Chicago Street Course Confidence Rankings / Post Practice Predictions
On Sunday, NASCAR history will be made and for the first time in 75 years, the series will be racing on a “Street Course.” The Chicago Street Course is a unique beast. It’s a 12-turn, 2.2-mile track laid out on the city streets of Chicago. This track is extremely narrow with multiple 90-degree turns and surrounded by walls, so chaos is certainly looming.
In terms of what variables I want in a driver for Chicago I would go ….
- Practice, you want somebody who looked good.
- Proven road course prowess (Road Course Total Speed Rankings since 2022)
- Qualifying, I think there’s no question track position will be important and starting with it will certainly be an advantage
- Recent form
On Saturday, NASCAR held an extended 50-minute practice session so teams could tune-up for this serpentine track. Make sure you check out our Chicago Practice Notes, Chicago 5 and 10 Lap Average Speed Cheat Sheet and Chicago Lap By Lap Average Speed Rankings.
Here’s the Chicago Street Course Starting Lineup.
Chicago Street Course Full Field Rankings
1) Denny Hamlin
Start 1st / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Practice Speed Rankings| 5 Lap Average – 1st / 10 Lap Average – 1st
Chicago Scoop – Denny Hamlin is hot, and following Saturday, this is looking like his race to lose. Hamlin won the pole, was a speed standout in practice and he loves his car. At Sonoma a few weeks back, Hamlin looked great (also won the pole there, led 33 laps) but that afternoon went downhill after he got into the wall. If Hamlin can have a smooth race and use smart pit strategy, there’s no question he’ll be a factor.
DraftKings $8,000/ FanDuel $8,500 / DK Odds To Win +550
Further Recommended Reading: Chicago Finish Projections, DK Chicago Scoring Projections, FD Chicago Scoring Projections
2) Tyler Reddick
Start 2nd / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Practice Speed Rankings| 5 Lap Average – 5th
Chicago Scoop – Tyler Reddick is a super-elite performer at road courses who’ll be a popular pick in the “Windy City.” In the Next Gen at road courses minus Sonoma, Reddick has 3 wins, a 3.8 average finish, a 5.5 average running position and he’s 6 for 6 at finishing in the top 8. In terms of Total Speed Rankings over all the combined events, Reddick ranks 2nd. In practice, the #45 was fast.
DraftKings $10,100/ FanDuel $12,500 / DK Odds To Win +500
3) AJ Allmendinger
Start 10th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium
Practice Speed Rankings| 5 Lap Average – 37th
Chicago Scoop – AJ Allmendinger is a super-elite road course racer and at Chicago, there’s no question the #16 will be a factor. Chicago is technically a “Street Course,” and in other forms of racing prior to his stock car racing career, Allmendinger’s won multiple races on this track type, so he’ll have a little edge from that. In the Next Gen at road courses since 2022, Allmendinger has the 4th best Total Speed Ranking, and in 2023 between the combined events, he ranks 1st. This year at road courses, Allmendinger was a top five contender at COTA but was swept up in the carnage (34th), and at Sonoma which has historically been his weakest road course by a mile (or two), he finished 6th a few weeks ago. Another attribute I really like about Allmendinger on this track type, is that he’s capable of putting a car on his back and carrying it to a good finish.
DraftKings $9,900/ FanDuel $11,500 / DK Odds To Win +1400
