NASCAR Power Rankings: Joey Logano reaches top spot

After a messy Southern 500 that scrambled the Cup playoff standings, Joey Logano has moved to the top of the NBC Sports NASCAR Power Rankings.

Logano finished a strong fourth amid the turmoil Sunday night in Darlington, leading 64 laps. He also jumped to the top of the playoff leaderboard after the first race of Round 1.

Chase Elliott, who started the playoffs leading the standings and who has dominated the NBC rankings much of the year, had a miserable night in South Carolina. He crashed early, his team wasn’t able to make repairs in the 10-minute time limit, and he finished last. Among the results: He fell from first to ninth in the playoff standings and from first to second in the NBC rankings.

Erik Jones won Sunday night’s race to record his first victory of the season and earn a hearty honorable mention from the rankings.

The second race of the playoffs is scheduled at 3 p.m. ET Sunday (USA Network) at Kansas Speedway.

1. Joey Logano (No. 2 last week) — Logano has declared himself the favorite for the championship, and Sunday’s race was certainly a good start in that direction. His consistency in recent weeks has been a positive — five finishes of sixth or better in the past six races.

2. Chase Elliott (No. 1 last week) — The Darlington race was very un-Elliott-like. He lasted only 113 laps, leaving the race after slamming the wall and causing rear suspension damage that couldn’t be repaired within the 10-minute window. A last-place finish sent him spiraling down the playoff standings to ninth.

3. Denny Hamlin (No. 5 last week) — Hamlin jumps two spots in the rankings after finishing second at Darlington. He gained three spots in the playoff standings, moving to third place in pursuit of an ever-elusive Cup