Editor’s Note: Keep tabs on this page for lineup advice following qualifying, including changes you should consider.
Fantasy Update: Drivers had their hands full during practice and qualifying for the Food City 500, leading to a jumbled starting grid at Bristol Motor Speedway. Ryan Blaney appeared to have the best car over the long haul, topping the scoring pylon on 15-, 20-, 25- and 30-lap averages. I’ve only got six uses remaining with both Blaney and Denny Hamlin over the course of the regular season, and am leaning in the direction of the No. 12 car banking more points on Sunday. The only other adjustment is dropping Chase Elliott, who ranked 28th on 10-lap averages in practice, with Carson Hocevar.
My lineup: Ryan Blaney, Kyle Larson, Ty Gibbs, Chase Briscoe, Christopher Bell.
Garage: Carson Hocevar.
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With a pair of unforgettable, extreme tire-wear races over the last two seasons, Goodyear will debut a new tire compound this Sunday at Bristol Motor Speedway (3 p.m. ET, FS1, HBO Max, PRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). It’s important to note because some of the heavy favorites have struggled under those conditions. This weekend could be a return to normalcy, where the drivers who rip it around the “World Fastest Half-Mile” become mainstays at the front once more.
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: 8
Comment: Since joining Hendrick, Larson has been virtually untouchable at Bristol. Before a wreck there in the fall, he had six consecutive top-five finishes to start his tenure with Hendrick, including a trio of victories. In the last two non-tire-wear races, he led 873 of 1,000 laps.
Driver: Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Selections remaining: 6
Comment: Hamlin has been the only driver who has challenged Larson consistently at Bristol over the last several seasons. He is a four-time winner here, including two of the last five races. The No. 11 team has placed inside the top 10 in six of the last seven trips at “The Last Great Colosseum.”
Driver: Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Selections remaining: 7
Comment: Bell enters this weekend as the most recent Bristol winner. In nine career Cup starts there, he has a quartet of top fives, with a grand total of seven top 10s. He is the only driver to crack the top 10 in all six Next Gen events at the Tennessee short track.
DRIVERS TO AVOID
Driver: Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Selections remaining: 8
Comment: Admittedly, Reddick’s most glaring flaw since moving to the Cup Series has been short tracks. Bristol fits that bill, with a lone top 10 in nine tries and an average finish of 19.4. In five Bristol starts with 23XI Racing, he hasn’t placed better than 15th.
Driver: Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Selections remaining: 7
Comment: Knowing full well how successful Penske has been at short tracks recently, this could look like a boneheaded decision in retrospect. After all, Logano rounded out the top five at Bristol last fall and has a pair of wins on his resume. However, that fifth-place finish is Logano’s lone bright spot in six Next Gen races here as the No. 22 car has five finishes of 22nd or worse during that span.
SLEEPERS OF THE WEEK
Driver: Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Selections remaining: 10
Comment: Gibbs is on a career heater entering Bristol, earning five straight top-10 finishes, matching the longest streak of his career. Bristol has been his best track since jumping to Cup, earning a pair of top-five finishes and four top-10 finishes in six starts. The 440 laps that he’s paced the field for are his most of any track, netting a 12.8 average finish.
Driver: Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Selections remaining: 9
Comment: Ever since Hocevar first turned laps in a Cup car at Bristol with Legacy Motor Club in 2023, he’s run toward the front. He has three finishes of 11th or better in five starts, including a personal best of seventh in the most recent outing.
FEATURED MATCHUPS
Chase Elliott vs. Brad Keselowski
Pick: Elliott
Comment: While Elliott has never hoisted one of the coveted Bristol swords in Victory Lane, he has five top-five and nine top-10 finishes in 17 starts, leading 444 laps. Keselowski has just two more top 10s than Elliott (11) in 12 additional starts (29). Elliott also brings added confidence, having won the most recent short-track race at Martinsville Speedway.
Denny Hamlin vs. Kyle Larson
Pick: Larson
Comment: This heavyweight battle could go either direction, but the recent numbers back Larson. Both drivers have won two races in the Next Gen car at Bristol, but Larson spends a significant amount of time at the front, having led 1,762 laps in only 19 career starts.
Ty Gibbs vs. Chase Briscoe
Pick: Gibbs
Comment: Briscoe enters this weekend on a streak of three consecutive top 10s at Bristol, finishing fourth in this event last spring. His 12.6 average finish here is a personal best among all circuits on the schedule. But Gibbs is the pick because of his consistent success on the track and the No. 19 team’s tendency to beat itself through the opening two months of the 2026 campaign.
Carson Hocevar vs. Josh Berry
Pick: Hocevar
Comment: Berry had an impressive showing at Martinsville, leaping seven spots in the driver standings. And while he’s a short-track enthusiast, his Bristol numbers aren’t staggering, with a best finish of 12th. Hocevar tends to stay out of trouble at Bristol, and the raw speed of the No. 77 car is impressive.
MY LINEUP
Starting five: Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, Ty Gibbs, Chase Elliott.
Garage pick: Chase Briscoe.
36 FOR 36
Pick: Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
Comment: At this point, it seems like a matter of time before Gibbs scores that elusive first Cup victory, and it’s entirely possible Bristol is where he gets it accomplished. He enters his best venue with momentum thanks to five consecutive finishes of sixth or better, jumping to sixth in the standings. In September, Gibbs led a career-high 201 laps and has hit the century mark in three of his six Bristol attempts.