Editor’s Note: Keep tabs on this page for lineup advice following qualifying, including changes you should consider.
For the first time in 2,562 days, the Cup Series will return to the challenging and bumpy Chicagoland Speedway this weekend. Eighteen drivers — nearly half the field entered — have never run a Cup race at the 1.5-mile track. The last two events there in 2018 and 2019 had banger finishes, including Alex Bowman breaking through to Victory Lane for the first time. Kyle Larson was in the mix both times and participated in April’s Goodyear tire test, so look for the No. 5 team to be among the race favorites.
Returning to Fastlane this year is my weekly NASCAR 36 for 36 pick, where you can come play along. It’s a season-long points battle introduced in 2024 where strategy is the primary emphasis. With 36 chartered cars and 36 races on the 2026 schedule, players can choose each car once for the duration of the season.
RELATED: NASCAR Fantasy Live hub | Play 36 for 36
MUST START
Driver: Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Selections remaining: 4
Comment: Larson has notably excelled at venues with old asphalt, and Chicagoland is among the oldest surfaces on the circuit. The two-time Cup champion has finished runner-up in each of the last two trips to Joliet, including an epic last-lap battle with Kyle Busch in 2018. Through six starts, he holds a 6.2 average finish here, the best all-time among drivers with multiple starts.
Driver: Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Selections remaining: 2
Comment: With just a couple of starts remaining for Hamlin, I’m in a pickle this weekend. But whenever the series hits an intermediate track in 2026, he is the guy to beat, finishing fourth or better in the last six races at 1.5-mile tracks. Hamlin also participated in the Goodyear tire test in April.
Driver: Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Selections remaining: 4
Comment: Even though Reddick has never made a Cup start at Chicagoland, this old surface falls right into his wheelhouse. His dirt background has helped him excel at sister tracks Darlington Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway. Reddick has four top-five and five top-10 efforts in the last six races at 1.5-mile tracks, with an average running position of 5.16 at those tracks in 2026.
DRIVERS TO AVOID
Driver: Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Selections remaining: 7
Comment: With finishes of eighth or better in the last six Chicagoland races, this weekend serves as an opportunity for Logano to flip the script on his season after plummeting to 20th in points. But Penske’s intermediate program has left much to be desired in 2026, as Logano has finished outside the top 30 in two of the last three 1.5-mile events.
Driver: Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Selections remaining: 6
Comment: Given how Chicagoland drives, it seems like a good fit for Hocevar. But the No. 77 team has struggled recently, earning a single top 10 in the last 11 visits to 1.5-mile tracks. He could spend time up front, though, leading laps in nine of the last 10 races at the cookie-cutter tracks.
SLEEPERS OF THE WEEK
Driver: Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Selections remaining: 10
Comment: As Bowman stated following a 10th-place finish at Sonoma Raceway, the last few months have been “horrendous” for the No. 48 team. He is the most recent victor at Chicagoland and has 10 top 10s in the last 15 attempts at 1.5-mile circuits.
Driver: Brad Keselowski, No. 6 RFK Racing Ford
Selections remaining: 7
Comment: Placing 15th at Sonoma stopped an abysmal skid for Keselowski of four straight finishes of 34th or worse. He is among the best at Chicagoland, with nine straight top-10 finishes in the heartland, including a pair of triumphs.
FEATURED MATCHUPS
Ty Gibbs vs. Chase Briscoe
Pick: Briscoe
Comment: Low-grip race tracks favor drivers with a dirt-racing background, and while Gibbs has been introduced to dirt racing in the last few years, Briscoe is embedded in it. Expect a big weekend from the No. 19 bunch.
Kyle Larson vs. William Byron
Pick: Larson
Comment: This colossal matchup is a tough pick, but Larson gets the nod. He’s been a walking highlight reel at Chicagoland but is still searching for Victory Lane. Byron shouldn’t be overlooked, though, with six top 10s in the last seven races at 1.5-mile tracks and a series-best 9.4 average finish at them in the Next Gen car.
Todd Gilliland vs. Carson Hocevar
Pick: Hocevar
Comment: While Hocevar hasn’t finished great at intermediate tracks, he is always fast at them. There is plenty of upside, and it’s a favorable matchup with Gilliland having yet to score a top-10 at a 1.5-mile track.
Alex Bowman vs. Austin Cindric
Pick: Bowman
Comment: Entering the In-Season Challenge as the final seed, Bowman is this year’s Cinderella story, trying to pull off a Saint Peter’s-like run in this bracket-style format. He should have the clear advantage this weekend, with Cindric having only six top-15 finishes in the last 24 attempts at 1.5-mile races.
MY LINEUP
Starting five: Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, Chase Elliott, Chase Briscoe.
Garage pick: Brad Keselowski.
36 FOR 36
Pick: Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Comment: We’re swinging for the fences with this pick, but Chicagoland presents a grand opportunity for Larson to snap a 42-race winless drought. He has consecutive runner-up finishes at Chicagoland and has been in the hunt here since he was a rookie in 2014. For a driver who was recently the king of intermediates, Chicagoland is statistically his best with an average finish of 6.2.