Year-End NASCAR Power Rankings After Kyle Larson Claims His Third Cup Series Championship

Kyle Larson may not have had the best day on Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but after an incredible first nine races in the Chase, Larson did more than enough to secure his third Cup Series championship, putting himself among some impressive company.

The now two-time defending champion scored seven points in the open stage of the race to officially clinch the crown before running into trouble later in the race and eventually finishing in 12th.

Meanwhile, seemingly every driver who was trying to chase him down in the last few weeks fought it out for victory in Miami. But it was too little, too late for their title hopes.

2026 NASCAR Cup Series Power Rankings: Week 36

After starting on the pole and leading the first 33 laps of the race on Sunday, Chase Briscoe blew an engine, which brought an end to the opening stage and gave Larson the points he needed to secure the title.

Briscoe’s early exit also proved pivotal in the fight for fourth place in the standings, as he finished 39th and scored just one point on the day.

Meanwhile, Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney fought through yet another issue on pit road to come back and work his way into the top five before passing Denny Hamlin, William Byron, and Tyler Reddick in the closing laps of the race to finish the season with his fourth win of the year, vaulting himself up the standings and the power rankings in the process.

10) Austin Cindric

Austin Cindric closed out one of the strongest 10-race stretches of his career with yet another strong showing at Homestead.

After qualifying in the top five, Cindric finished the opening stage in fifth, the second stage in fourth, and then ultimately finished the race in seventh.

In doing so, he locked down the 10th spot in the championship in a tense battle with Bubba Wallace and Chase Elliott. Perhaps more importantly, Cindric heads into the 2027 season with a new contract at Team Penske and a ton of confidence as he looks to continue his upward trend.

Last Week: 10th NASCAR Point Standings: 10th (-195)

9) Ty Gibbs

After a remarkable regular season where he looked like a genuine title contender, Ty Gibbs struggled for more or less the entirety of the 10-race Chase for the championship.

Those struggles continued on Sunday, when Gibbs started back in 20th position, the lowest of the Joe Gibbs Racing drivers, and failed to score points in either stage before a late-race issue on pit road killed any chances of finishing in the top 10.

Ultimately, Gibbs backslid through the points to finish in ninth, which would’ve sounded solid to start the season, but is a disappointment given where he was three months ago.

Last Week: 8th NASCAR Point Standings: 9th (-166)

8) William Byron

On the opposite end of the spectrum from Gibbs, we have Hendrick Motorsports star William Byron. Byron entered the season as a title contender and one of the championship favorites. But he struggled to hit his stride throughout the year and never really looked like a serious threat.

Byron was more or less eliminated from title contention by the halfway mark of the Chase. But he finished strong, dominating a week ago at Martinsville en route to victory and then finishing third at Homestead after running in the top 10 for the majority of the day.

Last Week: 9th NASCAR Point Standings: 7th (-157)

7) Joey Logano

For much of the Chase, it appeared that Joey Logano was going to do what we’ve seen him do several times before: raise his level when the chips are down and make a run to what would’ve been a fourth championship.

Unfortunately for Logano, things fell apart at Talladega Superspeedway when he was involved in a big crash, ending his title hopes when Larson went on to claim victory.

He rebounded with a strong run at Martinsville, but went out with a dud at Homestead, finishing in 19th, well off the pace of teammates Cindric and Blaney.

Last Week: 4th NASCAR Point Standings: 7th (-115)

6) Chase Briscoe

Briscoe, like Logano, saw his title hopes effectively ended at Talladega. But unlike Logano, he actually brought a fast car to Homestead and could’ve seen himself rise up the power rankings, perhaps as high as No. 2, with what would’ve been a third win in the Chase alone.

Instead, Briscoe blew an engine toward the end of the opening stage of the race, ruining his day and causing him to slide down both the standings and the power rankings.

A problem with @chasebriscoe’s car ends his day.

(via @NASCAR)
https://t.co/fNSToUke1D

— Sports on Prime (@SportsonPrime) November 8, 2026

Last Week: 3rd NASCAR Point Standings: 6th (-115)

5) Tyler Reddick

Toward the end of the Chase, Tyler Reddick finally begin to look like the driver who won five of the first 11 races of the 2026 season and looked certain to contend for a championship.

Unfortunately for Reddick, things sort of fell apart for him and his team over the summer. They picked up a win at Phoenix to give them a brief bit of hope, but that was extinguished the following week in Talladega.

Still, Reddick finished on a high note, leading seven times for 53 laps on Sunday at Homestead and finishing in second to secure a top-five finish in the points.

Last Week: 6th NASCAR Point Standings: 5th (-104)

4) Ryan Blaney

When Blaney pulled to within 50 points of Larson’s lead following the race at Phoenix three weeks ago, many felt he was the biggest threat to the championship.

He was heading to three tracks: Talladega, Martinsville, and Homestead, where he had significant success in the past, including several victories.

Unfortunately, that all came undone with a crash at Talladega that took him out of title contention. He then went to Martinsville and had an awful day after a crash with pseudo-teammate Josh Berry that resulted in Berry getting fined and facing a point penalty.

But Blaney rebounded at Homestead, driving through the entire field and making an impressive late-race run to pick up the victory, vaulting him up the points and power rankings to a spot more representative of his entire season.

Last Week: 7th NASCAR Point Standings: 4th (-94)

3) Christopher Bell

Bell was one of two drivers who entered Sunday’s race with a theoretical, albeit slim, chance of surpassing Larson for the championship.

Those chances ended after the opening stage. But Bell continued to run strongly throughout the day. He led three times for 46 laps and finished in the top three of both stages before ultimately coming home in third, which was enough to secure second place in the standings at the end of the season.

Ultimately, Bell will regret the plethora of second-place finishes this season that left a number of points on the table. But he once again cemented his status as one of the series’ top drivers.

Last Week: 3rd NASCAR Point Standings: 2nd (-49)

2) Denny Hamlin

This was supposed to be the year for Denny Hamlin. He dominated the regular season, winning four times and entering the Chase as the clear favorite to win his first championship after showing remarkable consistency throughout the year.

Unfortunately, it all came undone when the Chase began. Hamlin was never truly awful. But while drivers like Larson, Briscoe, and Bell won races in the Chase, Hamlin lagged behind.

He stayed within touching distance of Larson until Talladega, where a Larson victory more or less put things on ice. Ultimately, Hamlin wound up third in the points, but second in our power rankings based on the whole of the season.

Either way, it’s another major letdown for the future Hall of Famer.

Last Week: 2nd NASCAR Point Standings: 3rd (-56)

1) Kyle Larson

All you can do is tip your cap to Larson and crew chief Cliff Daniels. When the stakes were at their highest, Larson and Daniels delivered time and again.

Up until a disastrous run at Phoenix, Larson was on pace for the best average finish in the history of the 10-race Chase. And even after that, he rebounded to win the following week at Talladega, putting a stranglehold on the rest of the field.

Larson didn’t exactly finish in style, with a 12th-place finish at Homestead. But he didn’t have to. Instead, Larson cruised home to his third series championship, and we’d bet on it not being his last.

Last Week: 1st NASCAR Point Standings: 1st