Five to Watch: Toyota/Save Mart 350

Round and round and round we go:
Sonoma will deploy the circuit's historic, 12-turn, 2.52-mile layout this weekend, seeing the return of the "carousel," the signature sweeping, downhill left-hand corner, implemented for the first time since 1998. Only Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch had driven this layout prior to this weekend -- both were two decades ago and not in Cup cars -- and even they have seemed to struggle with it so far. Busch ran into a few problems in final practice with that spot on the track, missing it entirely once and later spinning. It should add an extra layer of entertainment on Sunday, potentially offering up an extra passing zone as drivers adjust to a different rhythm than they're used to here.

Third time's a charm?
The discrepancy between Kyle Larson's average starting position (2.5 once he takes the green flag Sunday) and average finish at Sonoma (19.0 through five races) is almost comical. After notching his third straight Busch Pole Award for the race in California's wine country, the Chip Ganassi Racing driver is hoping he can finally find a way to translate a pole into a win. "I guess the trend with my three poles is winning a pole and then struggling in the race. Hopefully, we'll have something different for tomorrow. I feel good." The No. 42 has been fast all weekend, also topping final practice on Friday.

Not much to be happy about:
With the scenic views, world-class wine tasting and generally relaxed weekend in the Golden State, it's easy for everyone to be in a good mood here -- but it's been a frustrating few days for Kevin Harvick. Looked at as a favorite to win coming into the weekend, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver has sputtered through the first three bouts of on-track activity. The 2017 Sonoma winner was 23rd in opening practice, 22nd in final practice and will start 23rd after failing to make it to the second round of qualifying. Things could turn around, but Sunday is lining up as another mark in a semi-frustrating, somehow-winless season for the 2014 champ.

Don't sleep on ...:
In the past, we’ve seen road course specialists come in for races like these -- and become sleepers for the win, despite not racing in the series full-time. That has become less and less common, but what if these road course sleepers now lie within the roster of regulars? The nature of Sonoma opens the field up a bit, and it's not out of the realm of possibility to see the likes of William Byron, Daniel Suarez, Chris Buescher and Michael McDowell in the conversation for the win. All four are starting within the top 13 and have shown speed -- and competence -- this weekend.

Setting the stage:
Another unique aspect that Sonoma brings to the table -- certain drivers/crew chiefs may elect to get a little jangly with their stage points strategy. In the past, we've seen some elect to pit before stage finishes -- in other words, forgoing stage points -- to set themselves up better for the race win. This will likely happen again this weekend, opening the door to certain drivers chasing stage points (hello, William Byron, starting P2) and a shake-up to stage results. Needless to say, the provisional playoff standings Monday morning have a good shot at looking quite a bit different depending on how things play out, and it'll be fascinating to see how it all unfolds.