Power Rankings – and for good reason.
Harvick is riding a significant streak of consistency, with 12 straight top-10 finishes dating back to last season.
There’s more: In his last 24 starts dating back to Loudon last summer, Harvick has 22 top-10 finishes, including five wins. His most recent victory was NASCAR’s return from the COVID-19 hiatus at Darlington on May 17.
As for the rest of the rankings, Brad Keselowski makes the biggest jump (from unranked last week to No. 2 this week), while Kurt Busch has the biggest drop (third last week to 10th this week).
Here’s how this week’s rankings shape up:
1. Kevin Harvick (30 points): He keeps rolling along. No other driver has a top-10 streak longer than three races currently. Last week: first.
2. Brad Keselowski (26 points): Doesn’t have the fastest car but pulled out the victory in the Coca-Cola 600 and finished fourth in most recent Darlington race. Last week: unranked.
(tie) 3. Kyle Busch (20 points): Back-to-back top-five finishes for the defending series champ, as well as a runner-up and win in the last two Xfinity races. He’s definitely on a roll. Last week: tied for 10th
(tie) 3. Chase Elliott (20 points): Nice rebound in the Coca-Cola 600 after the disappointing incident with Kyle Busch at Darlington four days earlier. Last week: fifth.
5. Alex Bowman (19 points): Has performed better than his last two finishes (18th at Darlington, 19th at Charlotte) have indicated. Has plenty of speed. Last week: second.
6. Martin Truex Jr. (17 points): With finishes of sixth, 10th and sixth in the first three races back after the hiatus, is his first win of the season right around the corner? Last week: ninth.
7. Denny Hamlin (11 points): Won most recent Darlington race and, well, his team would like to forget the Coke 600 and the matter of the wayward ballast. Last week: sixth.
8. Tyler Reddick (10 points): Making an early bid for Rookie of the Year, with finishes of seventh, 13th and eighth in the first post-hiatus races. Last week: seventh.
9. Christopher Bell (5 points): With finishes of 11th and ninth in the last two races, he’s starting to get the otherwise dismal start to the season turned around. Last week: unranked.
10. Kurt Busch (4 points): Has looked very strong in first three races back: third, 15th and seventh. He also earned the pole for the Coke 600. Last week: third.
Others receiving votes: Erik Jones (3 points).