Welcome to our 10th 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 writer picks the drivers they they think will win the first two stages and the overall race. We can’t pick the same driver two weeks in a row or more than four times in a season. The first two stages pay one bonus point, with three bonus points if someone can get all three winners correct. Overall race points remain the same:
Prediction Scoring
+5 – Win
+3 – 2nd-5th
+1 – 6th-10th
0 – 11th-20th
-1 – 21st-30th
-2 – 31st-36th
-3 – 37th-40th
This week’s predictions: Federated Auto Parts 400
| Writer | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Race Winner |
| Amy Henderson | Martin Truex, Jr. | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch |
| Corey Brewer | Martin Truex, Jr. | Martin Truex, Jr. | Matt Kenseth |
| Mark Howell | Kyle Busch | Martin Truex, Jr. | — |
| Dustin Albino | Matt Kenseth | Brad Keselowski | Joey Logano |
| Clayton Caldwell | Martin Truex, Jr. | Martin Truex, Jr. | Denny Hamlin |
| Davey Segal | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Kyle Busch |
| Bryan Gable | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Kyle Busch |
| Jeff Wolfe | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Erik Jones |
| Michael Massie | Matt Kenseth | Brad Keselowski | Joey Logano |
| Samarth Kanal | Martin Truex, Jr. | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch |
| Dan Greene | Matt Kenseth | Clint Bowyer | Joey Logano |
| Christian Koelle | Martin Truex, Jr. | Brad Keselowski | Clint Bowyer |
| Huston Ladner | Kyle Busch | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex, Jr. |
| John Haverlin | Matt Kenseth | Martin Truex, Jr. | Denny Hamlin |
| Joseph Wolkin | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Joey Logano |
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Results: Bojangles’ Southern 500
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| Writer | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Race Winner | Winner Pick Finish | Total Points |
| Amy Henderson | Kevin Harvick | Kyle Busch | Kevin Harvick | 9th | 1 |
| Corey Brewer | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex, Jr. | Denny Hamlin | 1st | 6 |
| Mark Howell | Denny Hamlin | Matt Kenseth | Danica Patrick | 26th | -1 |
| Dustin Albino | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Denny Hamlin | 1st | 6 |
| Clayton Caldwell | Kyle Larson | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | 2nd | 4 |
| Davey Segal | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex, Jr | Matt Kenseth | 6th | 2 |
| Bryan Gable | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Denny Hamlin | 1st | 6 |
| Jeff Wolfe | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kyle Busch | Kyle Larson | 14th | 1 |
| Michael Massie | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex, Jr. | Kevin Harvick | 9th | 2 |
| Samarth Kanal | Kevin Harvick | Kyle Busch | Joey Logano | 18th | 0 |
| Dan Greene | Martin Truex, Jr. | Clint Bowyer | Kyle Larson | 14th | 1 |
| Christian Koelle | Kyle Larson | Clint Bowyer | Erik Jones | 5th | 3 |
| Huston Ladner | Martin Truex, Jr. | Chase Elliott | Kyle Larson | 14th | 1 |
| John Haverlin | Matt Kenseth | Denny Hamlin | Kevin Harvick | 9th | 1 |
| Frank Velat | Kevin Harvick | Kevin Harvick | Ryan Blaney | 31st | -2 |
Standings
| Â Writer | Points | Behind | Starts | Wins | Top 5 | Top 10 |
| Corey Brewer | 47 | — | 25 | 2 | 9 | 15 |
| Amy Henderson | 42 | -5 | 25 | 2 | 11 | 16 |
| Davey Segal | 41 | -6 | 25 | 4 | 10 | 14 |
| Mark Howell | 35 | -12 | 25 | 0 | 11 | 15 |
| Huston Ladner | 35 | -12 | 24 | 2 | 8 | 10 |
| Dustin Albino | 37 | -10 | 25 | 2 | 10 | 14 |
| Bryan Gable | 33 | -14 | 22 | 3 | 6 | 13 |
| Joseph Wolkin | 32 | -15 | 20 | 1 | 8 | 12 |
| Michael Massie | 32 | -15 | 23 | 3 | 6 | 10 |
| Clayton Caldwell | 32 | -15 | 25 | 1 | 7 | 12 |
| Dan Greene | 29 | -18 | 20 | 1 | 8 | 11 |
| Jeff Wolfe | 26 | -21 | 23 | 2 | 7 | 10 |
| Frank Velat | 25 | -22 | 18 | 2 | 7 | 9 |
| Vito Pugliese | 24 | -23 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 9 |
| John Douglas | 17 | -30 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Matteo Marcheschi | 12 | -35 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Greg Davis | 10 | -37 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| John Haverlin | 6 | -41 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Christian Koelle | 3 | -44 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Michael Finley | 3 | -44 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Samarth Kanal | 0 | -47 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Phil Allaway | 0 | -47 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zach Catanzareti | -1 | -48 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Bowles | -2 | -49 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Danny Peters | -3 | -50 | 1 | 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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Danica out qualified Johnson AGAIN! She has to have a chance. Johnson isn’t a good enough qualifier to be in the conversation as best ever, no matter what he thinks.