NASCAR Power Rankings: Ryan Blaney Dominates at Atlanta

Ryan Blaney dominated Sunday's Quaker State 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The Team Penske driver put his car on pole and spent most of the race out front before thunderstorms interrupted the evening. The multi-hour delay did not change anything, though. Blaney led 171 laps and swept both stage victories. One final push from Christopher Bell on an overtime restart was all the No. 12 needed to cap off a near-perfect night and secure both his and Ford's second victory of the season, their first since March.

The march toward the 10-race championship fight continues next week with the first regular-season race at North Wilkesboro since 1996. The short track hosted the 2024 and 2025 All-Star Races as a prelude to rejoining the schedule, and the unique circuit could shake up the standings even more as the regular season approaches its conclusion. Joey Logano and Christopher Bell won those non-points events, and both will be hoping that experience brings some luck next week since each remains winless in 2026. Time is running out to earn one of the 16 spots in The Chase, and a short-track victory would go a long way toward helping someone check that box.

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NASCAR Power Rankings After Atlanta

1. Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 11

Last Week: 1

Before Sunday night's race, Hamlin indicated luck has not been on his side at Atlanta recently, and with just two top-10 finishes there since 2022, one could see why. In terms of the championship, Hamlin's trend at the track didn't improve. While he avoided major issues, he scored stage points in only the second segment while main rival Tyler Reddick outscored him by 20 points on the night. Hamlin finished the race outside of the top five and had his lead in the championship nearly halved in just one race. The coming switch to a short-track race at North Wilkesboro should be just what the No. 11 team needs, though. Hamlin has been one of the best in recent seasons on the short ovals.

2. Tyler Reddick, 23XI Racing No. 45

Last Week: 2

Reddick entered last week's race as one of the favorites to win, and he lived up to that expectation with a quick car throughout the race. Despite qualifying 31st, Reddick made up ground quickly, clawing his way forward through packs of traffic in impressive fashion. By the end of the first stage he was solidly in the top five and fighting for the lead. He finished second in both stages and was a fixture among the leaders until finishing the race in eighth position to cut the gap in the championship standings to Hamlin by nearly half of what it was the week prior. Six races remain for the No. 45 team to regain the top seed for The Chase, and it looks like Reddick will be pushing Hamlin the entire way.

3. Ryan Blaney, Team Penske No. 12

Last Week: 3

Ryan Blaney dominated proceedings Sunday night at Atlanta, leading 171 of 263 laps from pole, winning both stages, and capturing his second race win of the season. Atlanta's draft-style racing played perfectly into Blaney's strengths, equalizing the deficit Ford has had to Toyota and Chevrolet much of the season. With Blaney's skill navigating the pushing and passing in Atlanta's pack-style racing, he was able to stay in contention throughout the distance. A push from Christopher Bell off of the final turn sealed the deal, earning Blaney the victory to cap off an impressive night for the Team Penske driver, fulfilling the promise he had been showing in recent weeks with top-10 finishes every week since the All-Star Race.

4. Ty Gibbs, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 54

Last Week: 5

Gibbs raced his way to the front of the field at Atlanta after starting 23rd. By the end of the second stage, after the rain delay, Gibbs was inside the top 10 where he stayed until the finish. He led 32 laps in total and finished fourth for his eighth top-five finish of the season. Even without his first series victory back in April, Gibbs has been delivering a tremendous season. Heading into the final six races of the regular season, he is making fourth in the standings his own and boasts a 55-point advantage over Chase Elliott in fifth. Given Toyota's continued dominance, he might be in store for even more success, too. Gibbs won the All-Star Open in 2024, leading all 100 laps to transfer into the main event.

5. Chase Elliott, Hendrick Motorsports No. 9

Last Week: 4

The Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolets have been slowly reeling in the dominant Toyotas in recent races, but they weren't able to seal the deal Sunday night. Chase Elliott qualified seventh and put in a strong effort throughout the race, leading five laps and scoring stage points in the first segment. He slipped back to finish outside of the top 10 at the finish, though. With that slide backward in the final stage, Elliott lost ground in the championship to the Toyota of Gibbs, missing what might have been a golden opportunity to close the gap. Instead, Elliott and team have to continue putting in the work to chase down the competition. He finished fifth in last year's All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro, though. 

6. Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20

Last Week: 7

Bell extended his run of good form a further week at Atlanta but remains locked out of Victory Lane. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver pushed Blaney to Sunday night's victory, finishing second for the second race in a row. It was Bell's third straight top-five finish, too. Had he scored stage points in either of the race's segments, he might have climbed even further up the championship standings. As it ended, Bell moved up one spot to ninth and remains winless on the season, though. The No. 20 team might also have some extra confidence heading to North Wilkesboro, too. Bell won the All-Star Race at the track last season, and he typically is among the leaders at short tracks. He finished seventh at Martinsville earlier this season.

7. Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports No. 5

Last Week: 6

Superspeedways have been a weak point for Larson, and that trend continued Sunday in Atlanta. Despite some more encouraging finishes recently, Larson again suffered multiple incidents Sunday night. The race started well for him with a third-place qualifying effort and some time spent at the front of the field and among the leaders. However, a spin and then a crash later in the night relegated him to just a 34th-place finish for the second race in a row. Larson still holds sixth in the standings with six regular-season races remaining. Hendrick Motorsports and Chevrolet have ground to cover and time is running out, though. Larson has not won since May of last season and a crash in the All-Star Race last season was his most recent North Wilkesboro effort.

8. Chris Buescher, RFK Racing No. 17

Last Week: 8

Buescher turned in a quiet top-10 finish at Atlanta despite the night's fireworks. The finish was his third from the last five races and 10th of the season and only lacked the bonus of stage points to help bolster his position in the standings. Buescher raced among the top 15 throughout the night and had a front-row seat to some of the race's incidents, keeping his nose clean and car intact to capitalize with a top-10 finish. Races like that are necessary to keep a season on track, and Buescher remains seventh in the championship standings and the championship fight on the horizon. He hasn't finished outside of the top 20 since Nashville, and keep that streak alive should deliver him comfortably into the championship battle.

9. Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports No. 77

Last Week: 10

The drafting tracks have been the highlights of Hocevar's 2026 season. He won at Talladega in April, and his third-place finish Sunday at Atlanta was his second top-three result there this season. The No. 77 was a contender from the start Sunday night, finishing sixth in the first stage and leading 25 laps before charging into a three-wide race to the finish line. With a push, Hocevar might have had the second win of his career. Instead, the third-place finish marked his fifth top-five of the year and helped move him to eighth in the standings. His 10th-place finish at Bristol in April shows he can get the job done on short tracks, too. He led 46 laps in last season's All-Star Open at North Wilkesboro and should be optimistic about the trip there in the coming week.

10. Chase Briscoe, Joe Gibbs Racing No. 19

Last Week: 9

The night did not go to plan for the No. 19 team at Atlanta. After racing his way into the top 10 in the first stage, Briscoe spent much of the distance in traffic and was caught in a late crash, minimizing points earned. As a result, Briscoe fell back two places to 10th in the standings, 13 points clear of Daniel Suarez in 11th. While his victory the week prior was a great step forward, he and the team will have to be cautious of that momentum being fleeting this close to the start of The Chase. The good news is that Briscoe's last finish outside of the top 30 was back in Charlotte. He and the team should be hunting for a top-10 finish on the short track next week, though. Briscoe finished fifth at the last short-track outing at Bristol in April.

Knocking on the Door

Bubba Wallace, 23XI Racing No. 23

Last Week: N/A

Atlanta should have been a productive night for the No. 23 squad. For much of the race, it was. Wallace worked his way from a starting spot outside the top 20 into the top 10 by the end of the first stage and was in contention for more stage points before a spin at the end of the segment dropped him down the order. He kept the car off the wall and worked his way back to the front, putting himself in position for what looked like a three-wide race to the line as one of the contenders. That finish was negated, though, after officials deemed Wallace committed an out-of-bounds infringement on the final restart. With the penalty, Wallace was dropped to the end of the lead-lap cars and credited with a 29th-place finish.

William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports No. 24

Last Week: N/A

Handling was an issue for the No. 24 through much of Sunday night's race. After turning in some competitive showings in recent weeks, Byron was looking for better fortune at Atlanta, but circumstances prevented him from moving much farther forward once he worked his way into the top 20. He finished the race in 16th position. Byron remains 12th in the regular-season standings, but consistency remains a concern. He has just two top-10 finishes in the last seven races and still needs a step forward from Chevrolet to begin challenging for race victories. Time is running out for Byron to turn things around before the 10-race battle to decide this season's champion kicks off at Darlington.

Shane van Gisbergen, Trackhouse Racing No. 97

Last Week: N/A

Sunday night's sixth-place finish was Van Gisbergen's best oval finish since Nashville, ending a four-race streak of oval finishes worse than 20th. The result comes at an ideal time for the No. 97 team, too. With just six races remaining in the regular season, SVG sits dangerously close to the championship cutline. With no more road courses on the calendar, he and the team will have to make these next races count to remain part of the championship picture. The coming race at North Wilkesboro will test their mettle, too. Van Gisbergen finished 13th in the All-Star Open race at the track last season despite starting on pole position.