Chase Elliott was that close to his fifth win of the NASCAR Cup Series season Sunday when -- surprise! -- his teammate, Kyle Larson, appeared in the picture.
In a big moment that is likely to reverberate through the rest of the season, Larson pushed Elliott from the lead and went on to win Sunday’s Cup race at Watkins Glen International. Elliott said all the right things after race’s end, but he clearly was irritated at Larson.
The Hendrick Motorsports teammates might not be especially close for a while, but they’re very close in the NBC Sports NASCAR Power Rankings. Elliott, the season’s only four-time winner, remains in the top spot, while Larson moves up three places to second after scoring his second win of the year Sunday.
The Cup regular season is scheduled to end Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway (7 p.m. ET, NBC and Peacock).
NBC Sports NASCAR Power Rankings
1. Chase Elliott (Last week: No. 1) -- Elliott likely left Watkins Glen Sunday with fire in the belly. He also left town with the Cup regular season championship, sealed with one race left on the regular season schedule.
2. Kyle Larson (Last week: No. 5) -- Larson, winless since the second race of the season, won at Watkins Glen at Chase Elliott’s expense. With the playoffs only two weeks away, it should be interesting to follow their paths over the next few weeks.
3. Joey Logano (Last week: No. 3) -- Logano, using excellent pit strategy, won a stage and led 15 laps Sunday and is likely to be a big threat in the playoffs.
4. Kevin Harvick (Last week: No. 2) -- After two consecutive wins, Harvick returned to Earth Sunday. He ran 12th and was the fifth-best Ford finisher.
5. Christopher Bell (Last week: No. 4) -- Bell was eighth Sunday and has four finishes of eighth or better in the past six races.
6. Denny Hamlin (Last week: No. 7) -- On another sour race day for Toyota, Hamlin managed a 20th.
7. Ryan Blaney (Last week: No. 6) -- Blaney, looking for a spot in the playoffs, needed a win Sunday. Instead he ran poorly.
8. Ross Chastain (Last week: No. 8) -- Chastain was involved in another accident Sunday and came home 21st.
9. Martin Truex Jr. (Last week: No. 9) -- See Ryan Blaney.
10. Chris Buescher (Last week: unranked) -- Buescher was ninth Sunday and has three top 10s in the past four races. And, thanks to Dale Earnhardt Jr., he even has an elongated new name -- Christopher.
Dropped out: Kyle Busch (No. 10 last week).
