NASCAR power rankings: Jimmie Johnson seizes No. 1

No debate. No deliberation. No careful examination of the numbers. Any question of who is ranked No. 1 was settled the moment Jimmie Johnson crossed the start/finish in the FedEx 400. Not only was it the defending champ’s second victory in as many weeks, he did so convincingly again leading the most laps.

1. Jimmie Johnson (Last week: 3)

From questions about if he will ever win to questions about if he’ll ever lose, the six-time champion continues to face almost unreasonable expectations. And that giant ball of momentum that has gotten rolling in recent weeks should continue with Sunday’s Pocono 400 -- a race Johnson won a year ago.

2. Kevin Harvick (LW: 2)

Of course a tire deflated while Harvick’s leading; that’s the way his year has unfolded. If it’s not engines going sour or parts breaking, it’s a flat tire or a pit crew fumbling its way through a key stop. And yet, despite the continued miscues by driver and team alike, Harvick still owns a pair of wins, is second in laps led and harbors very realistic title hope thanks to a championship formula that all but ignores consistency.

3. Jeff Gordon (LW: 1)

The good news is it wasn’t back pain affecting Jeff Gordon this week. Instead, it was a Chevrolet that handled like a shopping cart with a bum wheel inflicting the misery, as it caused him to plummet to 15th in the running order.

4. Matt Kenseth (LW: 6)

With top-10s in eight of the past nine races -- including back-to-back third-place finishes -- Kenseth moved atop the series standings this week. So why isn’t he higher in the power rankings? He may have consistency, but he doesn’t have a win. Although that will likely soon change, for now it remains a concern -- albeit a small one.

5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 5)

The speed from earlier in the year is missing, and Earnhardt has been more than vocal about how his cars have handled as of late. But even in spite of the issues, the results are still there for the No. 88 team, including a ninth-place finish at Dover.

6. Joey Logano (LW: 4)

After being a consistent force through the opening months of the season, the No. 22 team has regressed ever so slightly in recent weeks with finishes of eighth and 12th at Charlotte, all while failing to lead a single lap. But as said in this space previously, it speaks volumes about how Logano has raised everyone’ expectations over the past 18 months that the past two races are viewed as letdowns.

7. Brad Keselowski (LW: 9)

The Dover pole-sitter was strong early, faded during the middle portions, then charged to a runner-up finish. A much needed result for Keselowski, as it was just his second top five since winning in March at Las Vegas.

8. Carl Edwards (LW: 7)

This season is turning into a mirror of 2013, with Edwards being just good enough to maintain a high position in points (currently ranked third) while giving no indication that he’s even a remote contender for the championship.

9. Kyle Busch (LW: 8)

He may have had the only car capable of challenging Johnson. (The key word is ‘may’ as the 48 looked like it was on another plane.) And though Busch contemplated it, by not extracting retribution against Clint Bowyer, he demonstrated maturity. Because the Busch of a few years ago would have absolutely done something (think the Ron Hornaday Jr. incident of a few years back) that in all likelihood would have merited repercussions from NASCAR.

10. Jamie McMurray (LW: 11)

Give McMurray a nod for handling a very difficult situation with aplomb. He didn’t rant after striking a piece of concrete that damaged the nose of the No. 1 car. And he did not meltdown when NASCAR ruled his team couldn’t fix the damage without penalty. Although it was by no means easy, McMurray recovered and fought to finish 13th.

11. Kyle Larson (LW: 12)

With five top-10s and an average finish of 15th, Larson has more than lived up to the billing and turned in a very sound rookie campaign. That said, it’s confounding that he has yet to lead a single lap this season. Seriously. Not one.

12. Denny Hamlin (LW: Unranked)

Another costly mistake on pit road in a season filled with them for Hamlin, who again was caught speeding Sunday. Similar infractions also derailed strong runs at Darlington and Texas, and you would think would have taught him some sort of lesson. Apparently not.

13. Brian Vickers (LW: 10)

With Johnson the clear favorite to win Sunday, and Busch and Harvick also on the shortlist, it was Vickers who garnered a bit of buzz as a potential sleeper. That never happened. Instead, his race ended after just 73 laps when the motor in the No. 55 car expired.

14. Aric Almirola (Unranked)

Surprised to see him on this list? Then you didn’t realize Almirola’s worst finish in the past four weeks is 13th. If the 43 car is going to return to Victory Lane this week at Pocono and the following week at Michigan offer prime opportunities.

15. Paul Menard (Unranked)

In under-the-radar fashion that has become his staple, Menard assumed the role of flag bearer for Richard Childress Racing. His 10th at Dover was his seventh top-10 of the year, giving him as many combined as teammates Ryan Newman and Austin Dillon.