Note: The quotes in this article are fictional.
Denny Hamlin tops the list of this week’s Top-10 Power Rankings after his win at Michigan International Speedway.
1. Denny Hamlin:
Hamlin passed William Byron with four laps remaining and pulled away to win the FireKeepers Casino 400.
“My partner Jordan Fish and I are expecting our third child any time now,” Hamlin said. “All the talk lately has been about ‘playoff berth’ when we should be talking about ‘regular season birth.'”
2. William Byron:
Byron won Stage 2 and was leading with four laps to go at Michigan. But Byron’s No. 24 Hendrick Chevy ran out of gas and dropped ll the way down to 28th.
“Before that,” Byron said, “I had to chase down Carson Hocevar. Unlike most other drivers, it was to pass him, and not to tell him his driving sucked.”
3. Kyle Larson:
Larson finished fifth at Michigan.
“Michigan was the first of three seeding races for the In-Season Challenge,” Larson said. “I failed my first in-season challenge when I was unable to finish at both Indianapolis and Charlotte.”
4. Ross Chastain:
Chastain finished sixth at Michigan.
“My No. 1 Busch Light Apple Chevy was fast,” Chastain said. “If you like beer, and you like apples, then you’ll probably hate Busch Light Apple.”
5. Tyler Reddick:
Reddick finished 13th after starting at the back of the field due to unapproved adjustments.
“I hear Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. and Carson Hocevar settled their issues with a productive conversation,” Reddick said. “That’s typical for Cup drivers these days. I guess a fist bump is as close as a Cup driver will get to using a fist.”
6. Ryan Blaney:
Blaney was running 12th when he spun coming to the pits on lap 109. Blaney finished 32nd, four laps down.
“It was all my fault,” Blaney said. “If I had to give it a grade, I’d have to give myself an ‘F,’ for my language after my accident.”
7. Chase Elliott:
Elliott led 19 laps and finished 15th in the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan.
“We’re off to Mexico City for a road course race next week,” Elliott said. “It’s called the ‘Viva Mexico 250.’ It should be an exciting race, and if nothing else, the good people down at the Dawsonville Pool Room will learn at least one word of Spanish.”
8. Christopher Bell:
Bell finished 16th at Michigan and is fourth in the points standings.
“Congratulations to my Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Denny Hamlin for the win,” Bell said. “Denny may be 44 years old, but apparently, he’s still got a lot left in the tank.”
9. Joey Logano:
Logano finished 22nd at Michigan.
“After a win,” Logano said, “Denny Hamlin likes to say ‘I just beat your favorite driver.’ I know that gets under the fans’ skin, but it doesn’t bother me at all, because I’m no one’s favorite driver.”
10. Chris Buescher:
Buescher won Stage 1 and charged late to grab second in the FireKeepers Casino 400.
“We played the fuel mileage game to near perfection,” Buescher said. “Denny Hamlin played it to perfection. As my car’s sponsor of Heinz might indicate, I couldn’t quite ‘ketchup.'”
Next week the NASCAR Cup Series heads to Mexico City for the Viva Mexico 250.
