We’ve left Dover in our rearviews and now make our way to one of NASCAR’s Crown Jewel races, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. A track typically reserved for open wheel racing, NASCAR showed upon arrival in ’94 that stock cars could work here, too — and boy have they!
Here’s what to look for:
–Chase Briscoe ran runner-up last week behind teammate Denny Hamlin, and it looked like he’d be starting behind him today with the lap that the #11 was laying down. That was, of course, before Denny lost control and turned it into the wall, relegating himself to a 39th place starting position, and ensuring that Briscoe would have the best view to start the day.
–Kyle Larson has had his troubles with Indy and open wheel cars, but he fired back last year with a big Brickyard 400 Win when NASCAR brought him back to town. Today he’ll start 13th.
-Beyond Kyle Larson, you’ve got to go all the way back to 2018 to find an active driver who has won here (Keven Harvick had back-to-back victories here before NASCAR moved to the Indy Road Course for a few years). Brad Keselowski is that man, though he’s had some trouble getting his feet under him in recent seasons after donning the owner’s hat. Still, he remains a wild card who is always a threat to show up. He’s got his work cut out for him today starting 14th, right next to Kyle Larson!
–Tyler Reddick only has a couple starts here, but he carries a 5.0 average finish in those attempts, the best of any active driver. He’s got a cherry starting position today, taking off from 4th. How long will it take him to get out front, and can he back up the best average finish among active drivers?
-Not one driver, but two! We’ve been treated to a busted bracket for many weeks, culminating in the Battle of the Ty’s: Ty Dillon vs. Ty Gibbs. Gibbs seems like he has the inside line here, but Dillon — #32 seed — has been knocking off his “stronger” opponent week in, week out. He is the unlikeliest of drivers to be in this position (according to the early odds makers); would you believe that he carries a 17.2 average finish here — 16th among active drivers? That’s better than Blaney, Chastain, Byron, Truex, the list goes on. Gibbs has one start here and finished 23rd, ranking him 26th among active drivers. It is going to be something to watch all day, and the winner amongst them gets a million bucks! Wow! They’ll start 5th (Gibbs) and 26th (Dillon) today.
Coverage of the race starts on TNT at 2:00pm, green flag scheduled for 2:20pm.
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