NASCAR Power Rankings: Jimmie Johnson deposes Kevin Harvick for No. 1

Consistency is important; however, winning is more so. Which is why, despite Kevin Harvick’s remarkable brilliance that has seen him rack up two wins and six second-place finishes in 11 races, Jimmie Johnson vaults Harvick for the No. 1 slot in this week’s rankings. Why? Because though it required a late-race gamble, Johnson earned his series-best third victory of the season by winning the SpongeBob SquarePants 400 at Kansas Speedway.

1. Jimmie Johnson (Last week: 2)

The No. 48 team is nowhere close to being in peak form. Qualifying is still an issue -- Johnson’s average starting position of 16.4 would be a career worst if it carries throughout the season -- and the outright speed simply isn’t there, a fact Chad Knaus readily conceded post-race Saturday night. Yet what Johnson and company are doing well is winning despite not being in prime form. And that speaks volumes about just how good this team really is.

2. Kevin Harvick (LW: 1)

Being the leader is virtually a no-win proposition when a caution comes out with a few laps to go. If you pit, most everyone else stays and the track position is too much to overcome in too little time. But if you stay out, those behind you will pit, and then you’re on an island with older tires. That was Harvick’s Kansas dilemma.

3. Joey Logano (LW: 4)

Joey Logano had better than a fifth-place car, but he couldn’t overcome two pit road penalties. The first violation was due to too many crewmembers over the wall. While the second infraction saw Logano come down pit road before it was open. And with that any chance of winning for a second consecutive time at Kansas evaporated.

4. Kurt Busch (LW: 3)

Before the thunderstorm, Kurt Busch gave the appearance of a contender, just as he’s done in every race since returning from suspension. But his car wasn’t the same after the two-hour break, though he still netted an eighth-place finish. And what’s remarkable is in spite of missing three races, Busch is 14th in points and would’ve been in contention for the Chase even without a victory last month at Richmond.

5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 5)

The box score shows Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished third, while the performance level of his car was less than that. But like his Hendrick teammate Johnson, a late call not to pit for tires propelled Earnhardt up the running order and with a better restart he may have won for the second week in a row.

6. Martin Truex Jr. (LW: 6)

Even before knowing how the events would play out, the call to pit and not take tires was misguided. Because if the decision is to forgo track position and pit, then to give yourself a chance of winning, you have little choice but to take at leaset two tires. Alas, Martin Truex Jr. got fuel only and not surprisingly, finished ninth after restarting fifth.

7. Jeff Gordon (LW: 7)

Jeff Gordon isn’t lacking for consistency, as he has seven top-10s in the past eight races including a fourth at Kansas. But he’s still lacking a victory to assure himself a chance to compete for a fifth championship in his final full season.

8. Brad Keselowski (LW: 8)

Similar to his Team Penske stablemate, Brad Keselowski had one of the better non-Chevrolets at Kansas. Except when things got wonky there at the end, he got shuffled back and finished seventh. If a non Hendrick-powered driver is going to win Saturday night’s All-Star Race, the best bet is either Keselowski or teammate Logano.

9. Matt Kenseth (LW: 9)

It’s a rare occurrence to see Matt Kenseth just flat lose control and spin out by himself. Nonetheless, the damage was minimal. He then rallied to finish sixth, which is encouraging for an organization still sorting out its intermediate track program.

10. Ryan Newman (LW: Unranked)

After exhausting all appeals, the Ryan Newman tire tampering case is closed and crew chief Luke Lambert and two other crewmembers have begun serving their six-race suspensions. If any good came out of the saga, it’s that an appellant board gave Newman back 25 points from what had been an original 75-point penalty. That’s a significant difference considering without those returned points, he would need a win to make the Chase, whereas now Newman can still earn a Chase wild card spot.

11. Jamie McMurray (LW: 11)

No home track victory for Jamie McMurray, though a 13th is respectable and extends his streak of top-15 finishes to six races. He enters the All-Star Race seeking to become just the third back-to-back winner, joining Davey Allison (1991-92) and Johnson (2012-13).

12. Aric Almirola (LW: Unranked)

So what if Aric Almirola doesn’t have a top-10 finish this season? What he does have is consistency, which has him sitting 11th in points and very much in contention for another unlikely Chase berth.