2013 Sprint Cup Series Power Rankings – Top Championship Contenders: The nice thing about the early portion of the Sprint Cup schedule is that it wastes no time testing drivers at a variety of tracks. After just four races, the series has already visited a superspeedway, a flat track, a 1.5-mile oval and a short track. As a result, we already have decent idea of which drivers have a good feel for the new Gen-6 car. Granted, drivers often go through ups and downs during the course of the year, but there are a few drivers that have separated themselves from the pack in the early going. With that in mind, are the early frontrunners for the 2013 Sprint Cup.
2013 Sprint Cup Series Power Rankings: Top Championship Contenders
1. Brad Keselowski: The defending champ is picking up right where he left off last season. Keselowski is sitting atop the standings after four races thank to four straight top-five finishes to open the year. He hasn’t been to Victory Lane yet, but he won’t have to at his current pace. Keselowski leads the series with a 3.5 average finish, and he has actually looked even better than he did in his championship-campaign from a year ago. He is focused on a repeat, and a dynasty is looking possible in the early going.
2. Jimmie Johnson: A cut tire at Bristol derailed his scorching hot start, but Johnson has still flexed plenty of muscle. In addition to winning the Daytona 500, he has three finishes of sixth or better in four starts to go along with a 7.8 average finish. More importantly, his 117.1 driver rating and his 5.5 average running position are both the best in the series. The five-time champ is still one of the best in the business.
3. Kasey Kahne: His slow start is already a distant memory, and Kahne is looking poised to become the star many thought he could be when he joined Hendrick Motorsports last year. After leading the most laps and settling for second at Las Vegas, Kahne went to Victory Lane last weekend at Bristol. He currently leads the series in laps led, and considering the tracks that have historically been his best are yet to come, a monster year could be on tap for Kahne.
4. Matt Kenseth: Sometimes the standings can be a bit misleading early in the year, and Kenseth is a prime example. He is only 13th in points, but he was leading at Daytona when he had an engine issue and was running second at Bristol last weekend when Jeff Gordon cut a tire and collected him in a wreck. In between, Kenseth finished seventh at Phoenix and won the race at Las Vegas. He ranks second in the series in laps led thus far, and aside from some bad luck, he has been one of the strongest cars on the track every week.
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr.: If smooth and steady really does win the race, Junior’s current pace should pay off. He is currently second in points thanks to four finishes of seventh or better in the first four races. Junior’s 5.0 average finish is the second best in the series, and while he hasn’t really been a threat to win since the opener, he has been competitive in every race. The real question for Junior is whether or not he can sustain this fast start or if he will fade down the stretch as he has the past two years.
6. Kyle Busch: A pair of engine issues in the first two races has him outside the top 10 in the standings, but Busch has shown the last two weeks that he is the real deal if his equipment can hold up. After finishing fourth at Las Vegas, he sat on the pole and finished second at Bristol. Consistency has always been the one thing standing in Busch’s way, but when he is running well, there is nobody better.
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