Final Rankings: Phoenix II, 2016

Kevin Harvick photo

Kevin Harvick remains my pick to win Phoenix II in my final driver rankings. (photo courtesy nascar)

Here are my final driver rankings for tomorrow’s race at Phoenix. I compiled them by crunching the practice and qualifying data from Phoenix on Friday and Saturday, and then melding it with the historical data:

  1. Kevin Harvick
  2. Martin Truex Jr.
  3. Joey Logano
  4. Kyle Busch
  5. Matt Kenseth
  6. Kyle Larson
  7. Brad Keselowski
  8. Chase Elliott
  9. Denny Hamlin
  10. Jimmie Johnson
  11. Carl Edwards
  12. Kurt Busch
  13. Jamie McMurray
  14. Alex Bowman
  15. Austin Dillon
  16. Kasey Kahne
  17. Ryan Newman
  18. Ryan Blaney
  19. Tony Stewart
  20. AJ Allmendinger
  21. Paul Menard
  22. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
  23. Greg Biffle
  24. Danica Patrick
  25. Aric Almirola
  26. Casey Mears
  27. Trevor Bayne
  28. Michael McDowell
  29. Clint Bowyer
  30. Chris Buescher
  31. David Ragan
  32. Regan Smith
  33. Landon Cassill
  34. Brian Scott
  35. Matt DiBenedetto
  36. D.J. Kennington
  37. Michael Annett
  38. Reed Sorenson
  39. Jeffrey Earnhardt
  40. Gray Gaulding

2 thoughts on “Final Rankings: Phoenix II, 2016”

  1. Dan

    I was looking at the recent past races at phoenix and can’t find anyone who had more than a 15 spot differential, and that includes some of the top drivers. Do you really think Truex can advance from the back to 2nd?

  2. Jed Henson Post author

    I hear ya, but short answer = yes. It’s rare that a car that fast starts at the back, so he should crush that differential stat. And 312 laps gives him plenty of time. Cup races are long, even the shorter races. I used to knock top cars down in the rankings if they had to start at the back, but I’ve seen them power to the front numerous times over the years.

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