Five to Watch: 2019 Pocono 400

LONG POND, Pa. -- The second half of NASCAR's regular season kicks off with Sunday's Pocono 400 (2 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). The "Tricky Triangle" is one of the most unique tracks on the circuit. The three distinctive turns modeled after Trenton Speedway (Turn 1), Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Turn 2 also known as the "Tunnel Turn") and the Milwaukee Mile (Turn 3) are instant reminders that this is far from your average track. With that in mind, we look at five key story lines ahead of Sunday's Pocono 400.

Happy's still hunting: 
Pocono stands as one of three active tracks where Kevin Harvick has not yet won in the Cup ranks -- Kentucky and the Charlotte Roval. In recent years, the 2014 champion has done everything but win at the 2.5-mile track with four runner-up finishes and three fourth-place results in his past nine races at Pocono. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver is also still searching for his first 2019 win. There is one trend that stands in Harvick's favor: Four of the past six Pocono winners each scored their first wins of the season at the Pennsylvania track.

Crazy about restarts
: Restarts at Pocono are going to be an adventure. The longest front straightaway in motorsports -- 3,740 feet -- is sure to be inviting for some four- and perhaps five-wide action. "Typically, here you get five-wide already," defending race winner Martin Truex Jr. said. "The more cars you have side-by-side in front of you, the bigger run you get. We'll have to wait and see how many we can fit on the front stretch because I feel like it's going to be a lot. We'll see."

Pocono parity: In recent years, Victory Lane parity has been as much a trademark at Pocono as the track's "What Turn 4?" slogan. Dating back to the 2015 August race here, six different drivers have won the last seven Pocono races with the lone repeat in that stretch being Kyle Busch. The abundance of different winners has ranged from Cup champions to drivers scoring their first Cup victories. Could that set the stage for a rising talent like pole sitter William Byron to park it in Victory Lane for the first time at this level? History suggests it's certainly a possibility.

Blaney gets introspective
: Since the Bristol race, Ryan Blaney has not finished better than 13th in the past five races. Promising runs have been derailed by an assortment of issues, leaving the Team Penske driver with little to show for the bulk of a day's work. "We've got to fix some issues and try to clean up some things," Blaney said. "The wins will come if you clean up that side of it. The speed is there and the team potential is there." The driver said he has done some searching inward and outward on how to be "better behind the wheel and be a better leader." The young star won this race in 2017 for his first Cup win.

Missing the shift: 
A new gear rule and minimal off-throttle time has basically eliminated shifting at Pocono. In past years, shifting was an absolute must and an art form for drivers to succeed at the track. Chase Elliott, who holds the top average running position among Sunday's field (8.790), is one that admittedly will miss it. "I enjoyed doing it," Elliott said. "I wouldn't be surprised to see it again down the road, but I don't think it's going to change the way the race looks or change the race. I feel like we'd all kind of gotten used to it, but it was just an addition I think that was fun for the drivers."