NASCAR.com’s 36 for 36 picks for Las Vegas fall race

NASCAR.com’s 36 for 36 continues at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  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:

1. Steve Luvender: 826
2. Dustin Albino: -102
3. r/NASCAR Community: -130
4. Cameron Richardson: -140

Race 33 of 36: Las Vegas

It was a story of feast or famine last week at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval for our pickers. A disappointing six-point day for Ty Gibbs after a mechanical issue left the NASCAR subreddit earning just six points, while Dustin Albino’s pick of Justin Haley netted 11 points. On the other side of the coin, AJ Allmendinger netted 44 points for Steve Luvender, extending his points lead, while Cameron Richardson’s big 48-point day from Chase Elliott helped heat up the battle for third place.  Just four races remain in 2024, starting with Sunday’s Round of 8 opener from Las Vegas Motor Speedway. With available options scarce, how will our pickers strategize the rest of their seasons?

Jayski’s Dustin Albino: No. 45, Tyler Reddick

Dustin’s pick last week: No. 7, Justin Haley (11 points) Total season points: 724 (second place) Dustin: The last two weeks have been brutal. For the first time all season, I’m triple-digit points off the lead with four races remaining. Not ideal. But with nothing to lose, I might as well throw my own "Hail Melon" and play a different strategy. If I wanted to stay the course, I’d pick Kyle Larson this weekend, who has back-to-back victories in Sin City. But he’s going to be the popular pick, so I’ll take Tyler Reddick. The No. 45 Toyota was best in class behind the No. 5 car in the spring race at Vegas and was chasing down Larson in the waning laps. Reddick has five top-10 finishes in the last six trips to Las Vegas and desperately needs to find his playoff stride soon.

NASCAR.com’s Steve Luvender: No. 5, Kyle Larson

Steve’s pick last week: No. 16, AJ Allmendinger (44 points) Total season points: 826 (first place) Steve: It’s time. After waiting until Race 33, I’m finally going with the No. 5. Kyle Larson won the last two Las Vegas races and led 27 or more laps in six of his seven races at the track when driving for Hendrick Motorsports. Coming off his sixth win of the season last week at the Charlotte Roval, he has momentum on his side, too. Another consideration: At least one driver from the Round of 8 will advance to the Championship 4 on points, regardless of who wins the next three races. I suspect the No. 5 team and others will keep this in mind to help rack up stage markers.

NASCAR.com’s Cameron Richardson: No. 20, Christopher Bell

Cameron’s pick last week: No. 9, Chase Elliott (48 points) Total season points: 686 (fourth place) Cameron: We’re alive! (For second place, that is.) Going to go with the late-season juggernaut that is Christopher Bell. He’s won one race in the semifinal round in both 2022 and 2023 to make the Championship 4 the last two seasons and scored top 10s in all three Round of 8 events last year. Bell’s had love-hate moments with Vegas so far in his career but came up just short of Kyle Larson in a thrilling finish in the Vegas playoff race in 2023.

r/NASCAR Community: No. 19, Martin Truex Jr.

r/NASCAR’s pick last week: No. 54, Ty Gibbs (6 points) Total season points: 696 (third place) It’s back-to-back Joe Gibbs Racing picks for the NASCAR subreddit. This time, the community voted to use Martin Truex Jr., who’s making his final start at Las Vegas as a full-time driver.  Here’s what Redditors had to say this week in the voting thread:  u/FridgusDomin8or: "Truex I think has to be our pick this week even though this team has less than no momentum currently. Vegas has been Truex's best track in the Next Gen era, he hasn't finished worse than 9th here over the last 5 races here I believe. I think we have to save Reddick for Homestead, use Preece at Martinsville, and then Blaney at Phoenix (and hope he doesn't make the Championship 4 since the final 4 drivers do not earn stage points)" u/Joey_Logano (no relation): "I’d say Truex is the pick here, Reddick at Homestead, my beloved Preece at Martinsville and Blaney at Phoenix. Truex has won at Las Vegas before and is simply are best remaining pick left this late in the season." u/Extreme-Bite-9123: "Truex here for sure. Firstly because we have everyone else being used somewhere, but also because this is his statistical best track" u/Dont_hate_the_8: "Yes. I need say no more." 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!