Suite 16 Rankings- Martinsville
Suite 16 NASCAR Nextel Cup rankings after Martinsville
Every week Suite 101 ranks the top 16 NASCAR Nextel Cup drivers based on results and performance.
Suite 101 began the Suite 16 NASCAR Nextel Cup rankings exactly a year ago. We would like to thank all of our readers and hope that you will continue to come back.
1. (1) 48-Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie Johnson and Chad Knaus is the modern day Jeff Gordon/Ray Evernham, or Dale Earnhardt/Kirk Shelmerdine
2. (2) 24-Jeff Gordon: So many anti-Jeff Gordon fans couldn’t wait until a driver came in and whooped Wonderboy. They just did not expect it to be Gordon’s protégé.
3. (3) 17-Matt Kenseth: Matt Kenseth struggled with the Car Of Tomorrow yet he left Bristol and Martinsville with 10th and 11th place finishes. That’s definitely a mark of a true champion.
4. (4) 31-Jeff Burton: It is hard to believe that it has been nearly ten years since Jeff Burton won his first Cup race at Texas.
5. (5) 20-Tony Stewart: Tony Stewart will be among the favorites as the Nextel Cup series heads to Texas in two weeks.
6. (7) 5-Kyle Busch: Hendrick Motorsports now has a dangerous triple threat thanks to Kyle Busch.
7. (8) 11-Denny Hamlin: Denny Hamlin seems to have a pretty good feel for the Car of Tomorrow.
8. (6) 29-Kevin Harvick: Overall, Kevin Harvick has faded quite a bit since his Daytona 500 triumph.
9. (11) 8-Dale Earnhardt Jr: After a sluggish start to the 2007 season, Dale Earnhardt Jr has recovered quite well on NASCAR’s two shortest tracks.
10. (12) 07-Clint Bowyer: Clint Bowyer is squashing the sophomore jinx myth.
11. (9) 99-Carl Edwards: It’s hard to believe that Carl Edwards’ last Nextel Cup win came in November of 2005. He should be solid at Texas.
12. (14) 26-Jamie McMurray: Jamie McMurray is a prime candidate for NASCAR's Most Improved Driver in 2007.
13. (10) 01-Mark Martin: Despite sitting out the last two races, Mark Martin could still qualify for the Chase for the Championship if he were to run a full schedule here on out.
14. (15) 2-Kurt Busch: Something is still missing with the Penske Racing organization.
15. (NR) 42-Juan Pablo Montoya: Juan Pablo Montoya escaped Martinsville with a decent finish, but he may have made a couple more enemies. At least Tony Raines isn’t his teammate.
16. (NR) 12-Ryan Newman: It is still too early to tell if Ryan Newman and the 12 team have improved enough to contend for a spot in the Chase for the Championship.
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