NASCAR Power Rankings: Is Bell No. 1 After Win No. 2 at COTA?
Another week, another victory for Christopher Bell and the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing team. But was a second consecutive win enough for Bell and his team to launch into the top spot of the Racing America On SI NASCAR Power Rankings?
Here is where it all stacks up following Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix, according to our very own Toby Christie, Joseph Srigley, and Zach Evans.
1. Christopher Bell - No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing (Previous Rank: 4)
Christopher Bell is on top of the world right now – and the Power Rankings – after winning back-to-back NASCAR Cup Series events at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Circuit of The Americas (COTA). The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is the early-season favorite for the championship at this moment.
- Joseph Srigley
2. William Byron - No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports (Previous Rank: 2)
Another solid outing for Daytona 500 champion William Byron, who was pressuring Christopher Bell over the final six laps for the race win. Unfortunately, the Hendrick Motorsports driver was unable to force Bell into a mistake, and came home runner-up. After Sunday, he's the NASCAR Cup Series point leader, but he is one spot shy of the top in this week's rankings.
-Toby Christie
3. Tyler Reddick - No. 45 23XI Racing (Previous Rank: 6)
Tyler Reddick caught up to Christopher Bell and William Byron fighting for the win near the end of Sunday’s race, nearly stealing another road course win. With two top-fives in the first three races, Reddick stays near the top end of this week’s power rankings.
-Zach Evans
4. Ryan Blaney - No. 12 Team Penske (Previous Rank: 1)
Ryan Blaney finished second in stage two, giving him some needed bonus points after starting 25th and finishing 19th. Despite the mid-pack finish, Blaney still sits second in NASCAR Cup Series points, two points behind William Byron.
-ZE
5. Chase Elliott - No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports (Previous Rank: 12)
After a lap 1 incident, where he was spun out by Ross Chastain, it looked like Chase Elliott was doomed to record a disappointing finish. However, in the final Stage of the race, Elliott came to life, and on the last set of tires, he climbed through the top-10 of the running order to finish fourth. he vowed to exact revenge on Chastain, and he did so without his front bumper, instead leaving his payback to be viewed through the scoring pylon.
-TC
6. Kyle Busch - No. 8 Richard Childress Racing (Previous Rank: 13)
A win is near for Kyle Busch, who has now had numerous close calls over his 60-race winless drought. Sunday's race at COTA was the latest almost there moment for Busch, who led a race-high 42 laps and was in position to win the race until he was passed by Christopher Bell with six laps to go. Contact while battling Bell hampered Busch's car, but he still held on to finish fifth.
-TC
7. Denny Hamlin - No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing (Previous Rank: 3)
With a pair of superspeedways and a road course having been run in the NASCAR Cup Series, Denny Hamlin hasn't been given the chance to fully show his cards yet. Next week at Phoenix Raceway, though, is where the No. 11 Toyota Camry XSE should be coming out to play.
-JS
8. Alex Bowman - No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports (Previous Rank: 14)
Don't look now, but Alex Bowman and crew chief Blake Harris are flashing the consistency that nearly saw them advance to the Round of 8 of the Playoffs a season ago. It's early, but Bowman kept the flow of good performances going with a ninth-place result in Sunday's race at COTA.
-TC
9. Carson Hocevar - No. 77 Spire Motorsports (Previous Rank: 9)
After last week’s excitement, Hocevar started EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix weekend with a fourth-place qualifying effort. He had a much quieter day this weekend, but still finished 13th on Sunday for a solid outing in the first road course event of the season.
-ZE
10. Michael McDowell - No. 71 Spire Motorsports (Previous Rank: 18)
Michael McDowell - Michael McDowell moved into the top 10 in Cup Series points, once again overcoming adversity for a solid finish. The No. 71 team earned an early drive-through penalty for crew members over the wall too soon, but took on an alternate strategy to lead three laps, finish third in stage two, and earn an 11th-place finish.
-ZE
11. Bubba Wallace - No. 23 23XI Racing (Previous Rank: 10)
Bubba Wallace has made his thoughts on his road-course racing ability well-known, but the reality is he’s come a long way in that department. A top-10 finisher at the Roval last year, Wallace qualified fourth for Sunday’s race and won the first stage of the event. The 20th-place finish is not indicative of the pace Wallace showed throughout the day.
-ZE
12. Kyle Larson - No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports (Previous Rank: 7)
The good: Kyle Larson gained an additional championship point for scoring the Xfinity Fastest Lap at Circuit of the Americas. The bad: Quite literally everything else. It was a rough day for Larson on Sunday at COTA as he suffered a detached wheel, and a spin on-track on his path to a 32nd-place finish.
-TC
13. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - No. 47 HYAK Motorsports (Previous Rank: 16)
Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and HYAK Motorsports have been a pleasant surprise in the NASCAR Cup Series, putting together four decent results to land inside the top-10 in point standings. If a Playoff berth is what the No. 47 team is after, a solid run at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) was definitely a solid step in the right direction.
-JS
14. Chris Buescher - No. 17 RFK Racing (Previous Rank: 17)
That's a pair of top-10 finishes for Buescher this season as he picked up a seventh-place finish in Sunday's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at COTA. If it wasn't for a 30th-place result at Atlanta in race No. 2, there's a chance Buescher would be well up near the front of our rankings. Still, he's working his way back up.
-TC
15. Ross Chastain - No. 1 Trackhouse Racing (Previous Rank: 15)
Kind of ironic that Ross Chastain was angry at Carson Hocevar after Atlanta, but ended up sending Chase Elliott for an advance screening of the new amusement park coming to Circuit of The Americas in 2026 on the first lap of the race. All-in-all a solid day, finishing 12th, but it might be time for the Alva, Florida native to practice what he preaches.
-JS
16. Chase Briscoe - No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing (Previous Rank: 20)
Chase Briscoe is doing his absolute best to dig himself out of the MASSIVE hole that comes courtesy of the post-Daytona points deduction… his finishes haven’t been terrible, but he still finds himself almost 100 points outside of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.
-JS
17. Joey Logano - No. 22 Team Penske (Previous Rank: 8)
Joey Logano was in position for a top-10 finish before contact with Todd Gilliland in the closing laps dropped him deep in the field. Ultimately, Logano finished 24th in Sunday’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix.
-ZE
18. John Hunter Nemechek - No. 42 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB (Previous Rank: 11)
Despite a 22nd-place run in Sunday's race, JHN still finds himself 14th in the NASCAR Cup Series championship standings. It's been a solid start to the season for the LEGACY MOTOR CLUB driver. Can he turn the momentum back to where it was at following Daytona and Atlanta next weekend at Phoenix Raceway?
-TC
19. Shane van Gisbergen - No. 88 Trackhouse Racing (Previous Rank: 26)
Shane Van Gisbergen did just about everything that was expected of him this weekend at Circuit of The Americas, except for winning the race. A strategy decision ultimately cost SVG some track position coming to the race’s final restart, a place where he had struggled all afternoon, causing him to drop way back, eventually rebounding to sixth.
-JS
20. Todd Gilliland - No. 34 Front Row Motorsports (Previous Rank: 21)
After being collected in the first-lap incident with Chase Elliott, Todd Gilliland had a tall task to get the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang back to the front of the pack, something he managed to do pretty well – getting his first top-10 result of the 2025 season.
-JS
21. Austin Cindric - No. 2 Team Penske (Previous Rank: 5)
Cindric’s race got off to an eventful start, involved in an incident with Ty Dillon on lap five. Cindric finished 25th, the endcap on a tough day for the Team Penske trio after what had been a hot start to the 2025 season for the team.
-ZE
22. Brad Keselowski - No. 6 RFK Racing (Previous Rank: 23)
It's been a rough start to the season for Brad Keselowski, but the RFK Racing driver gutted out a top-15 finish at COTA, a track that hasn't been his strongest throughout his career. Keselowski nabbed the decent finish despite his coolsuit failing during the race. The driver had to be tended to by medical personnel after the race, but he was able to get his best finish of the season.
-TC
23. Riley Herbst - No. 35 23XI Racing (Previous Rank: 22)
Riley Herbst’s start to the season will undoubtedly set up that one annoying relative of yours to say, “Well, at least he’s consistent!” Herbst finished 17th at Daytona, Atlanta and again at Circuit of the Americas to start his Rookie of the Year campaign.
-ZE
24. Noah Gragson - No. 4 Front Row Motorsports (Previous Rank: 34)
Noah Gragson kind of appeared out of nowhere in the late stages of Sunday’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at COTA, and at one point looked to be on track to score a top-five result for Front Row Motorsports. However, the No. 4 slid back in the closing laps and had to settle for eighth, which still isn’t bad, considering it’s his first top-10 of the year.
-JS
25. Justin Haley - No. 7 Spire Motorsports (Previous Rank: 32)
Justin Haley was another driver with a shot at a top-10 finish, but late-race maneuvering dropped him to 16th in the final running order. All three Spire Motorsports drivers finished in the top 16 with that result, a solid day for a team continuing to make big gains each year.
-ZE
26. AJ Allmendinger - No. 16 Kaulig Racing (Previous Rank: 31)
AJ Allmendinger - Sunday proved especially unfortunate for A.J. Allmendinger. The veteran led two laps and earned stage points in both stages, but plummeted down the leaderboard in the final green-flag run and finished 30th. He was as high as sixth with just six laps to go, but fought an ill-handling race car on the final set of tires for the race.
-ZE
27. Erik Jones - No. 43 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB (Previous Rank: 29)
After a 12th-place result in the season-opening Daytona 500, Erik Jones and the No. 43 LEGACY MOTOR CLUB team have been performing as a Tom Petty cover band ever since. The driver and team are Free Fallin' after finishes of 31st at Atlanta and 27th at COTA.
-TC
28. Ryan Preece - No. 60 RFK Racing (Previous Rank: 25)
"I'm out of [expletive fuel!" That was the sad refrain for Ryan Preece and the No. 60 RFK Racing team with three laps to go in Sunday's race at COTA. The driver, who had picked up his second career Stage Win with a strategy call earlier in the race, looked poised to secure a top-20 finish, but it all came undone, and he wound up 33rd.
-TC
29. Josh Berry - No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing (Previous Rank: 19)
There’s no denying Josh Berry is not one of the road course challengers in the NASCAR Cup Series, as a veteran of the short tracks. Berry finished 26th on Sunday, improving from a 35th-place effort one year ago in this event.
-ZE
30. Daniel Suarez - No. 99 Trackhouse Racing (Previous Rank: 27)
It’s the worst type of accident – a teammate-on-teammate crime. Suarez had a fantastic run going on Sunday until a mistake dropping his wheels in the dirt sent the No. 99 spinning in Turn 19. The mistake was redeemable, until his teammate Connor Zilisch, making his NASCAR Cup Series debut, had nowhere to go and damaged both cars extensively.
-JS
31. Cole Custer - No. 41 Haas Factory Team (Previous Rank: 35)
There’s not much to be said about Cole Custer, who has yet to finish inside the top-20 in the NASCAR Cup Series this season. The Haas Factory Team entry sits a disappointing 34th in points after three races, and is in desperate need of a solid result.
-JS
32. Austin Dillon - No. 3 Richard Childress Racing (Previous Rank: 28)
A lot of people live to dunk on Austin Dillon on social media, but the driver of the No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet has some of the worst luck in the NASCAR Cup Series. With 17 laps to go, Dillon was sitting 20th, and minding his own business when Denny Hamlin completely clocked him from behind. That contact sent Dillon into the sand trap, and would end his race 15 laps early.
-TC
33. Ty Gibbs - No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing (Previous Rank: 24)
Yikes. Another finish outside of the top-30 leaves Ty Gibbs sitting 35th in NASCAR Cup Series point standings, not very far in front of his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Chase Briscoe – who had a 100-point penalty post-Daytona. It’s time for the No. 54 to kick it into high gear.
-JS
34. Zane Smith - No. 38 Front Row Motorsports (Previous Rank: 30)
Zane Smith got bounced around the field this afternoon like a pinball in a pinball machine, starting at the rear, driving towards the mid-field, getting collected in an incident with Ty Gibbs, and falling back to finish 29th. It’s been a rough start to the year for the No. 38, but with normal tracks coming up, Front Row Motorsports is hoping the driver returns to his form from late last year.
-JS
35. Ty Dillon - No. 10 Kaulig Racing (Previous Rank: 33)
Ty Dillon’s day got off to a rough start, on the worse end of the clash between himself and Austin Cindric on lap five. Dillon finished 28th, putting him 24th in the Cup Series standings after three races.
-ZE
36. Cody Ware - No. 51 Rick Ware Racing (Previous Rank: 36)
Ware finished 31st in the 37-car field on Sunday at COTA thanks in part to attrition of others. The driver, who has a road racing background found himself 18th on the final restart of the race with 12 laps to go, but was unable to hold on in the hornet's nest. After bad luck at Daytona and Atlanta, Ware will need to find his footing, and quickly.
-TC
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Toby Christie is the Editor-in-Chief of Racing America. He has 15 years of experience as a motorsports journalist and has been with Racing America since 2023.
Joseph Srigley covers NASCAR for TobyChristie.com, Racing America, and OnSI, and is the owner of the #SrigleyStats brand. With a higher education in the subjects of business, mathematics, and data analytics, Joseph is able to fully understand the inner workings of the sport through multiple points of perspective.
Zach Evans is the Managing Editor of RacingAmerica.com, with nearly a decade of experience in motorsports. He has been with Racing America since 2017.