Could the Chicago Street Race deliver a 10th different winner in as many races?
The recent stretch of NASCAR Cup Series races has seen nine different winners over the last nine events. That run started with Austin Cindric’s win at Talladega back in April. Following Cindric, the winners have been: Joey Logano (Texas), Kyle Larson (Kansas), Ross Chastain (Coca-Cola 600), Ryan Blaney (Nashville), Denny Hamlin (Michigan), Shane van Gisbergen (Mexico), Chase Briscoe (Pocono), and most recently Chase Elliott (Atlanta).
So the big question going into this weekend’s race through the streets of Chicago: Could we see a 10th consecutive different winner?
Here’s a breakdown of where some of the top teams stand heading into Sunday:
23XI Racing
Positives:
Tyler Reddick has won three road course races during the Next Gen era, tying him with Kyle Larson for most in this period.
Reddick finished second in last year’s Chicago race and has seven top-10 finishes in the last 10 road course events.
He’s earned the most points (614) on road courses in the Next Gen era.
Corey Heim returns for his third Cup start of the season, driving the No. 67 car.
Challenges:
Bubba Wallace currently sits in the final playoff spot with eight races left in the regular season.
Wallace is tied with Ryan Blaney for the most DNFs this season (six).
Wallace has just three top-10 finishes in 34 career road course starts.
Riley Herbst hasn’t finished better than 24th in the last seven races.
Front Row Motorsports
Positives:
Zane Smith has two top-10 finishes in the last four races, including a season-high in stage points at Atlanta.
Noah Gragson’s eighth-place finish at COTA earlier this year marked his best road course result.
Todd Gilliland has three top-10 finishes in his last six road course starts and placed seventh at Chicago last year.
Challenges:
Gilliland has finished 22nd or worse in the last five races.
Haas Factory Team
Positives:
Cole Custer finished eighth at Mexico in the most recent road course event and won last year’s Chicago Xfinity race.
Challenges:
Custer ranks 34th in Cup Series points.
Hendrick Motorsports
Positives:
Hendrick drivers hold the top three spots in the overall points standings.
The team has won five of the last nine road course races.
William Byron leads the standings, with Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson close behind.
Elliott has three straight top-five finishes, was third at Mexico and fourth at COTA, and leads all drivers with 10 top-fives on road courses in the Next Gen era.
Alex Bowman won last year’s Chicago Street Race.
Larson earned the pole for last year’s Chicago race.
Byron has five top-fives (including two wins) in his last nine road course starts.
Challenges:
Larson hasn’t led a lap in the last five races, his longest drought since late 2019 to early 2020.
Byron has finished 27th or worse in three of the last four races.
Joe Gibbs Racing
Positives:
Denny Hamlin averaged the most points per race in June (40.3).
Christopher Bell has a win at COTA and two runner-up finishes (Mexico and last year’s Charlotte Roval) in the last three road course events.
Ty Gibbs has scored the most points in the two previous Chicago street races with an average finish of 6.0—his best at any track.
Chase Briscoe has led 134 laps over the past five races—compared to just 75 laps over the previous 59 races.
Challenges:
Hamlin has only one top-10 finish in 18 road course races during the Next Gen era.
Kaulig Racing
Positives:
Ty Dillon is coming off a season-best eighth-place finish at Atlanta.
Dillon also scored an upset over No. 1 seed Denny Hamlin in the In-Season Challenge, earning bragging rights.
All three of AJ Allmendinger’s Cup wins have come on road courses.
Will Brown, reigning Supercars champion, will make his first Cup start of the year in the No. 13 car.
Challenges:
Allmendinger has yet to crack the top 16 in either of his Chicago street course starts.
Dillon’s best-ever road course finish is 15th, at the Charlotte Roval in 2019.
