2025 NASCAR Power Rankings, Week 10: Talladega

After a week off to relax and reset, Jey and I return to our keyboards to give you the latest and greatest in NASCAR Cup Series power rankings.

A bit of a dud at Bristol failed to shake up our list too much, but two new drivers occupy the top-10 while some stalwarts of the rankings to this point fell to the wayside.

With all that said, a strong performance at Talladega could vault anyone back into the conversation for being one of the strongest drivers in the garage.

However, there hasn’t been a change at number 1, so let’s pay them a visit.

1. Christopher Bell (Last Week: 1)

Last Three Races: 2nd, 3rd, 8th

Jey: Christopher Bell ended up having a relatively solid day at Bristol Motor Speedway. Continuing his stretch of great finishes, Bell and crew chief Adam Stevens hold steadfast at the top of our power rankings.

As great as the No. 20 team has been, they’ll need to survive Talladega or hope for some misfortune from those that are nipping at their heels to grab the top spot heading into the month of May.

With a win at another drafting-style track already under their belt in Atlanta, the dynamic duo of Bell and Stevens could be poised to pocket another at Talladega this weekend.

2. Denny Hamlin (Last Week: 2)

Last Three Races: 1st, 1st, 2nd

Tanner: Despite running in Kyle Larson’s tire tracks for much of the Food City 500, Hamlin found himself unable to get around the HendrickCars Camaro, settling for a second-place finish in the race and on our list.

Hamlin’s recent run of good fortune and fantastic runs firmly establish the veteran as an early favorite for the regular season title, and had that last lap at Daytona not gone awry, he might be looking over Bell at this point.

With Talladega next up on the Cup Series calendar, Hamlin could be a factor in this weekend’s Jack Link’s 500. That said, it’s a superspeedway race. Hamlin’s more conservative approach to these races failed to produce any victories in the NextGen era at superspeedways, so it’s anyone’s guess if it’ll be No. 11 topping the pylon.

3. Kyle Larson (Last Week: 6)

Last Three Races: 5th, 37th, 1st

Jey: Dominance.

There’s no better way to explain Kyle Larson’s performance at Bristol that extends all the way back to last fall at the historic half-mile.

His back-to-back wins at “The Last Great Colosseum” shared a similarity: Larson led over 400 laps led in each race, looking practically unstoppable.

What a perfect way for him to rebound after “earning his stripes” at Darlington the week prior. This unreal performance raises Larson to third place in our power rankings.

4. Ryan Blaney (Last Week: 5)

Last Three Races: 11th, 5th, 5th

Jey: Ryan Blaney has genuinely been one of the fastest drivers almost every week so far. After a rocky start to the season, the team seems to be getting behind him. Every week, they inch closer to the results their speed warrants.

While he brought his Ford Mustang Darkhorse home fifth for the second straight weekend, it can’t be understated that for the first time maybe all season his pit crew didn’t let him down.

Their strategy gambit failed to bring them the caution or win that they were hoping for. Blaney was able to make ground charging late and that lands him at the 4th spot for this week.

Going into Talladega with a reinvigorated crew and that lovely Penske speed at drafting tracks, the No. 12 team sits as an early favorite to notch their first win of 2025.

5. William Byron (Last Week: 4)

Last Three Races: 22nd, 2nd, 6th

Tanner: A poor qualifying effort at Bristol led to a miserable run through the opening laps of the Food City 500 with the famous No. 24 Chevy hovering between 12th and 20th.

Fortunately, Byron and crew chief Rudy Fugle took advantage of drivers ahead of them pitting near the end of stage 2 to grab track position. To their credit, they never let it go, capping off the day in sixth.

In a race where passing and tire wear were practically nonexistent, Byron’s strategy call and good finish don’t equate to true strength, similar to their red herring of a run at Darlington the previous week. Byron could drown out the doubters with a second superspeedway win of the year and his first win at Talladega.

6. Tyler Reddick (Last Week: 3)

Last Three Races: 14th, 4th, 18th

Tanner: Mired in the midpack all race, Tyler Reddick and teammate Bubba Wallace spent much of the day in each other’s company, hanging around the bottom of the top-15.

The final stage presented an opportunity for a strategy play, but it backfired first by Ryan Blaney’s torrid pace on old tires that resulted in the 23XI teammates going a lap down before they even had a chance to pit.

The caution they sought never came, relegating Reddick to 18th by the time the checkered flag flew. Returning to Talladega as the defending winner of the spring race, the sixth-year veteran looks to earn his first triumph of the year at the largest oval of them all.

7. Bubba Wallace (Last Week: 7)

Last Three Races: 3rd, 21st, 19th

Tanner: Reddick’s bit turned into a bit of a summation for the Nos. 23 and 45, so let’s focus on Bubba for a bit. His last start at Bristol ended with him taking the bottom step of the podium, but a poor Saturday led to an underwhelming Sunday.

Wallace improved upon his 22nd starting spot by three spots, losing out on that caution-dependent gambit. With passing and track position rapidly becoming hard to come by, the No. 23 team never found their way forward on the track or in the pits.

In the first year of a new crew chief, many unsuspected occurrences happen, but the lack of tire wear was completely out of Charles Denike’s control, especially after a Saturday practice with heavy wear. Perhaps a trip to the site of his first victory will be just what the doctor ordered for the eight-year racer.

8. Alex Bowman (Last Week: Not Ranked)

Last Three Races: 27th, 35th, 37th

Jey: Alex Bowman’s results do not tell the full story of his pace the last few weeks. Bowman qualified on pole at Bristol and ran up front all day until his engine expired, sinking them for their third straight finish below 25th.

Blake Harris and crew need to figure out something — and fast — before they lose all the ground they gained on the cutline early in the season. The pace has been great, but week-in and week-out, this team finds new ways to shoot themselves in the proverbial foot.

This week, Bowman sits at eighth in our rankings, but this team needs a great weekend at Talladega. Otherwise, the No. 48 squad risks a complete free fall.

9. Chase Elliott (Last Week: 10)

Last Three Races: 4th, 8th, 15th

Tanner: Engine Engine No. 9 ended up not making an impression the last time they hit the track in Bristol, gaining just five spots from his 20th starting spot while his teammate throttled the competition.

That can’t be blamed solely on the driver as he managed his equipment well in last year’s hectic spring event, so conventional wisdom would lead one to think Elliott and crew chief Alan Gustafson likely set their car up for the wear exhibited on Saturday that refused to reappear on Sunday.

The 2020 champion looks to the site of his two true superspeedway victories, his most recent Alabama victory coming back in 2022, in search of his next victory that puts the NAPA team in the postseason.

10. Ross Chastain (Last Week: Not Ranked)

Last Three Races: 7th, 7th, 7th

Jey: Ross Chastain and crew chief Phil Surgen have been surgically consistent these past three weeks, notching their third-straight seventh-place finish. 

None more impressive than at Bristol where they started at the back of the field and grinded it out all day by staying on the lead lap for the entire event. Inevitably, the Melon Man brought home a really good finish yet again, something that is becoming a common occurrence as we move into the meat of the schedule.

This streak looks to continue as we head into what looks to be a potential melee in Alabama. For this week, we welcome Chastain and the No. 1 crew to the final spot in our rankings.

Honorable Mentions: Joey Logano, Ryan Preece, Carson Hocevar

(Top Photo Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)