Welcome to our ninth year of staff predictions! Each week, our experts attempt to tell you who the winner of each Cup race will be. Take a look to see who your favorite writers think will win it all (or at least score some points) this week!
Think you can out-prognosticate our staff? Leave your picks in the comments and see how they stack up!
How we roll:
Each driver can be picked only twice each week. We can’t pick the same driver two weeks in a row. And if anyone is daring enough to pick from a pool of higher-risk drivers…well, he or she reaps some serious bonus points!
Prediction Scoring:
+5 – Win
+3 – 2nd-5th
+1 – 6th-10th
0 – 11th-20th
-1 – 21st-30th
-2 – 31st-36th
-3 – 37th-40th
High-Risk Drivers—Bristol I:
Michael McDowell
Cole Whitt
Casey Mears
Michael Annett
Matt DiBenedetto
Trevor Bayne
Landon Cassill
This week’s predictions: Food City 500
Amy Henderson, Senior Editor: Kyle Busch for three in a row.
Jeff Wolfe, Senior Writer: Brad Keselowski.
Mark Howell, Senior Writer: Martin Truex, Jr. for me, please.Â
Jeff Meyer, Semi-retired Contributor: Carl Edwards.
Tony Lumbis, Financial Manager: Trevor Bayne.
Dan Greene, Webmaster: Joey Logano.
Zach Catanzareti, Contributor: Clint Bowyer. Good recent Bristol runs for that team.
Joseph Wolkin, Assistant Editor: I seem to jinx everyone I pick this year, but maybe that will change this weekend. I’m going with Carl Edwards.
Jason Schultz, Contributor: Kevin Harvick.
Danny Peters, Senior Writer: Joey Logano.
Huston Ladner, Senior Editor: Brad Keselowski.
Phil Allaway, Newsletter Editor: I’m feeling greedy today. I’ll take Casey Mears. Germain Racing has shown speed at Bristol in the past.
Dustin Albino, Contributor: Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Clayton Caldwell, Contributor: Kurt Busch.
Sean Fesko, Staff Writer: Kyle Busch!!!
Michael Finley, Contributor:  I’m going to go with Jimmie Johnson this week. He’s had more points scored in the past 10 races at Bristol than anybody else, more top 10s than anyone, and he already has two wins this season.
Vito Pugliese, Senior Writer: Matt Kenseth.
Bryan Gable, Contributor: Kurt Busch.
Duck Commander 500
| Writer | Pick | Finishing Position | Points |
| Jeff Wolfe | Kyle Busch | 1st | 5 |
| Jeff Meyer | Dale Earnhardt, Jr. | 2nd | 3 |
| Huston Ladner | Joey Logano | 3rd | 3 |
| Clayton Caldwell | Joey Logano | 3rd | 3 |
| Amy Henderson | Jimmie Johnson | 4th | 3 |
| Danny Peters | Jimmie Johnson | 4th | 3 |
| Vito Pugliese | Martin Truex, Jr. | 6th | 1 |
| Dan Greene | Martin Truex, Jr. | 3th | 1 |
| Jason Schultz | Carl Edwards | 7th | 1 |
| Aaron Bearden | Kevin Harvick | 10th | 1 |
| Bryan Gable | Kevin Harvick | 10th | 1 |
| Tony Lumbis | Matt Kenseth | 11th | 0 |
| Sean Fesko | Matt Kenseth | 11th | 0 |
| Phil Allaway | Denny Hamlin | 12th | 0 |
| Mark Howell | Jamie McMurray | 13th | 0 |
| Zach Catanzareti | Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. | 16th | 0 |
| Joseph Wolkin | Brad Keselowski | 18th | 0 |
| Dustin Albino | Brad Keselowski | 18th | 0 |
| Matt Stallknecht | Brian Vickers | 37th | -3 |
Standings
| Â Writer | Points | Behind | Starts | Wins | Top 5 | Top 10 |
| Sean Fesko | 13 | — | 7 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Jeff Meyer | 12 | -1 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| Jeff Wolfe | 12 | -1 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Dustin Albino | 10 | -3 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Amy Henderson | 10 | -3 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Bryan Gable | 9 | -4 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Danny Peters | 8 | -5 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Jason Schultz | 7 | -6 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Huston Ladner | 7 | -6 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Dan Greene | 5 | -8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Jerry Jordan | 4 | -9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Tony Lumbis | 4 | -9 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Mike Neff | 4 | -9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Aaron Bearden | 4 | -9 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Clayton Caldwell | 4 | -9 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Tom Bowles | 3 | -10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Phil Allaway | 2 | -11 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Vito Pugliese | 2 | -11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Summer Bedgood | 1 | -12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Matt Stallknecht | -1 | -14 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Mark Howell | -1 | -14 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Kevin Rutherford | -2 | -15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zach Catanzareti | -3 | -16 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Joseph Wolkin | -5 | -18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
About the author
The Frontstretch Staff is made up of a group of talented men and women spread out all over the United States and Canada. Residing in 15 states throughout the country, plus Ontario, and widely ranging in age, the staff showcases a wide variety of diverse opinions that will keep you coming back for more week in and week out.
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