The Coke Zero Sugar 400 is the last regular-season NASCAR race at the most unpredictable track on the circuit. It’s the Conference Championship of the sport if you will. Let’s take a look.
Location
- Daytona International Speedway
Race Time
- Saturday, August 27 at 7 p.m. ET
Track Length
- 2.5 miles
Track Type
- Tri-oval superspeedway
Last 10 Track Winners
- Spring 2022: Austin Cindric
- Fall 2021: Ryan Blaney
- Spring 2021: Ryan McDowell
- Fall 2020: William Byron
- Spring 2020: Denny Hamlin
- Fall 2019: Justin Haley
- Spring 2019: Denny Hamlin
- Fall 2018: Erik Jones
- Spring 2018: Austin Dillon
- Fall 2017: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Last 10 Track Winners by Model
- Ford: 4
- Chevrolet: 3
- Toyota: 3
Coke Zero Sugar 400 Preview
Last week’s road course changed nothing about the Cup Standings and proved that Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson are who we thought they were. There was some drama between the Hendrick Motorsports teammates on the final five laps when Larson bumped then-leader Elliott, sending him wide and allowing Larson to win. Mostly, it surprises me that something like that doesn’t happen every week. You don’t get to put drivers who are obsessively competitive together and expect them to… stop being obsessively competitive in the heat of the moment.
The two worked it out, a feat that was probably aided by Chase Elliott locking up the regular season championship for 2022 at Watkins Glen.
Because Larson was a repeat winner, those five drivers at the bottom of the one-time winner hierarchy can rest easy knowing they are now guaranteed their playoff spots as there cannot be 17 winners.
However, Ryan Blaney and Martin Truex remain perched on their precariously-balanced limbs. Blaney has a 25-point lead over Truex to make the playoffs by points only, but a 26-point swing is within the realm of possibility in one race.
They are racing against one another and will have to stave off the drivers who haven’t won yet this season. If we have a 16th different winner that isn’t either of those veterans, then both of them go home.
Here’s a look at who we should pay attention to for our lineups this weekend. I’ll be back Saturday morning for some DFS lineup suggestions following qualifiers on Friday night. In the meantime, hit me up on Twitter at @thewonkypenguin for more fantasy sports discussions.
The Dueling Contenders
Ryan Blaney (#12 Ford, Team Penske)
After a few weeks of races at tracks that weren’t favorites of his, Blaney heads to a track where he has four Top 10s, three Top 5s, and one win in his last seven races. I expect him to drive aggressively enough to grab points in at least one of the first two stages to pad his lead, but he is a top choice to win the whole thing, too.
Martin Truex (#19 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing)
Truex, on the other hand, will be perfectly aware of where Blaney is at all times and will definitely drive to win. Unfortunately, he has never won a NASCAR race here, though he did nab an Infinity Race victory in 2005. Seventeen years is a long time, but he will certainly be gobbling up every point he can get his hands on during the Coke Zero Sugar 400.
The “We’ll Take Another Win Now” Contenders
Austin Cindric (#2 Ford, Team Penske)
If recency is a great predictor of current success, Cindric won here in February and carries a driver rating of 107.0 into this penultimate race. Bookending his regular season with two wins here seems like a solid lineup builder, especially at the moderate salary he will cost to the roster.
Kyle Busch (#18 Toyota, Joe Gibbs Racing)
Just your weekly reminder that Kyle Busch would be winless if he hadn’t been running third when Chase Briscoe kamikazed himself and Tyler Reddick out of Bristol. He has a 98.4 rating in Daytona with one win in 2008. I expect Joe Gibbs Racing to establish a good team contingent to possibly catapult Truex into the playoffs.
Joey Logano (#22 Ford, Team Penske)
Not to be outdone, Team Penske will ride hard at the Coke Zero Sugar 400, too. Logano’s 93.5 driver rating is third-highest in Daytona, and with guaranteed playoff spots locked in for two of the three team members, I believe Joey might find his old buddy cop partner and help get him across the finish line.
The Chaos Options
Michael McDowell (#34 Ford, Front Row Motorsports)
McDowell won in Daytona in February 2021 when a large swath of contenders crashed out early. A win is a win, of course, but he also has three Top 10 finishes in his last seven races to go along with it. He has been running extremely well of late, and he is front and center of drivers I believe could really break the playoff chaos pinata wide open.
Brad Keselowski (#6 Ford, RFK Racing)
To be perfectly honest, this is probably selfish of me, as I would enjoy having Keselowski around for my proverbial punching bag, given how terrible he has been. Aside from personal feelings, he does have an 84.6 driver rating at Daytona and has been doing better of late. He also remains my vote for “Guy Most Likely To Ruin Parties,” so the Coke Zero Sugar 400 seems like an awesome platform for him.
Remember it is a Saturday night race this week. See you here Saturday morning!