NASCAR Power Rankings 2025: Alex Bowman faces playoff pressure after Austin Dillon win

Austin Dillon shook up the NASCAR Cup Series playoff picture on Saturday night after winning at Richmond. The driver of the #3 picked up his first win of 2025 and clinched a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2022.

With just one regular-season race remaining, two playoff spots remain to be filled, with Alex Bowman currently holding the final position. Who's going into Daytona strong? Here's this week's NASCAR Power Rankings.

5. Christopher Bell

Cup Series Race at Richmond - Source: Imagn

On the heels of a runner-up finish at Watkins Glen, Christopher Bell showed speed on Saturday at Richmond. Despite ultimately finishing 21st, the driver of the #20 ran up front throughout the evening after starting eighth and finishing sixth in stage one.

Bell has three victories in the 2025 season (Atlanta, CoTA, and Phoenix). The Joe Gibbs Racing driver is sixth in the NASCAR Cup points standings with nine top-fives and two stage wins. With the playoffs approaching, Bell has 17 playoff points, which projects him to be starting fourth in the playoffs.

4. Alex Bowman

Cup Series Cook Out 400 - Source: Getty

Fighting to earn a spot in the NASCAR playoffs, Alex Bowman narrowly missed out on a win at Richmond. The driver of the #48 rallied in the late laps to come home second behind winner Austin Dillon.

It was Bowman's sixth top-five finish of 2025. The Hendrick Motorsports driver currently holds the final spot in the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs with a 60-point gap over Chris Buescher.

Currently ninth in the points standings, Bowman has posted an average finish of 15.6. The Arizona native has never won at Daytona but has a best finish of second in the 2024 Daytona 500.

3. William Byron

Cup Series Race at Richmond - Source: Imagn

Between a solid run and his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott scoring a DNF, William Byron clinched the regular season title on Saturday at Richmond. The driver of the #24 posted a 12th-place finish, on the heels of a win at Iowa two weeks ago and a top-five run last week at Watkins Glen.

The HMS driver is 68 points ahead of second-place Elliott in the standings. Byron has two wins in 2025 in the Daytona 500 and at Iowa, along with nine top-five finishes. Byron has won at Daytona twice, including his first career win in the August 2020 event.

2. Chase Briscoe

Cup Series Cook Out 400 - Practice - Source: Getty

With the way he's performed since his victory at Pocono in June, Chase Briscoe is building a strong case for being a championship contender. The driver of the #19 came home 13th on Saturday at Richmond, just above his average finish of the season (13.3).

The Joe Gibbs Racing driver won his first race with the organization two months ago at Pocono. Since then, he's posted four top-five finishes, with three of them being second-place finishes. Briscoe also has the most poles this season with six. At Daytona, Briscoe has two top fives in nine starts.

1. Ryan Blaney

Cup Series Cook Out 400 - Source: Getty

At times, Ryan Blaney looked to be on his way to his second win of the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season. However, he couldn't hold off the hard-charging Austin Dillon and ultimately settled for third place.

Despite that, Blaney's strong performance in recent weeks is why he tops this week's NASCAR Power Rankings. The driver of the #12 has one win this season at Nashville along with nine top-five finishes.

With an average finish of 15.9 this season, Blaney has tallied five straight top-10 finishes. The Team Penske star has one victory at Daytona, which came in August 2021.