NASCAR Power Rankings: 5 standout drivers shaping up for Atlanta

With the 2025 Daytona 500 officially in the rear-view mirror, the NASCAR Cup Series circuit heads to Atlanta Motor Speedway for the second race of the season. Some drivers will look to ride the momentum of Sunday's Daytona 500, while others will look for a bounce back week in Atlanta.

With a handful of multi-car crashes and a dramatic finish that saw William Byron win after taking the white flag in seventh place, who came out of the Daytona 500 looking strong? Here, we'll take a look at five of the top drivers heading into Atlanta in this list of NASCAR power rankings.

#5 Chase Briscoe

NASCAR: DAYTONA 500 - Source: Imagn

Amid his first outing behind the wheel of the #19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Chase Briscoe had a better Daytona 500 weekend than most. The Indiana native qualified for the pole, led four laps, and finished fourth in Sunday's "Great American Race."

Anytime a driver moves to a new team, the question is raised on whether or not they can perform well. While it's only one race, Briscoe's debut with JGR couldn't have gone much better. With another drafting track ahead in Atlanta, it'll be interesting to see if the #19 team can bring the same high-level speed that they did to Daytona.

#4 Joey Logano

NASCAR: DAYTONA 500 - Source: Imagn

He might've crashed out with 15 laps to go, but there's no denying Joey Logano was the class of the field at times in Sunday's Daytona 500. The three-time and defending NASCAR Cup Series champion led 43 laps and was working his #22 Team Penske Ford back to the front until contact with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. triggered the late-race wreck.

While he finished 35th, the result doesn't reflect the speed Logano had throughout the Daytona 500 weekend. After his performance, the Connecticut native is sure to be a contender at Atlanta next week. Logano has won twice at Atlanta since it became a drafting track, and there's a solid chance he will make it three on Sunday.

#3 Ryan Blaney

NASCAR: Cup Practice - Source: Imagn

Despite getting caught up in the late-race wreck with Team Penske teammate Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney salvaged a seventh-place finish in Sunday's Daytona 500. The 2023 Cup Series champion led 23 laps and sat in second place with under 20 laps to go before getting collected in the incident with 15 laps to go.

Blaney has proven to be a force on drafting tracks with three career wins at Talladega and a win in the Daytona 400 in 2021. The North Carolina native has a win at Atlanta in 2021, but it came prior to the 1.5-mile oval becoming a drafting track. On the heels of a strong showing in Daytona, this Sunday might be Blaney's time to win at Atlanta in the drafting track capacity.

#2 Austin Cindric

NASCAR: Duel 2 at DAYTONA - Source: Imagn

It was a heart-breaking end for Austin Cindric in Sunday's Daytona 500 as he led at the white flag, but failed to win the race. Despite that, the driver of the #2 Team Penske Ford finished eighth and led a race-high 59 laps in an impressive performance, after qualifying second for the event and winning his respective Duel race on Thursday.

With two career Cup Series victories, including the Daytona 500 in 2022, Cindric has experienced the growing pains of the Cup level over the last three seasons. However, the 2020 Xfinity Series champion is off to a hot start in 2025 and will aim to keep it rolling into Atlanta on Sunday.

#1 William Byron

NASCAR: DAYTONA 500 - Source: Imagn

No one will be carrying more momentum into the second race of the 2025 NASCAR season at Atlanta than William Byron. After taking the white flag in seventh place, the driver of the #24 Hendrick Motorsports pulled off an incredible win to become the fifth driver to win back-to-back Daytona 500s.

The last time a driver won the first two races of the season was in 2009 with Matt Kenseth. For Byron, he has two wins on the Atlanta drafting track, most recently in 2023, so it isn't out of the question that he could pull off two wins in two weeks. Regardless if he does or not, Byron is going into Atlanta on a high note.