Top Drivers
These are my favorite drivers to roster whether they’re dominator contenders, place differential targets, or drivers that could be both with a chance to win.
Kyle Larson ($11,500), Starting 36th
After a slip up in qualifying, Larson will start 36th on Saturday night. Larson was one of the best cars in practice as he posted the best practice times over 40 laps. Larson has three top-five finishes at Bristol in a row including a win in 2021. His average finish across 14 races here is 12th suggesting that there will be plenty of place differential at hand for him.
Christopher Bell ($10,800), Starting on the Pole
Bell comes into this race on the pole for the third straight week at a track that recently has been good to him. Last season here at Bristol Bell started eighth en route to a fourth-place finish with 143 laps led. Bell will be a contender for early dominator points but he’ll have a tough customer to deal with.
Denny Hamlin ($11,200), Starting 2nd
Hamlin is in fact that tough customer as he comes in with a ton of track experience here at Bristol. Hamlin has run 32 races here in his cup career and has two wins, nine top-fives, and 16 top-10’s. Hamlin has p9 finishes in back to back races here and has led 65 or more laps here on seven occasions. Hamlin will be starting on the front row for just the second time since 2016. In his two previous races starting on the front row Hamlin led 79 and 65 laps.
Joey Logano ($9,000), Starting 28th
Logano has had a mixed bag of finishes here at the short track of Bristol in his Cup career. On the good side, Logano has two wins, six top-fives, and 10 top-10’s in 26 races while leading 72 or more laps on six occasions. On the negative side Logano has finished 20th or worse here on eight occasions. While keeping in mind that many of those results happened earlier in his career, it’s still worth noting. Logano should be a solid P.D. play with upside starting at 28th but I would understand some trepidation.
Kyle Busch ($10,500), Starting 15th
The current king of Bristol is Busch who has racked up eight wins, 14 top-fives, and 19 top-10’s here in 33 Cup races. Outside of his previous two races here Busch has posted a p2, p4, p4, and p1 in his previous four trips here. Starting in the middle of the pack at 15th gives an opportunity for some P.D. points with upside for Busch to get to the front and dominate, similar to what Justin Allgaier did in the XFINITY race.
Values and Others to Consider
Kevin Harvick ($9,500), Starting 21st
Erik Jones ($7,400), Starting 31st
Austin Cindric ($5,700), Starting 29th
Ricky Stenhouse ($7,000), Starting 25th
Harrison Burton ($5,600), Starting 32nd
Chase Elliott ($10,000), Starting 7th
William Byron ($10,300), Starting 3rd
GOOD LUCK!!