NR-Rating Driver Rankings
Ratings updated: Mon, Sep 28, 2026, 07:16 AM ET
NR-Rating is NASCAR Reference's proprietary Elo rating system that measures driver skill across five track types: superspeedway, intermediate, short track, road course, and street course. Unlike traditional rankings based on points or wins, Elo ratings update after every race based on how a driver finishes relative to expectations; beating higher-rated drivers earns more rating points than beating lower-rated ones.
The NR-Rating model predicts finishing positions with a Mean Absolute Error of 8.5 positions. Short tracks (7.9 MAE) are most predictable; superspeedways (9.7 MAE) are most chaotic.
For bettors and DFS players: Higher Elo ratings indicate a driver who consistently outperforms expectations at a given track type. Compare a driver's track-type Elo to the field average (~1500) to gauge relative strength. A driver rated 1530+ on intermediates is a strong play at Charlotte or Kansas; one rated below 1480 on superspeedways is a fade candidate at Daytona and Talladega. Use the per-track-type columns to identify mismatches between public perception and model-based skill.
Looking for traditional stat-based rankings? See the Power Rankings. For official season points, visit Standings. Browse all driver profiles for career stats and track-by-track breakdowns.
| Rank | Driver | Overall | Races |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denny Hamlin | 1660.8 | 751 |
| 2 | Christopher Bell | 1606.9 | 246 |
| 3 | Ty Gibbs | 1584.5 | 153 |
| 4 | Ryan Blaney | 1576.1 | 408 |
| 5 | Kyle Larson | 1568.1 | 432 |
| 6 | Chase Briscoe | 1561.9 | 210 |
| 7 | Joey Logano | 1556.3 | 645 |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick | 1544.2 | 248 |
| 9 | Bubba Wallace | 1535.1 | 321 |
| 10 | Ryan Preece | 1531 | 253 |
| 11 | William Byron | 1525.8 | 318 |
| 12 | Austin Cindric | 1525.7 | 181 |
| 13 | Chase Elliott | 1513.2 | 388 |
| 14 | Chris Buescher | 1502.5 | 395 |
| 15 | Daniel Suarez | 1498.5 | 353 |
| 16 | Corey Heim | 1491.3 | 17 |
| 17 | Carson Hocevar | 1485 | 111 |
| 18 | Brad Keselowski | 1478.6 | 623 |
| 19 | Ross Chastain | 1473.7 | 289 |
| 20 | Alex Bowman | 1462.9 | 387 |
| 21 | Michael McDowell | 1451.3 | 567 |
| 22 | Kyle Busch | 1448.8 | 762 |
| 23 | Shane van Gisbergen | 1437 | 80 |
| 24 | Austin Dillon | 1425.6 | 474 |
| 25 | Todd Gilliland | 1425.5 | 174 |
| 26 | Erik Jones | 1424.9 | 355 |
| 27 | Justin Allgaier | 1418.6 | 87 |
| 28 | Josh Berry | 1409 | 114 |
| 29 | John Nemechek | 1404.4 | 23 |
| 30 | A.J. Allmendinger | 1403.5 | 512 |
| 31 | John Hunter Nemechek | 1398.6 | 120 |
| 32 | Jimmie Johnson | 1383.3 | 702 |
| 33 | Casey Mears | 1381.8 | 498 |
| 34 | Harrison Burton | 1372.7 | 110 |
| 35 | Zane Smith | 1372.2 | 111 |
| 36 | Anthony Alfredo | 1361.6 | 44 |
| 37 | Cole Custer | 1360.3 | 183 |
| 38 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 1349.6 | 502 |
| 39 | Noah Gragson | 1335.6 | 141 |
| 40 | Riley Herbst | 1328.7 | 73 |
| 41 | Joey Gase | 1317.7 | 95 |
| 42 | Jesse Love | 1306.7 | 7 |
| 43 | Ty Dillon | 1301.1 | 311 |
| 44 | Timmy Hill | 1301.1 | 146 |
| 45 | Kevin Magnussen | 1301 | 1 |
| 46 | Connor Zilisch | 1298.6 | 33 |
| 47 | B.J. McLeod | 1296.3 | 152 |
| 48 | Austin Hill | 1290.3 | 35 |
| 49 | Katherine Legge | 1287.5 | 9 |
| 50 | Daniel Dye | 1278.6 | 4 |
| 51 | Josh Bilicki | 1264.1 | 110 |
| 52 | J.J. Yeley | 1256.5 | 399 |
| 53 | Chad Finchum | 1225.2 | 19 |
| 54 | Cody Ware | 1223.4 | 172 |
Showing 54 rated drivers sorted by overall Elo rating.