2023 Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway Driver Ratings

Crash NASCAR journalist Chad Smith goes through the field to hand out driver ratings for the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway.
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing at Gateway
Denny Hamlin, Joe Gibbs Racing at Gateway

Kyle Busch: 10

A brilliant drive from pole position to fending off multiple challengers on restarts.

Denny Hamlin: 9

A much-needed result after last week, and one that may give him momentum as the regular season winds down.

Joey Logano: 9

He followed up his win last year with a 3rd place result today.

Kyle Larson: 9

A great drive to the front, but just couldn't capitalize on the final restart.

Martin Truex Jr: 8

Another top-ten run as he quietly builds his positive momentum.

Ryan Blaney: 8

A 6th place result to follow up his race win last weekend.

Daniel Suarez: 8

Suarez really needed a good finish, as the tables at Trackhouse may be turning...

William Byron: 8

A seventh straight top-ten finish for Byron, who is having a career year.

Michael McDowell: 8

McDowell finished inside the top-ten and managed to hold off guys like Kevin Harvick and Christopher Bell in the process.

Kevin Harvick: 7

Another top-ten that puts Harvick into the playoff picture as the driver with the most points without a win.

Christopher Bell: 7

It wasn't a clean day for Bell but he managed to bounce back and nearly got himself a top-ten finish.

Chris Buescher: 8

Buescher continues to quietly string together solid finishes as RFK Racing continues to improve.

Corey LaJoie: 7

Not a bad debut for Hendrick but he surely wanted more out of this opportunity.

Corey LaJoie
Corey LaJoie

Ross Chastain: 6

Chastain caused another wreck and had another poor finish.

Alex Bowman: 5

Today's 26th place finish for Bowman was not exactly what the team envisioned going into this weekend.

Brad Keselowski: 6

More mechanical issues on the No. 6 Ford resulted in a poor finish but he continues to show speed.

Bubba Wallace: 7

A tough break for Bubba, who was running inside the top-ten again before a failed brake rotor sent him into the wall just five laps from the finish.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr: 7

He also had a gut punch that took him out towards the end of the race when he was collected in another incident.

Chase Briscoe: 2

Briscoe and the No. 14 team just seem lost at this point.

Tyler Reddick: 4

The day started on a sour note and ended in an even more disappointing fashion for Tyler and his team.

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