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Power Rankings: The tires cut short Truex's ride at the top

Our Power Rankings are far from a scientific formula. In fact, it's the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. And you think we dislike your favorite driver, so it makes sense, right? Direct all your complaints to us at happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com.

1. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 2): Oh, Johnson was an absolute sitting duck on the final caution flag for Casey Mears' broken axle. Had Johnson pitted, lots of cars behind him likely would have stayed out. So Johnson stayed out, and everyone else behind him came in. He had a great car and did a pretty damn good job to hold on to sixth with old tires while everyone else behind him had fresh ones. But it was the right call to stay out. He was simply damned no matter what happened.

2. Kevin Harvick (LW: 3): Harvick finished fourth after charging forward with fresh tires. He had one of the day's better cars, he simply started 17th, so he didn't spend the entire day at the front. Plus, all of the differing strategies make it difficult to assess who the dominant car is sometimes. And by the way, we love the different strategies. Sunday's race was almost perfect, save for the lengthy delays to clean up crashes. Lots of strategy, tire management and ample passing. Sonoma every week!

3. Martin Truex Jr. (LW: 1): Truex isn't endorsing our exclamation after what happened on Sunday. The 2013 winner was in the tire barrier after contact from David Ragan. We're not going on on a limb in saying that both drivers could have been a bit more patient in that fateful trip down the esses; a little restraint could have gone a long way. But it did look to us that Ragan purposefully sent Truex into the tire barriers. Maybe we can get Ragan and Ryan Newman to have a feud? It'd never end.

4. Kurt Busch (LW: 4): During the final turn of Sunday's race we wondered aloud if a different Busch would win with another lap. Kurt clearly had a faster car than Kyle did and made up some significant ground. He wasn't close enough to do anything on lap 110, but if there was a lap 111.... well, we're thinking this driver would have his third win of the season. Either way, he's a championship contender. If you don't think so you're delusional.

5. Joey Logano (LW: 5): "What? Why is Joey Logano here? He was hardly a factor all race and he must have finished back int he pack somewhere." *Checks standings.* "Ohhhhhh." Logano finished fifth on Sunday, another driver who capitalized on fresh tires at the end of the race. Logano was near the front of the field when the final caution came and went from eighth to fifth on the final green flag stint.

6. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 6): Was it Junior's most impressive road course run? He finished third at Sonoma in 2014 but was a fixture near the front of the field for most of the day on Sunday. He might have been the most stout driver under braking too. How many times did Junior puill underneath another car entering a turn? Of course, the pass doesn't always work out in those scenarios; driving a car into the corner that deep means you can't accelerate off the corner as well. But damn, Junior was perfectly aggressive.

7. Kyle Busch (LW: NR): We know that Busch is a very good road course racer. A win at Sonoma under normal circumstances is no surprise. This, after the broken bones in February, is a bit of one. After feeling some pain during Friday's practice sessions, Busch was stout on Sunday. He timed his pass on Jimmie Johnson for the lead perfectly and got enough of a gap on the rest of the field to prevent a challenge for the win. He just now can't afford another bad finish.

8. Kasey Kahne (LW: 9): Kahne finished eighth and ran near the front of the field most of the day. He didn't have one of the race's strongest cars but he wasn't poor either. And he's now the third member of Hendrick Motorsports to become a father after the news his girlfriend will have a baby in October. Junior, you're up next, though Hendrick could be back to two child-less drivers in 2015 with the addition of Chase Elliott. Chase, you're still a teenager. Worry about drinking legally before you have kids.

9. Matt Kenseth (LW: 7): Kenseth qualifying third at Sonoma was a cause for Wisconsin celebration. He might have even gotten a congratulatory note from Aaron Rodgers. Alas, the qualifying success disappeared when he had a flat left rear tire and had to limp to the pits. Kenseth ended up finishing 21st. That's actually slightly above average. Thanks to one top 10 at the road coure, his average Sonoma finish is 22.1.

10. Jamie McMurray (LW: 8): If the strategy was good enough for Jimmie Johnson at the end of the race, it was good enough for McMurray. And it worked out just the same for both drivers. As Johnson fell to sixth with worn tires, McMurray slid back all the way to 11th. He's seventh in the points standings now, so it's going to take a collapse of epic proportions for McMurray to miss the Chase.

11. Brad Keselowski (LW: 11): Keselowski was wrestling with his car all afternoon. We'll go ahead and call it a draw. The car fought valiantly, but so did Keselowski. His car struggled with getting off the corners so he was basically playing defense against the rest of the field. He finished 19th and is still sixth in the standings. The win at California seems a long way off, doesn't it?

12. Ryan Newman (LW: NR): Newman gets crew chief Luke Lambert back at Daytona on Sunday night. Lambert, as you likely know, has been out for six races because of the tire manipulation penalty the team received. How funny would it be if NASCAR stationed an official in blatant view of the No. 31 team to watch over their tires all weekend at Daytona in a "Hey, we're watching you" type move? We'd laugh. Newman was ninth at Sonoma.

Lucky Dog: Sam Hornish, who finished 10th. It's his first top-10 finish since Talladega. His last non-road course or restrictor plate top-10 came at Loudon ... in 2010.

The DNF: David Gilliland. That was a hard hit into the tire barriers after, coincidentally, a flat tire.

Dropped Out: Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards

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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!