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 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: First Data 500
| Writer | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Race Winner |
| Amy Henderson | Kyle Busch | Denny Hamlin | Jimmie Johnson |
| Corey Brewer | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | Denny Hamlin |
| Mark Howell | Kyle Larson | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
| Dustin Albino | Kyle Busch | Brad Keselowski | Jimmie Johnson |
| Dan Greene | Chase Elliott | Kyle Larson | Denny Hamlin |
| Davey Segal | Kyle Busch | Kyle Larson | Kyle Larson |
| Bryan Gable | Denny Hamlin | Kyle Busch | Jimmie Johnson |
| Michael Massie | Kyle Busch | Denny Hamlin | Chase Elliott |
| Christian Koelle | Martin Truex Jr. | Brad Keselowski | Brad Keselowski |
| Jeff Wolfe | Kyle Larson | Chase Elliott | Jimmie Johnson |
| Frank Velat | Brad Keselowski | Kyle Busch | Chase Elliott |
| Clayton Caldwell | Kyle Busch | Martin Truex Jr. | Jimmie Johnson |
| Huston Ladner | Kyle Busch | Matt Kenseth | Jimmie Johnson |
Results: Hollywood Casino 400
| Writer | Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Race Winner | Winner Pick Finish | Total Points |
| Amy Henderson | Martin Truex Jr. | Kyle Larson | Martin Truex Jr. | 1st | 5 |
| Corey Brewer | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | 1st | 5 |
| Mark Howell | Kevin Harvick | Ryan Blaney | Jimmie Johnson | 11th | 0 |
| Dustin Albino | Martin Truex Jr. | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex Jr. | 1st | 5 |
| Dan Greene | Kevin Harvick | Ryan Blaney | Ryan Blaney | 3rd | 3 |
| Davey Segal | Martin Truex Jr. | Kyle Busch | Kyle Busch | 10th | 1 |
| Bryan Gable | Kevin Harvick | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | 1st | 5 |
| Michael Massie | Martin Truex Jr. | Kyle Busch | Martin Truex Jr. | 1st | 5 |
| Christian Koelle | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | Kyle Larson | 39th | -3 |
| Jeff Wolfe | Martin Truex Jr. | Ryan Blaney | Kyle Busch | 10th | 1 |
| Frank Velat | Martin Truex Jr. | Martin Truex Jr. | Ryan Blaney | 3rd | 3 |
Standings
| Â Writer | Points | Behind | Starts | Wins | Top 5 | Top 10 |
| Corey Brewer | 70 | — | 32 | 5 | 14 | 21 |
| Amy Henderson | 68 | -2 | 32 | 5 | 16 | 23 |
| Davey Segal | 64 | -6 | 32 | 7 | 14 | 21 |
| Bryan Gable | 57 | -13 | 29 | 6 | 11 | 19 |
| Dustin Albino | 56 | -14 | 32 | 4 | 15 | 19 |
| Michael Massie | 52 | -18 | 30 | 6 | 10 | 15 |
| Mark Howell | 48 | -22 | 32 | 0 | 13 | 20 |
| Dan Greene | 47 | -23 | 26 | 2 | 13 | 17 |
| Clayton Caldwell | 46 | -24 | 31 | 2 | 11 | 17 |
| Huston Ladner | 41 | -29 | 28 | 2 | 10 | 12 |
| Jeff Wolfe | 40 | -30 | 29 | 4 | 9 | 15 |
| Vito Pugliese | 35 | -35 | 20 | 4 | 6 | 11 |
| Joseph Wolkin | 33 | -37 | 21 | 1 | 9 | 13 |
| Frank Velat | 28 | -42 | 21 | 2 | 8 | 10 |
| John Haverlin | 18 | -52 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| John Douglas | 17 | -53 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Samarth Kanal | 13 | -57 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Matteo Marcheschi | 12 | -58 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Greg Davis | 10 | -60 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| Michael Finley | 3 | -67 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Christian Koelle | 1 | -69 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Phil Allaway | 0 | -70 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zach Catanzareti | -1 | -71 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Bowles | -2 | -72 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Danny Peters | -3 | -73 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |