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Power Rankings: Should Truex or Harvick occupy the top spot?

Kevin Harvick didn't run out of gas this year at New Hampshire (Getty).
Kevin Harvick didn’t run out of gas this year at New Hampshire (Getty).

Welcome to Power Rankings. As always, Power Rankings are far from a scientific formula. In fact, it’s the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. Direct all your complaints to us at happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com and we’ll try to have some fun.

1. Kevin Harvick (LW: 4): We’re going with recency and rewarding Harvick for the New Hampshire win. Harvick’s move from starting 19th to the win was the most spots anyone gained throughout the entirety of Sunday’s race. And it also avenged his losing moment from 2015 when he ran out of gas while racing Kenseth for the win late in the race.

The win also solidifies Harvick as the top non-Toyota contender for the championship. He entered the Chase with that status and the first two races of the playoffs have done nothing to dissuade anyone from that thought.

2. Martin Truex Jr. (LW: 2): Truex’s mistimed restart on the next-to-last restart ultimately cost him a chance at the win and led to a seventh-place finish. But after winning at Chicago the driver of the No. 78 could afford to take restart gambles. When you’re moving on in the Chase you can try a lot of different things.

The chaotic side of us wanted to see Truex’s team really push the limits of inspection on Sunday, knowing full well that any NASCAR penalty would be fruitless. But we also understand not wanting to draw the attention of the sanctioning body with eight Chase races to go. Push the limits when the stakes get higher.

3. Brad Keselowski (LW: 3): Keselowski is really good at New Hampshire. He battled back to finish fourth on Sunday and his average finish of 10.3 at the track is his fourth-best mark among all active tracks in the series. And, predictably, Keselowski led two laps early in the race when he and crew chief Paul Wolfe decided to extend their fuel run longer than most. As we said entering the Chase, the team’s willingness to divert on fuel strategy is a plus, and it netted them a bonus point in a race dominated by Toyotas.

4. Denny Hamlin (LW: 2): Hamlin just needs to avoid disaster at Dover to move on, but New Hampshire could have gone a lot better. Hamlin finished 15th after he was relegated to the back of the field because of an uncontrolled tire penalty on a late-race pit stop.

The team got its money’s worth on the penalty. Sometimes uncontrolled tire penalties are ticky-tack. This one definitely wasn’t.

5. Matt Kenseth (LW: 10): Kenseth admitted after the race that he simply didn’t have the car to keep up with Harvick over the race’s final five laps. That was because he was forced to race so hard before Harvick got to his bumper because of the speed of Truex.

He finished second on Sunday after finishing first at New Hampshire earlier in the year. He won at Dover in May, so if you told Kenseth he’d finish second on Sunday he’d probably take it and be ready to race at Charlotte.

6. Kyle Busch (LW: 8): The fresh tires Busch took late in the race were like rocket boosters. Well, until he got to third. Busch sliced his way through the field but hit a road block once he got to the front cars of Kenseth and Truex. And then he got bottled up on the final two restarts and couldn’t use the tires to his advantage during the heat cycles.

(Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

7. Chase Elliott (LW: 5): Elliott finished 13th on Sunday, a finish that isn’t bad at all. But when viewed in the prism of being 12th among the 16 drivers in the Chase it looks a bit worse. Elliott is 16 points ahead of 12th in the standings, so all he has to do is avoid a bad finish at Dover and he’s moving on to the second round. But finishing in the bottom half of Chase drivers isn’t a good strategy moving forward.

8. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 7): Johnson finished eighth and was also eighth among Chase drivers. He’s currently two points ahead of where Elliott is in the standings and has to like his chances at Dover given his dominance at the track. Of course we were saying that last year and a small part busted in Johnson’s engine and he didn’t make it out of the first round of the Chase.

9. Joey Logano (LW: 6): Even though he finished just two spots ahead of Elliott in 11th, it’s easier to be positive about Logano’s finish given the circumstances. Logano went a lap down in the first half of the race as a lack of cautions spread the field out. He was able to get it back and work his way to almost a top-10. Add in the bonus points he had before the Chase for winning and he’s all by himself in fifth in the standings.

10. Kurt Busch (LW: 12): Busch needed a good run at New Hampshire to balance out his Chicago struggles and he got it. Busch finished fifth, but he’s still in a relatively dangerous position heading to Dover. Busch is 11th in the standings, 15 points ahead of 13th-place Jamie McMurray and Austin Dillon.

By comparison, Busch trails the points lead by just 20 points. Yeah, things are really bunched at the top.

11. Kyle Larson (LW: 9): Larson is the driver in 12th after finishing 10th on Sunday. The 30-point gap to the top of the standings is largely because he had to pit for a flat tire late in the race at Chicago. But it’s better to be safe than sorry. Had that tire blown and Larson hit the wall he could be down with Chris Buescher at the bottom of the standings. And remember, Larson was second at Dover in May.

12. Carl Edwards (LW: NR): Edwards’ six poles are double his previous career-high of three. We won’t be surprised if he gets another one or two before the end of the season. But he needs to turn one of those into wins. Edwards finished sixth on Sunday and is tied with Elliott for ninth in the standings.

Lucky Dog: Hey there Kasey Kahne, you were the only non-Chase driver in the top 11.

The DNF: It was a rough day for Roush Fenway Racing. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. spun and was still the team’s highest-finishing driver in 24th. Greg Biffle was 33rd and Trevor Bayne finished 38th.

Dropped Out: Jamie McMurray

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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!