The Wide World of Dirt

Welcome to another week of Power rankings! 

This last weekend saw our first true show of dominance as Denny Hamlin led 274 of the 400 laps en route to victory at “The Paperclip”. We had shake-ups in our top-10 as some of last week’s entrants experienced issues while others thrived. 

That said, let’s jump into our top-10!

1. Denny Hamlin

What more can be said? (A lot, actually.)

Denny Hamlin absolutely dominated the race this Sunday, and as such, the No. 11 team finds themselves at the top of our Power Rankings.

A heckuva drive from a heckuva driver who’s come close twice already this season finally cements his Playoff status in the most deserving fashion.

2. Denny Hamlin

At 44 years old, Denny Hamlin is now officially the elder statesman of the NASCAR Cup Series.

That’s not slowing him down in the slightest as he absolutely mollywhopped the field this weekend, showing that the Cup Series is not just a young man’s game.

3. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin is just great, simply put.

From his on-track dominance this weekend to his ownership role in 23XI and just how far that team has come, (with one of their drivers Bubba Wallace notching a second-straight 3rd-place finish), it shows how much Denny excels in everything he pursues in racing.

4. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin’s uncanny ability to get under the thin skin of NASCAR fans is unmatched.

These poor souls have to be truly tortured to let such a great guy such as James Dennis Alan Hamlin being successful just eat them up the way he does simply by being great.

5. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin has been incredibly close to victory this year.

From going for the lead on the backstretch in the Daytona 500, to taking teammate Christopher Bell to the absolute brink on a green-white-checkered finish in Phoenix.

Denny hasn’t lost a step, and the whole garage was put on notice this week when he absolutely dominated Martinsville.

Notching his first grandfather clock in a decade, the victory puts Hamlin at spot No. 5 on the list.

6. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin’s ability to manage tires is unmatched.

The Progressive Powerhouse showed that this weekend whenever anybody got close to his lead.

On the green-flag runs, he would let them get just close enough to make them think they had a chance.

Then, Denny would just drive off with his better Goodyear tires. Absolutely savage behavior that lands him at six on our list.

7. Denny Hamlin

Have we talked about Denny Hamlin’s physique yet?

Man, to be in the shape he is in his mid-40s is absolutely insane.

The lengths this man goes to to keep his body in as good a shape as his Progressive Toyota Camry was this past Sunday gets him seventh on this list.

8. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin has a great weekly podcast called Actions Detrimental where he breaks down his thoughts and feelings on the past week’s NASCAR events.

It’s a great show that really pulls the veil back and shows the audience a lot of the inner workings of NASCAR from the perspective of a top driver and owner.

That gets Denny Hamlin and his amazing podcast the eighth spot on the list.

9. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin is not just a race car driver.

He’s a businessman and an athlete on all fronts.

This includes the game of pickleball, in which Denny is almost unmatchable in his rec leagues.

This prowess in another medium puts Denny Hamlin at spot number nine on the list this week.

10. Denny Hamlin

Denny Hamlin is simply the definition of the American dream.

A twice-over girl dad with a third child on the way, Denny manages his family life quite well given his plethora of other responsibilities and always makes sure to make time for his family and keep them happy.

This gives him the final spot on our list.

Honorable Mention: Denny Hamlin for just being simply great in all facets.

(Top Photo Credit: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)