3 years agoKyle Busch, who has the most wins of any active driver at the Richmond track with six wins in his career, will look to build on his success while starting from the third position on Sunday. The Joe Gibbs Racing Team has fared well at this track, winning eight of the last 12 races, and you've got to like Busch's chances here. DraftKings sportsbook has him at the fourth-best odds of winning at plus-950 and minus-110 to stay in the top five. With two drivers in front of him who have historically struggled in this race, look for Busch to try and get to the front and hold the lead for as long as he can.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoNo one is saying Kurt Busch could contend at Richmond, but the elder Busch starts 27th on Sunday. That means he will have a chance to advance through the field. Does the 23XI Racing Toyota have enough at the end to consolidate any advances? That is the unknown with this Next-Gen build. There is simply not enough information to go on. However, some hints exist. Aside from the road-course disaster at Austin, the No. 45 car has finished 19th or better everywhere else. That includes consecutive top-five results at Phoenix and Atlanta. Loop data suggests Busch drives better during final stages. He has four double-digit place-differential jumps from mid-race to finish this season.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoAric Almirola has enjoyed several top finishes recently on the Richmond track. The Stewart-Haas Racing car showed it was pretty fast in qualifying and during practice on Saturday. Almirola starts from the tenth spot on Sunday for the Toyota Owners 400. Combine that with a couple of top-ten results in the past five races and the No. 10 Ford gains some attraction. Almirola has qualified tenth or better in three of the last four stops. With the Next-Gen package for this week, the driver could get back into that form where he went 5th, 6th, and 6th. Even in Atlanta, the Ford was fast and led six laps before car issues derailed Almirola. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoChristopher Bell turned in some nice laps on Saturday in qualifying. As a result, he was able to get in the final ten and start ninth on Sunday at Richmond. Bell, in three starts, has two top-five results on the short 3/4 mile track. It lends many to believe he could buck the Joe Gibbs Racing trend this season. It does seem the JGR cars are losing speed late in races and grip. Last week, Bell was able to stay the course and finish third but the two weeks before, his No. 20 faded into the 20's. Can these Toyotas find a way to bridge their previous success to the Next-Gen car? Now would be a good time. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoRoss Chastain comes into Richmond on a high, winning his first career NASCAR Cup Series race last Sunday in Austin. Chastain had another solid qualifying run on Saturday, coming in eighth with a time of 22.767 seconds. Chastain and the Trackhouse Racing team are here to show that they are ready to compete with the big boys of the Cup Series, and the win last week will lift a huge load off the shoulders of the driver of the No. 1 car. The question will be if his head will be in it after a week of celebration for the team. Chastain has two straight races of good finishes in Richmond, topping off in seventh place in the last race after leading four laps. He does have the track history here to make another run at his second straight win.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoKevin Harvick adds to the list of drivers starting in the top 10 of Sunday's race that have had a lot of past success at the track. Harvick is a three-time winner at the Richmond Raceway. However, he hasn't won since 2013. That doesn't mean he has performed poorly, taking a top-10 position in eight of his last 10 races. However, from a DFS perspective, he has fallen from his starting position in six straight races, so there may be a chance of losing points on place differential. Harvick has also been off of his usual form in 2022, finishing in the top 10 in only two of six races.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoMartin Truex Jr. loves racing at Richmond Raceway, and surprisingly, his sixth starting position for Sunday is his third-worst starting position in the last 10 races at this track. It would be hard not to believe that Truex will make a run for the top spot again on Sunday, as he has won the crown in three of his last five races, finishing second and fifth in the other two races. Truex has stated that he isn't sure what the future will hold after this year, so you should see a motivated driver doing everything he can to possibly win one last time at this favorite track.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoErik Jones put in a solid time of 22.747 seconds in qualifying to take the fifth position in Sunday's race alongside Martin Truex Jr. Jones started both races at Richmond last season in 30th or below in the Richard Petty Motorsports Chevrolet. He performed well at the track as a member of Joe Gibbs Racing, but that is because JGR dominates this track regularly. Jones will find it tough to hold off his competitors at the top and should fall down the standings to his regular position of the middle of the pack in this race.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoChase Briscoe led the way for Stewart-Haas Racing, qualifying in fourth as one of three from the team in the top 10. Briscoe put in a time of 22.658 seconds to finish just ahead of Erik Jones and Martin Truex Jr., getting him the start alongside six-time champion Kyle Busch. The betting odds aren't buying Briscoe as a legitimate contender in the four-spot, putting him at the 12th-best odds at DraftKings sportsbook at plus-1,600. In two career starts at Richmond, Briscoe hasn't managed to finish higher than 16th, but this will be his first time starting towards the front of the pack, so we will see if he can stay close to the top.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoWilliam Byron was the lone Hendrick Motorsports car to qualify in the top 10 on Saturday, coming in at a top speed of just .20 mph less than the pole-sitter Ryan Blaney. The Richmond track hasn't been the greatest for Byron, as he has finished lower than he started in six of seven races. Byron is a name we will be staying away from in DFS, as there will be a lot of drivers in better situations chasing him down to hurt his place-differential statistic.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoRyan Blaney has historically struggled at the Richmond track, getting only one top-10 finish in 11 starts. He will look to turn that around this weekend, finishing on the pole position in qualifying for the second straight week with a speed of 119.782 mph. Blaney also posted the third-fastest lap in practice, so he could be dialed in for a good weekend in the Ford Mustang.--Nate DuffettSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoThere are two schools of thought with Alex Bowman. He is either going to ride a Chevy wave to the front or is going to struggle all day in the middle of the pack. Bowman did win last year in a race that was expected to be dominated by Martin Truex Jr. or even Kyle Larson. That never materialized and Bowman rode away to victory leading the final few laps of the race. He only led ten but again crossed that checkered line in first. It was one of four wins for the Hendrick Motorsports Racing Driver in 2021. He qualified just 28th but could have good place differential potential on Sunday.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoAustin Dillon fell to 25th in qualifying at Richmond on Saturday. That was a bit of a surprise. However, the No. 3 Chevy could have better luck during the race on Sunday. Dillon has found his way into the top-ten in three of the last five races on the 3/4 mile course. He has managed the turns well and the speed. It also helps that Dillon has been mostly incident-free. The Richard Childress Racing car has surprised here before and could again on Sunday with a late run. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoKyle Larson has seen his fortunes reverse over the past few weeks. He was leading the Cup Series points-wise in February but has dipped further away as April begins. Larson historically has been okay at Richmond with two top-ten finishes at the 3/4 mile short-track. The No. 5 driver has not had that contending run while some of the other Hendrick Motorsports Racing teammates have stolen the spotlight. Alex Bowman has won here recently and William Byron qualified second. With Chase Elliott leading in points, Larson may feel the need to do something here. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

3 years agoBrad Keselowski has enjoyed lots of success at Richmond but is now so far behind in points after his 100-point deduction. This reduces him to trying to win races and take way more risks. Keselowski won one of the Fall races on the track and has a couple of top-five results with an average finish of 7.8 since 2019. He has also lead nearly 17% of the laps or a little more than one out of every six. The RFK Racing car has not been the fastest. He qualified just 19th this week but drivers like Keselowski have ways of getting up to the front. The No. 6 will be one to watch late on Sunday.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com