2 years agoDenny Hamlin was another one of those drivers who worried about the lack of late practice speed even on Saturday. He qualified 14th for the Road America race on Sunday. However, the Joe Gibbs Racing driver dropped tenths of a second in crucial sectors including the late turns at the end of the 4.048-mile course. Hamlin has two wins on the season but has not sniffed a road win in the last several years. Even with seven top-five results, that appears to be not likely with Hendrick and some of the Ford's just that much faster where it counts. Hamlin may not be able to hang around the contenders.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoKyle Busch wound up being the highest qualified Toyota in 13th for the race in Wisconsin on Sunday. It seems hard to believe but what is crazier is how clustered the four main Toyotas were. Busch was only 0.125 seconds ahead of Christopher Bell, who qualified 16th. Practice speed became a bit of an issue on the road courses and Toyota drivers have talked at length at how their long-run speed drops off. If there are a few more cautions, is that enough for a driver like Busch? A 2-3 podium finish feels unlikely with the Toyota's this time around but the younger Busch could lurk around. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoRoss Chastain and the No. 1 Chevy looked pretty strong early in qualifying and in practice. In the end, the TrackHouse Racing driver has already won this year on the road at COTA. Chastain wound up around a half season behind pole-sitter Chase Elliott. In some practice sectors, the Texan was a hair faster than the Hendrick Motorsports Racer. Chastain will be one to watch as he contended last year before settling for seventh. If there is one driver who has shown the ability to get as aggressive as Elliott, it is Chastain. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoIt has been a rough season for Brad Keselowski. However, he does start 11th on Sunday and did finish 13th on the 4.048-mile road course last year. The RFK Racing part-owner needs a win likely to make the chase. That may not happen this week but a good result is possible. Keselowski displayed good speed last year when the runs were not as long. With the Next-Gen car, that remains a slight possibility in 2022. Road courses have been interesting with some of the Ford cars. This could be a week where Keselowski has a chance at a top ten result. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoMartin Truex Jr. will round out the top 10 as he starts in 10th place on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. Truex joins the drivers with zero wins but is in the playoffs as of now. Truex could get booted out of the playoffs, but he will have his spot locked in if he wins on Sunday. With zero wins, two top-fives and seven top-10 finishes, he is in 14th place in the standings. In last season's race at Nashville, Truex finished in 22nd place, which isn't a great sign. But if he has a good finish, that is all he needs. If Truex were to win this race, it would be highly unexpected, which makes him a deep sleeper. Truex is nothing more than a risky look for fantasy managers.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoChristopher Bell will be starting in ninth place on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. Bell is one of the drivers without a win this season, but he is still currently in the playoff mix. With zero wins, four top-fives and nine top-10 finishes, he is in 15th place in the standings. If two drivers get their first win, Bell would fall out of the playoffs, so if Bell can pull out a win in this race, he will not need to worry about getting booted from the playoffs. In last season's Nashville race, Bell had a top-10 showing and finished in ninth place. It is possible he can get another top-10 and maybe even a win. Bell should be worth a look.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoKevin Harvick will be starting in eighth place on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. If Harvick needs to push for the playoffs, it should start now, as he sits in 17th place and is only seven points behind Aric Almirola. If Harvick were to win this race, he would make the playoffs. If Almirola were to stumble on Sunday and Harvick has an excellent finish, he would jump him and hold the final playoff spot. With stats of zero wins, four top-fives and eight top-10 finishes, Harvick has been putting together a solid season. In last season's race at Nashville, Harvick finished fifth, which is very promising for how Sunday will go. Harvick should be worth a look.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoRoss Chastain will be starting in seventh place on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. It will be interesting to see how Chastain finishes, because it feels like he's made many enemies in the past couple of races. A good storyline will be if Chastain's past catches up to him and he gets dumped. However, going into this race, Chastain is the points leader. He sits in first place with stats of two wins, seven top-fives and 10 top-10 finishes. In last season's race at Nashville, Chastain finished in second place, which shows he can easily win this race. Chastain will be one of the favorites to win this race.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoRyan Blaney will be starting in sixth place this Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. Hopefully, Blaney can get his first win of the season, because he now sits in 13th place in the standings. This is key, because if more drivers win their first race, Blaney will be passed by them and could fall out of the playoffs altogether. With no wins, however, Blaney still has 511 points, which are the fourth-most right now. Blaney's stats are zero wins, five top-fives and eight top-10 finishes this year. Blaney will most likely break out and finally get a win, but the sooner it is, the better it will be for Blaney. Blaney will be worth a look on Sunday.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoDaniel Suarez will round out the top five, starting in fifth place on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway. As we all know, Suarez got his first career win last race at Sonoma, which most likely puts him into the playoffs. Suarez will try to shock the NASCAR world and go back-to-back after not winning a race until recently. Suarez has stats of one win, three top-fives and five top-10 finishes, which puts him in 10th in the standings. In last season's race at Nashville, he finished in seventh place, which is a good finish, but he will be looking for a win this time. Suarez should be worth a look in fantasy.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoAric Almirola begins Sunday evening from the 11th position for the Ally 400. The No. 10 Ford led one lap at Nashville last year but more importantly finished fourth on the track last season. Almirola gained speed and track position after Stage 2 last year. He went from eighth into the top-five and nearly top-three as other drivers fell by the wayside. If the race comes down to fuel preservation, Almirola may have a leg up in conserving fuel. Either way, a top-ten result is possible at the least. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoThe Ally 400 could be a track Alex Bowman fares well at when it comes to the Sunday race. Bowman starts 12th and has looked good on similar tracks this year. That includes a fifth-place finish at Dover, a ninth-place showing at Kansas and a plus-12 place differential at Gateway. Again, if you are looking for laps led, look elsewhere. Bowman has led just two laps since Las Vegas, where he won in early March. It has been a weird sort of run for the Hendrick Motorsports Racing driver. Other than Darlington (accident), Bowman has been more consistent results-wise trending toward more top-10 finishes (nine in 2022).--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoChase Elliott will be starting in a great position on Sunday as he starts in fourth place at Nashville Superspeedway. In last season's race at Nashville, Elliott finished dead-last, so Sunday will most likely be an improvement. With stats of one win, three top-fives and 10 top-10 finishes, Elliott has the most actual points with 536, but is in fifth place in the standings. If Elliott were to win this race, he would jump to first in the standings with his second win of the year. Once again, he will be a great pick to win the race and should be worth a look.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoOne cannot compare Nashville to just one track, and William Byron knows that better than anyone. This year on tracks somewhat similar, Byron has not fared too well. His 22nd-place finish at Dover and 19th-place finish at Gateway were worrisome. Even his 16th-place finish at Kansas was rough. This just clouds the early run Byron had before all the poor results began. His ninth-place showing at Sonoma was the first top-10 result for the Hendrick Motorsports Racing driver since his win at Martinsville in early April. This week may be more of the same for Byron.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoA.J. Allmendinger qualified 14th at Nashville for the Ally 400 on Sunday evening. That was a bit of a surprise for the Kaulig Racing driver who usually has issues on hybrid tracks. Allmendinger watched his brakes fail at Dover but was not running well. Despite that, he managed a tenth at Gateway which was a surprise. That being said, the high track temps combined with the tri-oval may be too much for the No. 16 Chevy to overcome. His longer speed runs were not the greatest and fell off particularly in the late sectors. Allmendinger may not tail off until after Stage 2. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com