The NASCAR Cup Series will travel to Martinsville Speedway Sunday for the Cook Out 400. The picks last week were running pretty well until the last 10 laps of the race. Kyle Larson broke a toe-link and it sank the lineup. We did not fall far though. The lineup entered the race at Darlington outscoring 89.9% of the lineups and now they are outscoring 89.7% of the lineups. I will do my best to get them to the top this week.
STRATEGY FOR MARTINSVILLLE
The strategy is not too difficult this week. There are a handful of drivers who have mastered the rhythm that it takes to turn fast laps at Martinsville. We need to stick to these drivers for our picks this week. The new 750 HP and the use of the “super soft tire” will bring tire management into play more than it has been in the past, so the drivers who were fast on the long-run in practice should be the best picks for our lineup Sunday.
NASCAR is using the new 750 HP Package and a super soft tire” that was used at New Hampshire and Martinsville in the playoffs last year. It would be a good idea to look at how the drivers ran in those races for our picks at Martinsville.
Here are the picks for the race at Martinsville Speedway…
RYAN BLANEY (8): Blaney won the race at New Hampshire last year and he led 177 laps and finished 2nd at Martinsville. Blaney also won the only race on a short, flat track (Phoenix) where the 750 HP was used. Blaney is one of the best drivers on the short, flat tracks. He finished 1st or 2nd in 3 of the last 5 races at Martinsville Speedway. The No. 12 car posted the 3rd fastest long-run speed in practice and Blaney qualified 12th for the race. He has a good chance to add another win to his 2026 resume Sunday.
DENNY HAMLIN (7): Hamlin should be the safest pick in the field Sunday. He has 7 wins at his home track in Martinsville and Hamlin is off to a hot start in 2026. Hamlin led 274 laps and went to Victory Lane in this race last year. Hamlin posted some of the fastest speed in practice and the No. 11 car won the pole for the race. Hamlin has a good chance to win his 8th race at Martinsville Speedway Sunday.
JOEY LOGANO (8): The Cup Series is racing on a short, flat track so that means we need to dig up Logano and put him into our lineups. It seems like these are the only tracks where Logano is really good at anymore. He finished 4th at New Hampshire last year on the “super soft tire” and then 8th at Martinsville in the playoffs. Logano has NEVER finished outside the top-10 in the Gen-7 car at Martinsville. He “should” be the safest driver in the field Sunday.
CHASE ELLIOTT (8): Elliott is one of the safest picks in Fantasy Live because he stacks top-10 finishes. I thought about saving Elliott for a road courses, but his stats at Martinsville are too good to ignore. Elliott has an average finishing position of 3rd over his last 4 races at Martinsville Speedway. The No. 9 car posted the fastest long-run speed in practice and Elliott qualified 10th for the race. Elliott has a good chance to give me another top-five finish this weekend at Martinsville.
WILLIAM BYRON (9): Byron often gets overshadowed by Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott at Martinsville. The No. 24 car is pretty good too. Byron won the pole, led 304 laps, won both Stage and went to Victory Lane in the last race at Martinsville. That was on the same tire that will be used Sunday. Byron looked fast in practice and he starts on the front row Sunday. I will use another allocation with the No. 24 car at Martinsville.
(GARAGE PICK) TY GIBBS (10): Gibbs seems to be better this year than he has been in the past. Gibbs had the 5th fastest speed at Bowman Gray Stadium and the 6th fastest speed at Phoenix Raceway. That speed has translated into speed this week at Martinsville. The No. 54 car posted the 2nd-fastest speed in practice and Gibbs qualified 4th for the race. He has the speed and the track position to score well for your Fantasy Live lineup Sunday.
Good luck and be sure to follow me on X (Twitter) @MrFantasyNASCAR. I will send out a Tweet during the race to let you know if I plan to swap out one of my drivers for my Garage pick.