Each week Suite 101 ranks the top 16 NASCAR Nextel Cup drivers based on their results and performance.
1. (1) 48-Jimmie Johnson: Johnson salvaged a 12th place finish out of a potentially disastrous night.
2. (3) 20-Tony Stewart: The Lady In Black has not been kind to Stewart in the past.
3. (2) 17-Matt Kenseth: Kenseth suffered a rare mechanical woe.
4. (5) 29-Kevin Harvick: Even though he didn't win, there is no hotter driver on the Nextel Cup circuit than Harvick.
5. (4) 9-Kasey Kahne: After two successive problematical weeks, Kahne needs a top ten at Darlington.
6. (10) 8-Dale Earnhardt Jr: Has Earnhardt Jr returned to his 2004 championship contending form?.
7. (7) 6-Mark Martin: Martin has not finished in the top ten since Texas last month.
8. (9) 5-Kyle Busch: It was an unobtrusive, non-controversial night for Kyle Busch.
9. (6) 24-Jeff Gordon: Gordon is looking forward to Darlington, as it is typically one of his better racetracks.
10. (8) 31-Jeff Burton: A rookie mistake cost this veteran a shot at the Crown Royal 400 victory. Burton is looking forward to racing at Darlington, a track that he dominated in the late 1990's.
11. (11) 99-Carl Edwards: Edwards and the #99 bunch are back on track.
12. (NR) 11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin now leads Clint Bowyer by five points in the Rookie Of The Year duel.
13. (NR) 07-Clint Bowyer: Bowyer is a step behind Hamlin in the rookie race, but he is several steps ahead of Martin Truex Jr, J.J. Yeley, and Reed Sorenson.
14. (12) 88-Dale Jarrett: Jarrett faces some arduous decisions. Loyalty to Robert Yates Racing, or a new venture with Toyota!
15. (13) 42-Casey Mears: Chip Ganassi may perhaps want to go ahead and re-sign Mears to circumvent all of the silly season rumors. As of now, Mears is rumored to drive a fourth Richard Childress Racing car, or supplant Dale Jarrett in the UPS ride.
16. (NR) 16-Greg Biffle: Biffle appears equipped to reel off a string of top five finishes.
email the author: autoracing@suite101.com
Past Suite 16 Rankings
