Michigan Fantasy NASCAR Mid Pack Predictions

Austin Hill
Michigan Fantasy Spin – On Sunday, Austin Hill will be making his Cup debut at Michigan driving the #33 RCR Chevy. This is quality equipment, so Hill has potential for having upside. In the lower series, Hill has been hot and over his last seven races he’s finished in the top ten and has a 6th place average finish. This race is potentially an “audition” for Hill for 2023, so he’ll definitely be looking to make the most of the opportunity. Realistically, I’m going to play it safe and view Hill as a high-teens to low-twenties driver. That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if he finishes in the low to mid-teens range.
Michigan Track History – At Michigan, not only is Austin Hill’s Cup resume blank, but so is his Xfinity track record, until Saturday afternoon. In 2020 when he most recently raced here in the Truck series, Hill led 11 laps, had a 6th place average running position and then finished 12th. In 2019 in his next most recent race, Hill led 26 laps and raced his way to victory lane.

Cole Custer
Michigan Fantasy Spin – At Michigan, I think Cole Custer is a high-teens to low-twenties driver, and I would definitely lean more towards the higher end of that range. This year at high-speed intermediate tracks, Custer started strong with an 11th at Auto Club, but in the two most recent races his results are 21st (Charlotte) and 22nd (Kansas). Over the combined races at High-Speed Intermediate Tracks, Custer’s Total Speed Ranking is the 24th best.
Michigan Track History – At Michigan, Cole Custer has finished better in each new race, but he has a way to go until he gets a good finish. Currently at MIS, Custer has back-to-back 20’s. Last year, Custer started 27th, finished 23rd, had a 25th place average running position and had the 27th best Total Speed Ranking. In 2020 #2, Custer started in the rear of the field in a backup car, finished 25th, had a 22nd place average running position, had the 21st best Total Speed Ranking and had the 23rd best Green Flag Speed. In Michigan #1 2020, Custer crashed late and finished an asterisk mark 34th. His demise happened on lap 149 when he was running around 20th and got into the wall hard. In that race, Custer’s Total Speed Ranking was the 18th best and if his race was incident free, I think he was poised to finish within a few deviations of 20th. 

Justin Haley
Michigan Fantasy Spin – At Michigan, I would view Justin Haley as a high-teens to low-twenties driver. This year at high-speed intermediate tracks, Haley hasn’t fared well. He started the season with results of 17th (Las Vegas) and 23rd (Auto Club) but in the last two races he’s had problems and has results of 35th (Kansas) and 27th (Charlotte). Over the combined events on this track type, Haley’s Total Speed Ranking is the 27th best, with him ranking between 22nd to 28th in every race.
Michigan Track History – Justin Haley had an un-notable debut last year at Michigan in the #77. That wasn’t a competitive situation, so don’t read into that race too much. In the race, Haley finished 25th, had a 27th place average running position and his Total Speed Ranking was the 30th best.

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