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 bonus: Win: +3; 2nd-5th: +2; 6th-10th: +1
High-Risk Drivers—Talladega II
Matt DiBenedetto
Michael McDowell
Trevor Bayne
Casey Mears
Danica Patrick
AJ Allmendinger
Kasey Kahne
This week’s predictions: Hellman’s 500
Amy Henderson, Senior Editor: You know what, give me Casey Mears. I could use a few extra points and he’s a good plate racer. Oh, and he’s got little bit to prove, and he’s probably pretty pissed off, so that could add some speed…
Dan Greene, Webmaster: I’ll take Smoke; he’s got as good a chance as anybody.
Tony Lumbis, Financial Manager: Keselowski needs the win to stay alive and this has been his playground of late so I’ll go with him.
Jeff Wolfe, Senior Writer: Brad Keselowski.
Mark Howell, Senior Writer: Chase Elliott for win number one.
Clayton Caldwell, Contributor: If there’s room for two, Amy, I’m joining the Casey Mears bandwagon this weekend.
Sean Fesko, Staff Writer: Clint Bowyer.
Jeff Meyer, Retiree: Kevin Harvick, please.
Greg Davis, Senior Writer: Smoke. Taking Stewart for the win in his last appearance at ‘Dega.
Danny Peters, Senior Writer: No. 11.
Huston Ladner, Senior Editor: Danica Patrick.
John Douglas, Contributor: I’ll go with Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. Just a hunch.
Bryan Gable, Staff Writer: Joey Logano.
Phil Allaway, Newsletter Editor: I like underdog picks here at Talladega. I’m going with Landon Cassill.
Corey Brewer, Contributor: Chase Elliott.
Joseph Wolkin, Assistant Editor: Jeffrey Earnhardt because YOLO.
Hollywood Casino 400
| Writer | Pick | Finishing Position | Points |
| Bryan Gable | Kevin Harvick | 1st | 5 |
| Huston Ladner | Carl Edwards | 2nd | 3 |
| Jeff Meyer | Carl Edwards | 2nd | 3 |
| Jeff Wolfe | Joey Logano | 3rd | 3 |
| Danny Peters | Jimmie Johnson | 4th | 3 |
| Sean Fesko | Kyle Busch | 5th | 3 |
| Corey Brewer | Kyle Busch | 5th | 3 |
| Mark Howell | Kyle Busch | 5th | 3 |
| Amy Henderson | Matt Kenseth | 9th | 1 |
| Aaron Bearden | Matt Kenseth | 9th | 1 |
| Joseph Wolkin | Ryan Blaney* | 14th | 0 |
| Dustin Albino | Denny Hamlin | 15th | 0 |
| Vito Pugliese | Denny Hamlin | 15th | 0 |
| Zach Catanzareti | Trevor Bayne* | 17th | 0 |
| Clayton Caldwell | Chase Elliott | 31st | -2 |
| Dan Greene | Jamie McMurray* | 37th | -3 |
| Tony Lumbis | Jamie McMurray* | 37th | -3 |
Standings
| Writer | Points | Behind | Starts | Wins | Top 5 | Top 10 |
| Jeff Wolfe | 45 | — | 31 | 5 | 14 | 19 |
| Clayton Caldwell | 44 | -1 | 30 | 5 | 10 | 18 |
| Tony Lumbis | 43 | -2 | 30 | 3 | 12 | 16 |
| Bryan Gable | 43 | -2 | 26 | 3 | 13 | 19 |
| Jeff Meyer | 41 | -4 | 28 | 1 | 13 | 17 |
| Vito Pugliese | 33 | -12 | 31 | 3 | 8 | 19 |
| Dustin Albino | 33 | -12 | 27 | 4 | 9 | 16 |
| Huston Ladner | 30 | -15 | 27 | 1 | 8 | 15 |
| Danny Peters | 28 | -17 | 27 | 3 | 10 | 16 |
| Dan Greene | 26 | -19 | 31 | 1 | 8 | 17 |
| Corey Brewer | 23 | -22 | 17 | 1 | 8 | 12 |
| Mark Howell | 21 | -24 | 26 | 2 | 10 | 12 |
| Sean Fesko | 21 | -24 | 30 | 2 | 8 | 13 |
| Amy Henderson | 19 | -26 | 31 | 3 | 8 | 16 |
| Jason Schultz | 16 | -29 | 16 | 1 | 5 | 9 |
| Zach Catanzareti | 12 | -33 | 29 | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Aaron Bearden | 12 | -33 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
| John Douglas | 11 | -34 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Mike Neff | 8 | -37 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 6 |
| Phil Allaway | 5 | -40 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Jerry Jordan | 4 | -41 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Tom Bowles | 3 | -42 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Summer Bedgood | 1 | -44 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Joseph Wolkin | -1 | -46 | 31 | 1 | 4 | 9 |
| Matt Stallknecht | -1 | -46 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Kevin Rutherford | -2 | -47 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Greg Davis | -3 | -48 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Michael Finley | -8 | -53 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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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