Racing Insights: Who will gain summer momentum at Pocono?

With 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick dominating the early part of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season, his car owner, Joe Gibbs Racing driver, Denny Hamlin, is trending upward as the summer stretch heats up and looks to put the No. 11 Toyota atop the standings in the coming weeks.

After taking his 51st career pole Saturday afternoon and seeking a third straight Cup Series win for the first time in his career, other drivers will seek Hamlin-like momentum in Sunday’s Great American Getaway 400 presented by VISITPA at Pocono Raceway (1 p.m. ET, Prime Video, HBO Max, MRN Radio, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).

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Who can navigate the “Tricky Triangle” and put their team in the best position to go on a summer heater? Here’s a look at other drivers to keep an eye on and the full projected results for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race.

DRIVERS TO WATCH:

CHRIS BUESCHER: In 16 career Cup Series starts at Pocono, Buescher has two top fives, with one of those coming last year in a fourth-place finish. But Saturday’s sixth-place qualifying effort and coming off a ninth-place run last week at Michigan give some optimism that the No. 17 RFK Racing Ford can be competitive on Sunday at the “Tricky Triangle.”

JOHN HUNTER NEMECHEK: Watching Legacy Motor Club teammate Erik Jones wheel his way to a runner-up finish last weekend at Michigan showed how much this organization has improved its Cup Series program. Nemechek had a good performance in the Irish Hills after finishing 14th. Looking ahead to Pocono, the driver of the No. 42 Toyota finished sixth in this race a year ago. If Nemechek can get a similar result and capitalize on his eighth-place starting position on Sunday, he will start to trend upward from 28th in the standings.

WILLIAM BYRON: The No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports driver is seeking a strong result at the “Tricky Triangle.” In the last six Cup Series races, Byron has only finished better than 18th twice. Last weekend at Michigan, Byron led seven laps, which were his first laps led since Martinsville in March. If the No. 24 team wants to be serious contenders when The Chase rolls around, they will need to click off stronger results on a more consistent basis. While only one top 10 in the last five Pocono races does not sound promising, Byron was fastest in 15- and 20-lap averages in practice, and will roll off the grid ninth in Sunday’s 400-miler at the 2.5-mile Pennsylvania track.

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FULL PROJECTED RESULTS FOR GREAT AMERICAN GETAWAY 400 PRESENTED BY VISITPA (1 p.m. ET, Prime Video)