This article is part of our NASCAR Barometer series.
Kevin Harvick commanded Sunday's Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway from the top of the order, jumping out front to lead 142 of the 267 laps on hand. The No. 4 team has been one of the fastest so far in 2015, picking up right where they left off in 2014. The defending champion can now relax slightly with Sunday's win in the bag and focus on building another top effort from which to fight for their second championship.
The race's pole sitter Jeff Gordon started from the rear of the field after colliding with Danica Patrick in the final practice. That deep start proved to be the downfall of the No. 24 as contact and traffic stymied any effort to move forward. Joey Logano could have been considered Harvick's closest contender on Sunday, but 47 laps led simply wasn't enough to see the No. 22 score his second win in 2015. Jimmie Johnson also spent some time out front before a tire failure essentially ended his effort.
The series will continue its west-coast trip next week at Phoenix International Raceway. This will be the second of three races on the west coast before the teams return to the heartland of the series. With his win last week in Las Vegas the rest of the competitors can't be blamed for expecting another round of domination from the No. 4 team.
UPGRADE
Kevin Harvick - After consecutive runner-up finishes to start the season, the No. 4 car broke through on
Kevin Harvick commanded Sunday's Kobalt 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway from the top of the order, jumping out front to lead 142 of the 267 laps on hand. The No. 4 team has been one of the fastest so far in 2015, picking up right where they left off in 2014. The defending champion can now relax slightly with Sunday's win in the bag and focus on building another top effort from which to fight for their second championship.
The race's pole sitter Jeff Gordon started from the rear of the field after colliding with Danica Patrick in the final practice. That deep start proved to be the downfall of the No. 24 as contact and traffic stymied any effort to move forward. Joey Logano could have been considered Harvick's closest contender on Sunday, but 47 laps led simply wasn't enough to see the No. 22 score his second win in 2015. Jimmie Johnson also spent some time out front before a tire failure essentially ended his effort.
The series will continue its west-coast trip next week at Phoenix International Raceway. This will be the second of three races on the west coast before the teams return to the heartland of the series. With his win last week in Las Vegas the rest of the competitors can't be blamed for expecting another round of domination from the No. 4 team.
UPGRADE
Kevin Harvick - After consecutive runner-up finishes to start the season, the No. 4 car broke through on Sunday and claimed its first victory of 2015. The win will give the team a lot of confidence as the season progresses, knowing a spot in the Chase for the Championship awaits them. While it is a significant feat to win consecutive championships, Harvick looks as likely as any to complete that task this season. Harvick has won each of the last three Phoenix races, as well as four in the last five. His six track wins are tops among active drivers. There is no reason for fantasy owners to thing that the No. 4 won't be the favorite next week.
Martin Truex Jr. - Truex continues to impress in 2015 with three consecutive top-10 finishes along with the highest points standing of any driver in Furniture Row Racing history. That stout opening to 2015 could become a springboard for this team to go on to even greater heights the remainder of 2015. After 18 Phoenix races Truex can claim six top-10s and an average finish of 17.7, which makes him a contender worthy of fantasy selection next week as well. The miscommunications and mistakes that plagued this team's early season in 2014 appear to be corrected, and the focus for 2015 is clearly forward. Truex and the team are capitalizing on their strengths, and can look forward to another strong weekend in Phoenix, giving fantasy owners an easy choice this week.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. - Earnhardt, despite lacking a win in 2015, is having another strong start to a season. He won the Daytona 500 in 2014, which gave him a bit of breathing room last year, but continues to repeat that form again in 2015. Earnhardt has seemingly improved as a driver on a number of track configurations, and poses a serious threat to anyone hoping to secure a championship in 2015. The No. 88 has two Phoenix wins already in his trophy case, along with an average finish of 16.1 from 25 career starts at the track. He has yet to finish outside of the top five this season, and should be expected to pose a serious challenge for next week's win.
Ryan Newman - Consecutive top-10 finishes have confidence running high in Newman's garage. The No. 31 snuck into the Chase without a victory in 2014, and narrowly missed winning his first title. That momentum has clearly carried into the beginning of 2015. Newman finished third in Las Vegas last weekend with a bulletproof outing that saw him lead 14 laps while Harvick dominated the proceedings. Newman continues to knock on the door of victory, which puts him on solid standing to challenge for titles each season. Newman is a former Phoenix winner with an average finish of 17.9 from 25 career starts at the track. Fantasy owners can confidently look to this team for top finishes each week, and Phoenix is a good opportunity to ride the wave as it peaks.
DOWNGRADE
Jimmie Johnson - After being stuck multiple laps down the No. 48 cut a tire and hit the outside wall. The impact caused a caution period and put Johnson further behind the competition. Having already earned a spot in the Chase, the team can afford to have an off week, but the best way to produce top finishes is to remain out front and build momentum. Johnson and team were fast all weekend, and should be fast again in Phoenix. Unfortunately, having to overcome a difficult weekend in Las Vegas puts the team in a hole for fantasy owners from the outset. Johnson's average finish of 7.7 from 23 career Phoenix starts should give some consolation, but question marks could persist for the No. 48 team this week.
Jeff Gordon - Three races have produced less than optimal results for the No. 24 team thus far. Gordon crashed out of both of the first races, then seemed to rebound by scoring the pole position for last week's race in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, Gordon was forced to a backup car after crashing into Danica Patrick in the final practice meaning he started Sunday from the rear of the field. Gordon's afternoon didn't get too much better after major front damage resulted from contact about halfway through the distance. Gordon has been fast, though, and could bounce back as early as this week. He has two Phoenix wins in 32 starts, and an average finish of 11th but has to finish first.
Carl Edwards - Close racing deep into last week's race against Kasey Kahne put Edwards into a spin and the pits for repairs. The No. 19 car was running in the top five, but collided with Kahne on a restart, though the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota came off the worst one corner later when retribution sent Edwards spinning to the inside. Phoenix could be a great opportunity for the veteran to bounce back, though. He owns two winner's trophies, along with seven top-5s and 12 top-10s in his 21 career starts at the track. Edwards is still coming to grips with his new team, and a few rough weekends are to be expected, but fantasy players should measure his potential by how he responds.
Austin Dillon - Sunday was a terrible outing for Dillon, even though he romped to victory in Saturday's Xfinity Series race on the same track. He has just one finish inside the top-15 runners so far this season, which is not where any car in the Richard Childress Racing garage should be comfortable. In two Phoenix Cup starts Dillon shouldn't give much confidence to fantasy owners either. The second-year driver has a best finish of 24th in those two tries, and his average result is 31st. Much is expected of the driver and team pairing, but results have yet to truly live up to those beliefs. Dillon needs to take a serious step forward in performance for multiple races in order to become a regular fantasy option for most rosters.
Tony Stewart - Stewart's 33rd-place finish in Las Vegas made it three straight races of 30th or worse for the veteran team owner. Fantasy owners are used to Stewart having a slow start to a season, but a top-20 result should be an expectation nearly every week from this team. Stewart has underperformed so far in 2015, and seems to have a lot of distance to cover before returning to the front of the field. Phoenix is one of the tracks where Stewart should be expected to outperform the rest of the field, but the first three races of 2015 leave more than enough questions for fantasy owners to think twice about. Rosters may be better served by waiting for a turn in form before selection.
BIGGEST SURPRISE
A.J. Allmendinger - Words can't describe how much Allmendinger has improved in his time in the Sprint Cup Series. The driver of the No. 47 arrived in the Chase in 2014, and sits confidently in the Chase standings three races into the current season as well. This driver delivered consecutive top-10 finishes in the last two races, and is a former pole sitter at Phoenix. His last top-10 finish at the track came in 2011, but Allmendinger has defied the odds so far. Fantasy owners looking for a third or fourth driver with significant upside potential should look to this driver nearly every week. The unique Phoenix layout could play into his favor this week, offering him an opportunity to score three consecutive top-10s.
