The Cup Series will join the Xfinity Series at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend. This will be the second race for the two series at the track. The Xfinity Series race will be part of a double-header of racing Saturday. The Trucks will race first at Mid-Ohio and then the Xfinity Series will race at Atlanta. The Cup Series has another Sunday night race. This could be the norm for the Cup Series, since NASCAR doesn’t want to race in the heat of the day, and they get better TV ratings on Sunday night versus a Saturday night race.
STRATEGY FOR ATLANTA
Saving allocations is the name of the game this week. Atlanta Motor Speedway is a hybrid track. It is an intermediate track, but it races like a Superspeedway. The racing isn’t as unpredictable as what we have at Daytona and Talladega, but there is still a good chance we see “the big one” Sunday night. For this reason, I will be saving my allocations with some of my top drivers and taking a chance with the drivers who ran well at Atlanta in the past and at the Superspeedway races earlier this season.
Here are the picks for the Quaker State 400 …
GROUP A DRIVERS
JOEY LOGANO (8): Logano smoked the field at Atlanta in March. He won the pole, led 140 of the 260 laps, scored 19 of the 20 Stage Points and went to Victory Lane. Logano has always been known as one of the best Superspeedway racers in the Cup Series. This is a good race to use an allocation with the No. 22 car.
RYAN BLANEY (8): If Joey Logano is not in Victory Lane Sunday, it could be his teammate. Blaney qualified third, led five laps, scored seven Stage Points and finished seventh at Atlanta in March. He also finished fifth in this race last year. The No. 12 car should have the speed to qualify up front, score some Stage Points and finish in the top-five Sunday night.
(CONTRARIAN PICK) CHASE ELLIOTT (7): Elliott “should” be a good pick this week. Atlanta is his home track and he dominated the race last year. Elliott won the pole, won both Stages, led 96 laps and went to Victory Lane last summer at Atlanta. Can he do it again? I like the Fords this week, but Elliott has a good chance to run up front with the blue ovals.
GROUP A DRIVER RANKINGS: 1) Joey Logano 2) Ryan Blaney 3) Chase Elliott 4) Denny Hamlin 5) Christopher Bell 6) Ross Chastain 7) William Byron 8) Kyle Larson
GROUP B DRIVERS
BRAD KESELOWSKI (7): Keselowski has been at his best on the Superspeedways. He finished second at Atlanta and fifth at Talladega earlier this year. Keselowski only finished 22nd in the Daytona 500, but he did lead 42 laps and had the best car in the race. It has been a long time since Keselowski won a race. I would not be surprised if he ended his 67-race winless streak Sunday night.
AUSTIN CINDRIC (8): Should I trust Cindric this week? He has not been very good this year, but the No. 2 car has been good at Atlanta. Cindric qualified fifth and finished third in this race last year. He qualified second and finished 11th earlier this season at Atlanta. This pick is more about saving allocations and taking a chance with a driver who has a history of running well on Superspeedways, than it is about my trust in Cindric this weekend.
CHRIS BUESCHER (8): I have four Fords in my lineups, why not add another one? Buescher is having one of his best seasons in the Cup Series. He finished fourth in the Daytona 500, third at Talladega and 24th at Atlanta earlier this season. He actually had a top-10 average running position in the first race at Atlanta but got shuffled back in the end of the race. I will take a chance with the No. 17 car Sunday night.
ERIK JONES (8): Jones has been one of the best drivers at Atlanta since the track was repaved and reconfigured. He finished eighth, fourth and 14th in the three races. He also finished sixth earlier this season at Talladega. I will take a chance with Jones and save my top drivers for the more predictable tracks.
(CONTRARIAN PICK) DANIEL SUAREZ (5): Suarez is not the first driver that comes to mind when people think about Superspeedway drivers, but he has been good at Atlanta. He finished fourth and sixth in his two races at the track last year. He was caught up in a wreck in the race last March, but his car had good speed. Suarez is worth a spot in your lineup if you do not trust Austin Cindric or Erik Jones.
GROUP B DRIVER RANKINGS: 1) Brad Keselowski 2) Martin Truex Jr. 3) Chris Buescher 4) Austin Cindric 5) Kyle Busch 6) Erik Jones 7) Daniel Suarez 8) Alex Bowman 9) Kevin Harvick 10) Austin Dillon
GROUP C DRIVERS
COREY LAJOIE (7): LaJoie must be in all lineups this week. Atlanta is his best track. LaJoie finished fifth at Atlanta last year and he finished fourth at the track earlier this season. This is a great chance to use an allocation with LaJoie and save Ty Gibbs for the more predictable tracks.
RICKY STENHOUSE JR. (7): Stenhouse has been awesome at Daytona and Talladega and horrible at Atlanta. Stenhouse has been able to run up front, but he has had some bad luck. The No. 47 car had engine problems last year and then he was caught up in a wreck this year (neither were his fault). Stenhouse will be a good pick if he can get a bit of luck Sunday night.
(OTHER CHOICE) AJ ALLMENDINGER (4): Allmendinger did not compete in the two races at Atlanta last year but he had a decent race at the track in March. Allmendinger qualified 30th and finished 16th. He is one of the more underrated Superspeedway drivers in the Cup Series. Use Allmendinger if you do not trust Ricky Stenhouse Jr. this week.
GROUP C DRIVER RANKINGS: 1) Corey LaJoie 2) Ty Gibbs 3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 4) AJ Allmendinger, 5) Ryan Preece
* Be sure to check back Sunday morning for my starting lineup.
TRUCK SERIES PICKS
XFINITY SERIES PICKS
Good Luck This Weekend!
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