NASCAR.com’s 36 for 36 continues at Richmond Raceway.
With 36 races and 36 full-time Charter cars, our players select one car per race, but there’s a simple twist: once they’ve made the pick, they can’t choose that car again for the rest of the 36-race season. Yes, that means every car will be selected exactly once … a survivor pool, by another name.
Follow along weekly as our panel of pickers – Dustin Albino from Jayski, along with Steve Luvender and Cameron Richardson from NASCAR.com – embarks on a season-long journey to think like strategists and prove their picking prowess.
We’ll also feature a fourth “community” 36 for 36 pick each week, as decided by fan vote on the r/NASCAR subreddit. Can the collective vote topple our trio of full-timers?
Current Standings:
- Steve Luvender: 554
- Dustin Albino: -63
- r/NASCAR Community: -72
- Cameron Richardson: -101
Race 23 of 36: Richmond
Before the Olympic break, Kyle Larson took top honors in Indianapolis, earning the win in the Brickyard 400. As far as the 36 for 36 picking panel is concerned, it was a mixed bag. Cameron Richardson’s dreadful summer luck continued when his William Byron pick crashed out early, earning just eight points. Dustin Albino went with Brad Keselowski, who finished 21st, while the r/NASCAR community pick of Zane Smith earned 20 points from the No. 71’s 17th-place finish. Steve Luvender extended his points lead by picking Chase Elliott, whose 10th-place effort racked up 36 additional points.
It’s now officially the run-up to the playoffs – just four races remain – and our pickers’ remaining options are dwindling. And now, with an option tire available at Richmond, there’s an entirely new layer of unpredictability.
Dustin’s pick last week: No. 6, Brad Keselowski (16 points)
Total season points: 491 (second place)
Dustin: That was a needed two-week break here. Just about anything that could go wrong did go wrong for my picks, spanning the previous two months. Add Brad Keselowski running out of fuel while leading the Brickyard 400 to the laundry list. I’m going with a short-track stud at Richmond, though. Berry has transitioned nicely to the Cup Series on short(er) tracks, leading 25 laps at Bristol and finishing on the podium at New Hampshire. He made a spirited early charge through the field in March at the 0.75-mile track, dropping to 11th at the checkered flag. It’s an incredibly small sample size, but Berry has an average finish of 6.5 in two Richmond starts, including a runner-up finish while driving in place of Chase Elliott last year.
NASCAR.com’s Steve Luvender: No. 4, Josh Berry
Steve’s pick last week: No. 9, Chase Elliott (36 points)
Total season points: 554 (first place)
Steve: I vowed earlier in the season to save rookie Josh Berry for the second half of the season when things would have time to click for the No. 4 team, and I believe Richmond is the right time. Statistically, Richmond is Berry’s best track in terms of average finish, where he’s run more than one race, and he’s also quite the short-track racer. Combine this with the added strategy element of option tires, and I think we’ve got a recipe for a good evening … a Berry good one. (Sorry, I had to.)
NASCAR.com’s Cameron Richardson: No. 10, Noah Gragson
Cameron’s pick last week: No. 24, William Byron (8 points)
Total season points: 453 (fourth place)
Cameron: Only two short tracks remain after Richmond, so I’m all in on going 4/4 with Stewart-Haas picks on tracks a mile or smaller. Briscoe (Phoenix), Berry (Richmond spring) and Preece (Martinsville) all delivered strong points days in their respective races, and I’m putting all my chips into Gragson this Sunday night. Gragson was 12th in the spring under the lights at the Virginia short track, and while his recent outings and shorter tracks like Iowa (16th) and New Hampshire (27th) didn’t pan out well, SHR seems to put together a fast setup whenever the organization visits Richmond.
r/NASCAR Community: No. 22, Joey Logano
r/NASCAR’s pick last week: No. 71, Zane Smith (20 points)
Total season points: 482 (third place)
Joey Logano got the nod from Reddit’s r/NASCAR community this week. From the voting thread:
u/Quasar_24: “I can get on the Joey bandwagon. The 22 team is really good at recognizing low tire falloff and abusing it for insane track position.”
u/Extreme-Bite-9123: “They are also going to have the same tires they had at Wilkesboro here, the track where Joey led all but one lap, and that one lap is a technicality.”
Check back next week to see how our pickers fared as the season-long 36 for 36 journey continues.
And, if you’ve got a competitive itch beyond meticulously managing your Fantasy Live lineup each week, feel free to save or print your own 36 for 36 sheet and see if you can beat our pickers and the Reddit community!