“Millions of peaches, peaches for free, millions of peaches, peaches for me!” – “Peaches” The Presidents of the United States of America
Grab your peaches in a can or a whole one with your hand folks, because the NASCAR Cup Series is back in Georgia this week. EchoPark Speedway just outside of Atlanta plays host to some of the best superspeedway-style racing the sport has seen in years, and this one should be no exception.
Being different than both of the bigger tracks in her category (Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway), it takes unique skill to win a race here, but luck also helps. I would always lean towards drivers who have specialized in this style in the Next Gen era.
That makes guys like Austin Cindric, Ryan Blaney, and Georgia’s favorite son, Chase Elliott the favorites. But, you can take a flier or two. Like I said, luck is a factor here. I would absolutely avoid Kyle Larson though, as well Ross Chastain. Larson has never won a superspeedway race in his illustrious career, and though he’s run well at times here, this ain’t the year I’m afraid. As good as Chastain was here back in the early years of this reconfiguration, they don’t have the speed this season.
As I did with Talladega earlier this season, my rankings are based on trust rather than monetary value. Without further ado, let’s see what the forecast holds for our fantasy lineups down in the heart of Georgia.
Fantasy Forecast
Chase Elliott $9,900
There is no doubt in my mind that Elliott will be up front a lot this week.
He’s always said he loves racing at home, and the superspeedway layout has been kind to him most of any driver since 2022.
He has not suffered a DNF here since 2021, the last year of the old intermediate layout. He’s won at EchoPark twice in that span too, including a heroic performance last season in this race with 10 laps to go.
If he can put together a great qualifying run, look out for engine No. 9. He’s right at home after all.
Brad Keselowski $8,600
Keselowski pulls up to second on this list based largely on the fact that he almost won this race a year ago and he also almost did it in the spring of 2022 and fall of 2024.
Some would say he’s due and I agree. As always, there is a little bit more to the story, but that’s the biggest thing.
The No. 6 team also most likely needs a win if they want to secure their place in The Chase, and this is as good a place as any for them. His career average finish the Next Gen car is a respectable 14.5 and he’s finished in the top 10 in two of his last three starts at the track.
William Byron $9,700
Well, well, well. It appears that the driver of the famous No. 24 car got his mojo back a little bit last week at Chicagoland Speedway.
It was the first time all season that Byron looked like a real threat to win. He led a lot of laps and ran up front most of the race, and now we come to a track that he’s won at twice before.
I look to see him up in the top 10 most of the night again this weekend, and I truly think he’s an under the radar player to win the whole thing.
Daniel Suarez $7,200
If there is a driver in the field who loves EchoPark Speedway as much as Elliott, it’s Suarez.
He has his famous win here over Kyle Busch and Blaney back in 2024 of course, but the numbers support that this is his best track on the schedule.
Suarez finished either first or second over a three race stretch from 2023-2024, and then this spring returned to finish in the top five. That means he has four top fives in his last six starts.
Spire Motorsports also has a win already on a drafting track this season with Carson Hocevar. I think this team will likely be a good dark horse contender, if they can avoid trouble.
Bubba Wallace $7,900
Wallace is on a bit of a roll as of late. He was really good late last week in Chicagoland, notching his third top ten finish in his last five starts.
Early in his career, he was considered a drafting track specialist but he’s really good at big, fast and aero-dependent tracks nowadays. That’s exactly what this track is, with added drafting.
I think Wallace will end up in the back half of the top 10 or top half of the top 15 to be sure, just like he was here in the spring.
Austin Hill $6,600
Another of Georgia’s favorite sons, Hill is the sentimental favorite for me this week.
I’m a big believer that history repeats itself more often than not, and I don’t think we need to go over what happened here in 2001, three weeks after the passing of Dale Earnhardt.
A miracle happened that day, and while it would likely take one for Hill to win Sunday, I wouldn’t put it past him. After all, he does have five NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series wins at the track.
Top Bets of the Week
Elliott +1100
Elliott’s record here is just too good to ignore. He’s had a weird few weeks, where they’ve been either mediocre or bad fast and on the hook going to the garage before the race ends, so that worries me. However, I picked him to win here last summer and it brought the biggest payday of my career back then. I’m betting on Dawsonville again this year for more of the same.
Dark Horse: Austin Dillon +5000
I was going to advise picking Hill here prior to qualifying but holy smokes, Dillon put up an absolute heater in qualifying on Saturday. I got to watch that particular lap, and he looked like a dark horse if I’ve ever seen one. He also tends to run very well after he qualifies well. Who knows? Maybe he’s got some magic in that No. 3 Chevrolet that you can ride all the way to the bank Monday morning.
Garrett joined Frontstretch as a news writer in 2023, and became a fantasy racing and betting writer in 2024. Hailing from the heart of coal country in southern West Virginia, he's a married father of three and a licensed Physical Therapist Assistant there.
Follow on X @Cook_g9
Thanks for choosing to comment on this article. A name and email address are required to post a comment. The email address is not publicly visible or shared. Please keep in mind that comments are moderated according to our comment policy.