Week 20 Unified Power Rankings

Jenson Button has come out the gates faster than any other driver in 2009. In his first four Formula 1 starts of the year, he's recorded three victories and swept the top five in a series that is hotly contested at the front of the pack. Rubens Barrichello has also swept the top five in his first four Formula 1 starts of the season to be his chief rival as the series gets ready to head to Catalunya for the Spanish Grand Prix.

Among NASCAR drivers, Tony Stewart stands at the top of the charts. A victory in the Nationwide Series and six top-fives in 14 combined starts among NASCAR's Big Three has removed all doubt about his success now that he is an owner/driver.

The IRL has not yet run four races, so there is insufficient data to include their drivers in this formula.

Here are the remaining top-50 drivers.

Rank	Driver	Primary Series	Points
1	Jenson Button	Formula 1	107.25
2	Rubens Barrichello	Formula 1	93.75
3	Tony Stewart	NASCAR Winston Cup	91.92
4	Kurt Busch	NASCAR Winston Cup	91.20
5	Jeff Gordon	NASCAR Winston Cup	89.90
6	Timo Glock	Formula 1	86.75
7	Denny Hamlin	NASCAR Winston Cup	82.64
8	Kyle Busch	NASCAR Winston Cup	81.26
9	Ron Hornaday Jr	NASCAR Trucks	80.80
10	Jason Leffler	NASCAR Busch	80.44
11	Carl Edwards	NASCAR Winston Cup	79.79
12	Jimmie Johnson	NASCAR Winston Cup	79.10
13	Ryan Newman	NASCAR Winston Cup	78.82
14	Jeff Burton	NASCAR Winston Cup	78.33
15	Clint Bowyer	NASCAR Winston Cup	77.08
16	Greg Biffle	NASCAR Winston Cup	76.29
17	Juan Montoya	NASCAR Winston Cup	75.40
18	Jarno Trulli	Formula 1	74.50
19	Matt Kenseth	NASCAR Winston Cup	74.47
20	Brian Vickers	NASCAR Winston Cup	74.43
21	Dale Earnhardt Jr	NASCAR Winston Cup	73.64
22	David Reutimann	NASCAR Winston Cup	73.50
23	Mark Webber	Formula 1	73.25
24	Sebastian Vettel	Formula 1	73.00
25	Matt Crafton	NASCAR Trucks	71.80
26	Kasey Kahne	NASCAR Winston Cup	71.40
27	Kevin Harvick	NASCAR Winston Cup	71.22
28	Brad Keselowski	NASCAR Busch	70.69
29	Mark Martin	NASCAR Winston Cup	70.55
30	Fernando Alonso	Formula 1	70.25
31	Jason Keller	NASCAR Busch	69.89
32	David Ragan	NASCAR Winston Cup	69.61
33	Marcos Ambrose	NASCAR Winston Cup	69.60
34	Joey Logano	NASCAR Winston Cup	68.11
35	Casey Mears	NASCAR Winston Cup	67.90
36	Mike Skinner	NASCAR Trucks	67.33
37	Johnny Benson Jr	NASCAR Trucks	67.00
38	Scott Lagasse Jr	NASCAR Busch	65.11
39	Lewis Hamilton	Formula 1	65.00
40	Nico Rosberg	Formula 1	63.50
41	Reed Sorenson	NASCAR Winston Cup	63.50
42	Regan Smith	NASCAR Winston Cup	63.40
43	Steve Wallace	NASCAR Busch	62.89
44	Jamie McMurray	NASCAR Winston Cup	61.80
45	Martin Truex Jr	NASCAR Winston Cup	61.40
46	Brendan Gaughan	NASCAR Busch	61.22
47	Chad McCumbee	NASCAR Busch	61.20
48	Michael McDowell	NASCAR Busch	60.50
49	David Stremme	NASCAR Winston Cup	59.90
50	A J Allmendinger	NASCAR Winston Cup	59.80

The combined Power Rankings are based on a formula called percentage points. In a 50-car field (based on entries attempting to qualify) in the Nationwide Series, a driver earns 100 points for a victory, 98 points for a second-place and so on until the 50-th best car (slowest qualifier) is assigned two points. Because the competition level for the NASCAR Cup, Indy Racing League and Formula 1 series is greater, the starting point is 110 points. The Craftsman Truck Series starts with 90 points for a victory. Some marquee races, such as the Daytona 500, Indy 500, World 600 and the Monaco Grand Prix command a starting point of 125 points.

F1: FIA publishes McLaren report

FIA has published a complete report of the Lewis Hamilton incident in the Australian Grand Prix and the ensuing three-race suspended penalty. The transcript can be views at Formula1.com.

Our View: And you thought decisions by NASCAR could be confusing. At least, FIA has tried to completely clarify their stance, which should reduce frustration among fans.

F1: Uncertainty breeds excitement in Spain

Most Formula 1 teams tested in Spain during the off-season, but with four point-paying races under their belt, uncertainty reigns among teams. That also makes this an exciting race, however.

Our View: "The schedule for the first four races was very tough for everyone, so going back to Europe almost feels like a fresh start," Lewis Hamilton said. Check out Formula1.com for more quotes and comments about the Circuit de Catalunya.

IRL: Tagliani on Indy 500 entry list

Alex Tagliani has a ton of experience, but he will be happy to receive the designation of a rookie for this year's Indy 500, according to IndyCar.com.

Our View: Tagliani has made 121 CART and five IRL races, but this will be his first trip to the Brickyard. In one previous oval track race in this series last year at Chicagoland, he managed only a 12th-place finish, so you may want to concentrate on drivers with more experience on this track type.

F1: Spanish GP Avg. Finishes

The Spanish Grand Prix is just around the corner and here is a little help to set your roster.

Lewis Hamilton tops the average finish charts for the Spanish Grand Prix, although he has yet to win and started only two previous races. He finished second in 2007 and third in 2008. Las year's winner Kimi Raikkonen might not be your best choice this week since he has only the seventh best average result.

Spanish Grand Prix Average Finish
Last Five Years

Driver	5 Yr Avg Finish	Avg Start	Attempts
Lewis Hamilton	2.50	4.50	2
Robert Kubica	4.00	4.50	2
Fernando Alonso	5.00	3.20	5
Felipe Massa	5.40	7.00	5
Michael Schumacher	6.00	4.00	3
Giancarlo Fisichella	6.80	9.80	5
Kimi Raikkonen	7.40	5.40	5
Mark Webber	7.67	6.00	3
Jenson Button	8.00	12.25	4
Jarno Trulli	8.80	6.00	5
Rubens Barrichello	8.80	9.80	5
David Coulthard	9.80	13.20	5
Nico Rosberg	10.33	13.00	3
Takuma Sato	10.75	14.25	4
Ralf Schumacher	11.50	8.25	4
Heikki Kovalainen	12.00	7.00	2
Nick Heidfeld	12.00	11.60	5
Tiago Monteiro	14.00	17.50	2
Juan Montoya	14.33	7.00	3
Christian Klien	14.50	15.00	2
Anthony Davidson	14.50	18.00	2
Mark Weber	15.00	15.00	2
Christijan Albers	16.00	17.67	3
Vitantonio Liuzzi	16.67	13.33	3
Adrian Sutil	17.00	20.00	2
Scott Speed	18.50	19.00	2

Spinning key to Richmond success

Apparently one key to success at Richmond in the Crown Royal 400 was spinning, according to NASCAR.com. Jeff Burton, Mark Martin, Jamie McMurray and Marcos Ambrose each scored top-15 finishes after spinning in separate events.

Our View: Add to that list sixth-place Sam Hornish Jr., who didn't spin himself, but was responsible for wrecking Ambrose and Kevin Harvick, and a clear pattern developed from Richmond. The new car is incredibly durable, which is going to make handicapping short tracks a lot easier.