2 years agoRyan Blaney won the race last year at Michigan. The Ford driver tested rather well and then proceeded to qualify 24th for Sunday's race even behind Justin Haley. Yes, he was not the only one but it was a surprise. Blaney has not won in 2022 yet and the pressure does seem to be getting to him. The No.12 from Team Penske has run well the past several years aside from pit issues and mechanicals. In his past three appearances, Blaney has finished inside the top ten in both stages. Again, Blaney has finished outside the top ten in four of his past five races. That is troubling.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoCan Ross Chastain climb from 22nd on Sunday? That is the question. Michigan is different compared to other tracks for the TrackHouse Racing driver. There is quite a bit of unknown but for two previous teams, Chastain has never finished higher than 26th in four appearances. That likely will change on Sunday. How high does the No. 1 go though? That remains unknown. With the strength of Ford and especially Toyota this week, can Chastain muscle his way up the field? Anything is possible and having Daniel Suarez as a teammate could help. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoWilliam Byron charged up the field last year at Michigan. He started 18th and wound up second when all was said and done. The Hendrick Motorsports Racing driver even led 18 laps and finished in the top-nine during both stages. His car was fast. This year looks familiar as Byron qualified only in 20th. Byron is perennially around the top ten on intermediate tracks (11.3 average finish). The two near top tens in New Hampshire and Pocono are possible signs the No. 24 is beginning to snap out of his funk which has lasted since his Martinsville triumph in early April.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoCole Custer starts 17th on Sunday at Michigan and though he has shown flashes of speed, Custer may struggle again. In three races, the Ford driver has finished no higher than 23rd. To be fair, his qualifying has left a bit to be desired. Even his fourth effort produced another start outside the top-15. He did show some positive place differential the past two outings but that was more attrition based advancement than anything else (+4 and +9 in 2020 and 2021). Custer could at least hold on to a top-20 spot if he has any late speed at the end. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoKevin Harvick and his Stewart-Haas Racing Ford should at least contend at Michigan. Winning is another completely different question as issues have just plagued the No. 4 Ford all season. He is around the top ten in points despite of pit strategy and all sorts of maladies. At Michigan, Harvick has won three of the past five races. He has four top ten results and here is the concern. Last year, he had several issues dropping from 8th to 14th. Harvick was running in the top ten for good portions of the race though. Hence, he could move up from his 16th qualifying position.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoDaniel Suarez has shown an ability to race well at Michigan International Speedway. He has two top five results mixed in his past five races there. However, those came when Suarez was still racing for Stewart-Haas Racing. How will TrackHouse Racing fare at the 2.0-mile track on Sunday? That is a great question. Consider that Ross Chastain qualified outside the top-20, there are more questions than answers here. Suarez finished 22nd last year but qualified 15th this year. He has a chance to inch his way into the top ten. In five of his last si races at Michigan, Suarez has shown positive place differential (+8 last year). --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoHistory says no but Michael McDowell, even with sanctions, still finished in the top ten last week at the Brickyard. That eighth was more surprising than any other result this season. Can he do it one more time at Michigan? McDowell faces an extremely uphill battle to get in the playoffs. He needs a win and a lot of points. However, the Front Row Motorsports driver could at least move up into the top ten again. Ford has been dominant and maybe the late speed from last year's race is still there at the end here. Testing indicated that for McDowell so stay tuned. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoOther than one DNF, Chase Elliott and his #9 car have finished in the top ten the past four times at Michigan International Speedway. That average finish of 10.6 ranks a respectable seventh among all active drivers. The Hendrick Motorsports Racing driver has some built in DFS upside since he qualified 13th. With the Next-Gen testing, is this the year the door opens for someone other than Ford? Consider the last seven or eight winners and consider qualifying this year where six Toyota's are in the top 11. Maybe there is room for a Chevy and Elliott is getting better on banked tracks like MIS.--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoTy Gibbs was the last Toyota to qualify on Saturday but still placed 11th among all cars and was easily one of the five or six fastest in terms of lap time. Because of NASCAR's qualifying matrix, it is more how one advances in the groups. That being said, Gibbs has some interesting experience driving in the Xfinity Series. Could the 23XI Racing driver nab his first top ten this week? It is possible. Tape or no tape, the No. 45 car was fast in testing and practice. Gibbs just has to control it well. --Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com

2 years agoKyle Busch is coming off a disqualification and will start in 10th place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. Last week at Pocono looked like the week where Busch broke out of his slump with a second-place finish. However, in the post-race inspection, Busch and teammate Denny Hamlin were disqualified and they finished 35th and 36th, respectively, in the race. Busch will look to bounce back, and he has a shot while starting inside the top 10. With stats of one win, six top-fives and 11 top-10 finishes this year, he is in eighth place in the standings. Busch should be worth a look as he looks for redemption.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoTodd Gilliland, shockingly, will be starting inside the top 10 in ninth place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. Gilliland has not done much this season, so this is a pleasant surprise that he did this well in qualifying. Gilliland has stats this season of zero wins, zero top-fives and zero top-10 finishes, which shows how little he's done this year. However, he is only 22 years old, so there is still some promise for Gilliland's career. In his lone truck-series start, he did finish in first place. It shows that Gilliland is a good driver. It's just very early in his Cup Series career. Gilliland should not be worth a look in fantasy.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoChase Elliott will be looking to get his fifth win of the season while starting in eighth place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. Technically, Elliott did win last week, but he came across the line third, so he will be looking for back-to-back wins. However, he has a fantastic streak going on in the last five weeks; his worst finish was a second-place showing and he has had three wins and two-second place finishes, showing just how good he's been in 2022. Elliott has stats of four wins, eight top-fives and 15 top-10 finishes, which puts him in the points lead. Elliott is absolutely worth a look in fantasy.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoMichael McDowell will be starting inside the top 10 in seventh place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. McDowell has been in the news lately, as he has been stripped of 100 points, which drops him a lot in the standings. However, McDowell needed to win to get into the playoffs anyway, so it doesn't affect him that much. McDowell has stats of zero wins, one top-five and eight top-10 finishes this year, which puts him in 26th in the standings. However, this race is a road course for McDowell, and he could shake up the NASCAR playoff picture with a win. McDowell is a very risky play in fantasy.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoRyan Blaney will be starting inside the top 10 in sixth place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. Blaney is one of the drivers with zero wins this year, but he is still holding onto a playoff spot. With only five races left until the playoffs, it's more and more likely that he will make the playoffs. If Blaney were to win on Sunday, he would clinch a playoff spot and not need to worry about getting bounced out of the playoffs. Blaney has zero wins, seven top-fives and 10 top-10 finishes this year, putting him in 15th place. Blaney should be worth a look in fantasy, as he has something to prove.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR

2 years agoJoey Logano will be starting in fifth place at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday. Logano will be looking for his third win of the season as he looks to show he can contend for his second career championship. However, in his last three races, he has not finished inside the top 20. But Logano has a perfect chance to snap that streak on Sunday. Logano has stats of two wins, five top-fives and eight top-10 finishes this year, which puts him in third place in the standings. If Logano were to pull off a win, it would show the world that he is gunning for that championship. Logano should be worth a look.--Maison MaerzSource: NASCAR