One last time (on this specific pavement at this specific track).
Where It Is
Atlanta. There’s a bit of frustration from the drivers right now because they’re going to repave Atlanta and alter the banking and the width and those sorts of things, and they didn’t consult many drivers before announcing the changes. In the meantime, it’s a rough, beat-up track, that I think the drivers like? Not the most exciting place in the world but should have some good restarts if there are cautions.
When It Is
Green flag at 3:48 PM EDT, but there’s rain in the area, so we’ll see.
How to Watch
NBCSN
Who to Watch
Kyle Larson’s the favorite, followed by Kyle Busch. Keep an eye on the playoff bubble guys: Austin Dillon and Tyler Reddick are comfortably above the current cut line, Kurt Busch is narrowly above the current cut line, Chris Buescher is narrowly below the current cut line, and Ross Chastain, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Matt DiBenedetto, Bubba Wallace, and Daniel Suárez are all within a few races (or comparably below the current cut line to how far above it Dillon and Reddick are).
How NASCAR Should Script It
A big ol’ pothole should open up and swallow the leaders, allowing a confused Quin Houff, driving the wrong direction, to win.
SRX/Trucks/Xfinity
The Truck race Friday night was either incredible or an abomination, depending who you ask. It was on dirt, and as the dirt narrowed to one groove, it got feisty, with approximately one billion overtimes, Derek Kraus doing things that got two drivers to spin him out after the checkered flag, and this:
Austin Hill won.
Kyle Busch won the Xfinity race, and the guys reminded us that you can go four-wide at Atlanta sometimes, so keep an eye on that this afternoon.
Fun stuff at Slinger for SRX. Marco Andretti won, rising high school senior Luke Fenhaus impressed as the local legend, and we got some contact late:
Not sure what the deal is with the SRX standings, or if anyone cares much about them, but wanted to acknowledge that they exist as that series enters its final week.
