On Sunday, NASCAR heads back to the desert for the Phoenix Straight Talk Wireless 500, and in a lot of ways this is where the “real” 2026 season finally begins. No superspeedway dice rolls or road course racing wildness looms this weekend. Phoenix is a 1.0‑mile shorter‑flat track where the driver can be a difference maker, and you’ll often see the same familiar faces finish up front. Here’s a look at 2025 Shorter-Flat Track Total Speed Rankings.

On Saturday, NASCAR practice and qualifying was held. Make sure you check out our Phoenix Practice Notes, Phoenix Group Speed Rankings, Phoenix 10,15,20,25 and 30 Lap Average Speed Cheat Sheet and Phoenix Practice Speeds and 10 Lap Averages.

Here’s Phoenix Qualifying Results.

Phoenix Full Field Fantasy Rankings

1) Ryan Blaney
Start 5th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – High
Phoenix Fantasy Outlook – Ryan Blaney is a dominator in the desert and in the Phoenix Straight Talk Wireless 500, the road to victory lane likely goes thru him. Blaney snuck in a win last fall, and he’s consistently been a top performer, finishing in the top 5 in 7 of the last 8 races. Overall in the Next Gen, Blaney ranks #1 for Average Finish (5.8), Driver Rating and Total Speed Rankings. Last fall, Blaney had a rocket and then snuck in a win at the end. In the race, Blaney earned the 2nd best Driver Rating, had the 3rd best average running position (3.8), led 20 laps and then of course finished 1st overall. I’ll quickly note, before overtime came out and he opted for 2-tires, Blaney was running in 3rd. In terms of speed stats, Blaney ranked #1 for Speed Late In A Run and had the 2nd best Total Speed Ranking. Last spring, Blaney looked great but finished an asterisk mark 28th. In the race, Blaney finished 5th in Stage #1, finished 4th in Stage #2 but then early in the last Stage he started to develop engine issues and then eventually on lap 289 while running in 8th, his engine blew up. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Blaney ranked 3rd. In fall 2024, Blaney was stout and finished 2nd. In the race, Blaney won Stage #2, led 12 laps, had a 4.1 average running position, earned the 3rd best Driver Rating and then finished 2nd. Over the five races prior to that, Blaney had results of 5th, 2nd, 2nd, 2nd and 4th. In 2025 at shorter-flat tracks, nobody was better than the #12 team and for the season, Blaney won the last two races, had the best Track Type Total Speed Ranking and for the season minus Phoenix #1 where his engine blew up his average finish was 2.6. In practice, Blaney was happy with his car and a stopwatch standout, ranking #1 in group #2 for 10,15 and 20-lap averages.
DraftKings $11,200/ FanDuel $14,000

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2) Christopher Bell
Start 12th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Phoenix Fantasy Outlook – Christopher Bell is a super-elite shorter-flat track performer who’ll be vying for his 3rd straight spring Phoenix win, so you know he’ll be tough to beat. Overall in the Next Gen at Phoenix, Bell has the 2nd best Next Gen Speed Ranking, the 5th best Driver Rating and a 5.6 average finish minus misleading results in fall 2023 and spring 2022. Last fall, Bell was strong but just never truly a factor. In the race, Bell started 20th, finished 11th in Stage #1, finished 5th in Stage #2, was running in 8th before the GWC caution (Pitted) and then finished 11th overall. Additionally, Bell earned the 7th best Driver Rating and had an 8.2 average running position. In terms of speed analytics, Bell ranked 5th for speed late in a run and had the 7th best Total Speed Ranking. Last spring, Bell had a rocket and raced his way to victory lane with a last lap pass for the win. In the race, Bell had the best average running position (2.6), earned the best Driver Rating and led the most laps (105). In terms of speed analytics, Bell ranked #1 for Total Speed Rankings and Speed Late In A Run. In fall 2024, Bell looked great, but I also think he kind of eased up at the end, letting the title contenders battle it out. In the race, Bell had a race best 2.8 average running position, led the most laps (143), had the 2nd best Total Speed Ranking, earned the 2nd best Driver Rating and then finished 5th overall. In spring 2024, Bell started 13th, won Stage #2, had a slow pit stop to begin the final Stage dropping him from 1st to 10th, but then down the stretch to close out, the #20 hit the afterburners and Bell drove up thru the pack and to victory lane. In the race, Bell led 50 laps, earned the best Driver Rating and had the 3rd best Total Speed Ranking. Last year at shorter-flat tracks, Bell won at Phoenix #1, had the 3rd best Track Type Total Speed Ranking and his average finish was 10.5. In practice, Bell was fast and had the 2nd best 15-lap average in Group 2.
DraftKings $10,200/ FanDuel $11,500

Further Recommended Reading = Phoenix Quick Rankings, Phoenix Finish Projections, DraftKings Phoenix Scoring Projections, FanDuel Phoenix Scoring Projections, Phoenix Next Gen Average Finishes, Phoenix Next Gen Speed Rankings

3) Joey Logano
Start 1st / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Phoenix Fantasy Outlook – 4-time Phoenix winner, Joey Logano should never be counted out. In the Next Gen era, Logano’s won twice, ranks 6th for Total Speed Rankings and has an 8th place average finish minus spring 2024. Last fall, Logano had a strong showing and ran well throughout. In the race, Logano finished 8th in the two opening Stages, had a 7.3 average running position and then finished 4th overall. In terms of speed stats, Logano was tied for 4th in terms of Total Speed Rankings and ranked 4th for Speed Late In A Run. Last spring, Logano finished 13th but you can get out an asterisk mark since his race wasn’t incident free. NASCAR black flagged him while leading during a restart on lap 11 and that ultimately had him at a bad tire situation (option tire race) at the end.  In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Logano ranked 6th with his speed over the segments being 7th, 3rd, 5th and then 16th. In fall 2024 when the title was on the line, Logano came up clutch and hit the afterburners late to take home the championship. In the race, Logano finished 1st, earned the best Driver Rating, had a 3.4 average running position and led the 2nd most laps (107). In terms of speed stats, Logano had the best Total Speed Ranking, the best Green Flag Speed and ranked 3rd for Speed Late In A Run. Last year at shorter-flat tracks, Logano was elite with a 6.5 average finish and was tied for the 5th best Track Type Total Speed Ranking. Also over the last four races on this track type in 2025, Logano went 4 for 4 at finishing in either 4th or 5th. On Saturday, Logano won the pole, was happy with his car and fast on the stopwatch, ranking 2nd in Group 2 for 20-lap averages.
DraftKings $9,200/ FanDuel $11,000