CUP: Bristol Power Rankings

Sprint Cup

CUP: Bristol Power Rankings

A second-place finish at Bristol Motor Speedway puts Jimmie Johnson back atop the FOXSports.com/SPEED.com Power Rankings...

Tom Jensen | Posted August 27, 2012 Charlotte, NC

Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe's Dover White Chevrolet, stands in the garage during practice for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series IRWIN Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway. (Photo: Getty Images)

Denny Hamlin won the IRWIN Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway Saturday night, with Jimmie Johnson’s runner-up finish moving him to the top of the FOXSports.com/SPEED.com Power Rankings.

The new list:

1. JIMMIE JOHNSON — Considering he started 37th and the nose of his No. 48 Hendrick Chevrolet got bashed in early, to finish second is pretty racy. Last week: 4th.

2. DALE EARNHARDT JR. — A 12th-place finish wasn’t bad for Earnhardt, but not that great, either. Still, it’s a career year for Junior so far. Last week: 2nd.

3. GREG BIFFLE — Although he was wicked fast in practice and qualifying, Biffle wasn’t good in the race, finishing 19th. He did hold onto the points lead. Last week: 3rd.

4. BRAD KESELOWSKI — After winning the previous two Bristol races, Keselowski got put into the wall and finished 30th. A disappointing weekend, for sure. Last week: 1st.

5. DENNY HAMLIN — A huge and surprising victory for Hamlin, who desperately needed it after slumping most of the summer. Last week: 12th.

6. MARTIN TRUEX JR. — Both Michael Waltrip Racing Toyotas continue to run well, with Truex coming home 11th. Last week: 6th.

7. CLINT BOWYER — A strong night for Bowyer as well, with a seventh-place run. Last week: 7th.

8. MATT KENSETH — Tight racing with Tony Stewart ended with both he and Stewart crashing. Old Bristol is back. Last week: 5th.

9. KASEY KAHNE — Ninth place for Kahne means he actually could crack the top 10 in points in the next two weeks. Last week: 9th.

10. TONY STEWART — Although Stewart finished 27th, he did win the helmet toss award. Last week: 8th.

11. KEVIN HARVICK — A new crew chief wasn’t the answer this week for Harvick, as he finished 15th. Last week: 11th.

12. KYLE BUSCH — By Busch’s standards, sixth at Bristol isn’t good. But it was enough to move him back into the second wild-card spot. Last week: 13th.

13. JEFF GORDON — He still probably needs to win again to make the Chase, but Gordon had a great third-place finish. Last week: 17th.

14. RYAN NEWMAN — The big loser in Bristol was Newman, who got wrecked by Juan Pablo Montoya and finished 36th. Last week: 10th.

15. MARCOS AMBROSE — A third consecutive top five for the suddenly red-hot Aussie. Last week: 15th.

16. JOEY LOGANO — He led a race-high 139 laps, but Logano slumped to finish eighth. Last week: 20th.

17. CARL EDWARDS — Slip sliding away, slip sliding away, Edwards Chase hopes are about done. Last week: 14th.

18. BRIAN VICKERS — In just six starts this season, Vickers has three top-fives, including two at Bristol. Last week: Unranked.

19. PAUL MENARD — A top-10 for Menard, but pending NASCAR penalties have doomed his season. Last week: 16th.

20. JAMIE McMURRAY — A very average run for McMurray, who finished 17th. Last week: 18th.

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.

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Tom Jensen

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