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All races are not created equal. Ever since NASCAR held races on this track type – and that harkens back to the beginning of time – road courses have marched to their own beat. The addition of stage racing altered the formula, but only slightly in that now teams know when predetermined cautions wave. For many drivers, instead of using this information to earn stage points, they take the opportunity to count back from the end and put themselves in a position to win – because, after all is said and done, winning is still what matters most.
When NASCAR implemented stage racing in 2017, they changed how drivers and teams approached each weekend. With race points on the line and a playoff bonus point for winning stages, drivers must decide if it is worth racing hard to win the stage, or if they want to employ some other strategy.
The free-to-play NASCAR Pick ‘Em game is simple to play, but with equally matched drivers in each stage, it’s not always easy to determine who will lead their group. Each week, players pick one of four drivers to finish best in Stage 1, Stage 2, and when the checkers wave.
Participants can compete for weekly cash prizes, with a $10,000 jackpot available for any participants who earn a perfect score. There will also be at least $1,000 awarded each week in guaranteed cash and prizes, even if there is no player with a perfect score.
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Best Finish, Stage 1
Matchup: Chase Briscoe, William Byron, Denny Hamlin, Daniel Suarez
Keys: The endgame may come in the final stage, but the chess match begins when the first pawn rolls off pit road. Some drivers and teams begin short pitting from the very first segment to get the all-important track position at the end. Others roll the dice for stage wins and the bonus point that goes with it. Three of this foursome have wins that will probably lock them into the playoffs and want that extra point.
Edge: Hamlin. He has four stage wins on road courses in the past three years and the most points of this group. One of Hamlin’s stage wins came at Sonoma in 2019 in the second segment; he was second in Stage 1 that afternoon.
Best Finish, Stage 2
Matchup: Ryan Blaney, Kyle Busch, Austin Cindric, Kyle Larson
Keys: Cindric is the wild card in this group. He is a strong road racer and needs every advantage he can get when the playoffs begin. One or two bonus points for winning a stage would be icing on the cake, but he has not yet done that in his short career. The other three have segment wins in the past three years.
Edge: Larson. He threw strategy out of the window last year and simply dominated the Save Mart 350k by winning both stages. Larson will have stiff competition from his teammate Chase Elliott, but since he is not listed in this matchup, the No. 5 is a relatively safe pick.
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Best Finish, Final Stage
Matchup: AJ Allmendinger, Ross Chastain, Chase Elliott, Martin Truex Jr.
Keys: These four drivers all have road course wins in the senior series and three of them won in the past two seasons. Allmendinger’s win on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course last year proved anything can happen on this track type and he was in contention for another at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) this spring before he was knocked out of the way by Chastain.
Edge: Elliott. In the end, Elliott is the driver that gets the job done on road courses most often, so if you want to play this by the numbers, he’s your choice. If you want a motivated dark horse, Truex’s last win on this track type came at Sonoma in 2019 – his second consecutive victory there.
Top-three, Race Results
We have no reason to rethink our decision to make Elliott the favorite to win, but the remainder of the field is a little less certain given the strategies that come into play. For that reason, we will take Larson and Hamlin as two of strongest road course racers in the past two seasons and give a hat tip to Busch.
Segment Points and Wins, 2022
Driver | Segment | Segment | Segments |
136 | 3 | 21 | |
120 | 3 | 18 | |
120 | 3 | 17 | |
116 | 4 | 19 | |
112 | 1 | 21 | |
Martin Truex, Jr. | 106 | 3 | 16 |
106 | 1 | 19 | |
91 | 1 | 15 | |
88 | 16 | ||
75 | 2 | 13 | |
62 | 2 | 12 | |
59 | 1 | 9 | |
58 | 12 | ||
57 | 1 | 11 | |
52 | 2 | 8 | |
43 | 9 | ||
39 | 9 | ||
37 | 1 | 10 | |
35 | 2 | 7 | |
35 | 1 | 9 | |
32 | 9 | ||
27 | 7 | ||
26 | 6 | ||
26 | 5 | ||
12 | 4 | ||
9 | 3 | ||
9 | 2 | ||
9 | 1 | ||
5 | 1 | ||
3 | 1 |
Segment Points and Wins, combined road courses
Driver | Segment | Segment | Segments |
209 | 2 | 17 | |
125 | 6 | 20 | |
107 | 3 | 16 | |
90 | 4 | 12 | |
88 | 2 | 15 | |
Martin Truex, Jr. | 76 | 1 | 13 |
64 | 2 | 13 | |
61 | 1 | 9 | |
59 | 3 | 8 | |
53 |
| 11 | |
45 |
| 10 | |
45 |
| 10 | |
44 |
| 8 | |
39 |
| 5 | |
38 |
| 6 | |
33 |
| 7 | |
32 |
| 6 | |
27 |
| 5 | |
25 |
| 5 | |
24 |
| 5 | |
23 |
| 4 | |
23 |
| 4 | |
22 |
| 5 | |
21 |
| 7 | |
17 |
| 5 | |
17 |
| 4 | |
16 |
| 4 | |
15 |
| 4 | |
14 | 1 | 3 | |
11 |
| 3 | |
10 | 1 | 1 | |
10 |
| 2 | |
7 |
| 4 | |
6 |
| 2 | |
6 |
| 1 | |
5 |
| 2 | |
5 |
| 1 | |
4 |
| 2 | |
3 |
| 1 |
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