NASCAR.com’s 36 for 36 concludes at Phoenix 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:
1. Steve Luvender: 950
2. r/NASCAR Community: -118
3. Cameron Richardson: -163
4. Dustin Albino: -171
Race 36 of 36: Phoenix
Our pickers had a 50/50 shot between their two remaining picks last week at Martinsville. Dustin Albino chose Bubba Wallace, who earned 19 points. The NASCAR subreddit chose Ryan Preece, good enough for a 31-point day. Denny Hamlin earned 40 points for Steve Luvender, while Cameron Richardson’s selection of Kyle Larson led the day with 46 points after the No. 5 finished third Sunday.
All season, our pickers carefully chose their drivers, and now we’re down to the final race. That means just one car — no choice, really — remains on each board. Steve Luvender’s 118-point lead can’t be toppled, but the battle for second place is still in play. Which drivers did our panelists save for last?
Jayski’s Dustin Albino: No. 9, Chase Elliott
Dustin’s pick last week: No. 23, Bubba Wallace (19 points)
Total season points: 779 (fourth place, -1 since last week)
Dustin: My second half downward spiral continued at Martinsville with Wallace. The good news for this weekend: the maximum number of points my opponents can score is 40, given they all saved Blaney for the championship race. The potential bad news: eight times in the last two years has a driver scored more points than the champion, so it’s possible but no guarantee. Here’s to Elliott getting me out of the cellar at Phoenix. Hendrick Motorsports struggled at Phoenix in the spring, with its best entry finishing 14th. Elliott has top 10s in half of his 16 starts at the 1-mile track and it’s the site of the biggest moment in his racing career in 2020.
NASCAR.com’s Steve Luvender: No. 12, Ryan Blaney
Steve’s pick last week: No. 11, Denny Hamlin (40 points)
Total season points: 950 (first place)
Steve: I saved the best for last, though I was tempted to employ YRB last week at Martinsville. Ryan Blaney’s success at Phoenix is well-documented; he’s finished no worse than fifth in the last six trips there. The only thing I’ll miss out on with my pick is stage points, which Championship 4 contenders don’t earn in the championship race. No matter, though, because none of my competitors can catch me in the standings. For now, I’ll await the glitzy awards ceremony and giant novelty check afforded to the 36 for 36 champion! (Wait, we don’t get our own fantasy-game-players’ banquet?!)
NASCAR.com’s Cameron Richardson: No. 12, Ryan Blaney
Cameron’s pick last week: No. 5, Kyle Larson (46 points)
Total season points: 787 (third place, +1 from last week)
Cameron: It all comes down to this! Well, Steve’s already won the survivor pool, but Blaney was always the plan for the Champ 4 race regardless of if he was going for title No. 2 or not. The defending champ is an absolute machine at the 1-mile desert oval. He has top 10s in the last eight Phoenix outings, including finishes of fifth or better in the last six. Really enjoyed participating in 36 of 36 all year long and hope we can do something similar to this in 2025. Thanks for following along!
r/NASCAR Community: No. 12, Ryan Blaney
r/NASCAR’s pick last week: No. 41, Ryan Preece (31 points)
Total season points: 832 (second place)
Well, there’s not much to be said in this week’s voting thread on the NASCAR subreddit with only one option left: Ryan Blaney.
u/Extreme-Bite-9123: “Victory is impossible, now all we can do is hold second”
u/Joey_Logano: “Ryan Blaney is the best choice because Ryan Blaney is Ryan Blaney.”
u/iiRyanPreece: “Would Ryan Blaney be Ryan Blaney if Ryan Blaney was Ryan Blaney?”
Thanks to all the Redditors who played along this season!
Check back next week to see how our pickers fared as the season-long 36 for 36 journey wraps up.
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!