2024 Preseason NASCAR Cup Series Power Rankings

Last year’s champion comes into 2024 as the driver to beat as Team Penske shoots for its third consecutive Cup Series title. Blaney has an excellent chance at getting his season of defense off on the right foot by winning the Daytona 500 but it’s been 25 years since the defending Cup champ has won the next year’s “Great American Race,” dating back to Dale Jarrett in 2000.

The DNFs that plagued Larson last season is all the former champion has to safeguard against to be in the hunt for a second career Cup crown. Larson was otherwise strong all last season and there isn’t any reason to think the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports team won’t be in the thick of the title fight again in 2024.

The driver that led the series with six wins a year ago in what most consider his breakout season is poised to take the next step in his career and challenge for the championship. The experience of going through the Playoffs as he did a year ago will be a benefit as Byron aims for his first Cup crown.

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver enters his 19^th Cup season still searching for that elusive first career championship. Nothing appears to be different from a team that was so strong a year ago despite missing the Championship Four for a second straight year and Hamlin will be a player in 2024.

The No. 20 Joe Gibbs racing driver has found his way to the Championship Four in two straight seasons but came up short both times of a first Cup crown. There’s good reason to believe Bell can exceed his season career high in wins of three in 2024.

A three-time winner in 2024, Buescher has led the resurgence at Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing. He could be in for a solid “Speedweeks” to kick off the year considering his Daytona record a year ago that included winning a Duel race, leading the Daytona 500 for 32 laps and winning the summer race at “The World Center of Racing.”

It was truly a tale of two seasons last year for Truex Jr. After winning the regular season championship the No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing team suffered through a miserable Playoff run that without his points status built-up would have ended much sooner. Is there more left in the veteran’s tank in 2024? We’ll find out soon enough.

A pair of wins in his first season with 23XI solidified Reddick as one of the sport’s elite drivers. He’ll need to kick the performance up a notch to be in the championship picture this year and once in the Playoffs stick around longer to be a player to make the Championship Four.

The way Chastain ended the 2023 campaign is what Trackhouse Racing needs more of in 2024. Chastain won the season finale at Pheonix and the hope is that momentum as well as a return to the more competitive cars he had at his disposal during the Playoff portion of the schedule will put Chastain back into title conversation.

He went winless last season but still made the Playoffs to give 23XI two drivers in the championship run. Wallace will need to win this year and should be able to do so. That and ensuring there are more consistent finishes along the way is the recipe Wallace needs for a return trip to the Playoffs.