Bristol Food City 500 Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

Tyler Reddick
Bristol Fantasy Outlook – Points leader, Tyler Reddick has not been good at Bristol. His career average finish is 19.4, and he’s just 1 for 9 at finishing in the top ten. In the Next Gen, Reddick has a best finish of 15th (twice), a 20.5 average finish and ranks 20th in terms of Next Gen Speed Rankings. I have no doubt Reddick is a capable performer, but NASCAR is a results-based sport, and he simply doesn’t come home with good results here. Heading into the weekend, I would view Reddick as a teens driver who I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if he finishes in the top ten.
Bristol Track History – I fully believe Tyler Reddick is capable of performing at a high-level at Bristol, but he simply hasn’t and in the Next Gen, he’s 6 for 6 at finishing 15th or worse with a 20.5 average finish. I’ll note, in 4 of the last 5 he’s finished between 15th to 20th. Last summer, Reddick tied his best Next Gen Bristol result and finished 15th but it’s hard to get excited about that. In the race, Reddick had an 18.4 average running position, earned the 16th best Driver Rating and ranked 15th in terms of Total Speed Rankings. Last spring, Reddick started 27th, finished about 15th in Stage #1, finished 10th in Stage #2, had a 13.2 average running position, ranked 16th in terms of Total Speed Rankings and then finished 18th. Reddick used some out of sync pit strategy during the final pit cycle and I would say that ultimately burned him since no caution materialized. Over the segments, Reddick had speed rankings of 12th, 11th, 13th and then 28th. In summer 2024, Reddick was simply mid-pack, finishing 20th, had the 19th best Total Speed Ranking and had an 18.9 average running position. In spring 2024, Reddick finished 30th but I would urge you to have no real takeaways for his afternoon. In the race, Reddick started 23rd, was up to 20th on lap 20 before the first caution came out but then during the first caution, Reddick chose not to pit which got him the lead and then just after the restart, Reddick was wrecked. In the two races prior to that, Reddick had results of 15th and 25th.

Josh Berry
Bristol Fantasy Outlook – Josh Berry has coin flip upside at Bristol, but I would bet it likely won’t go well based on how Berry’s 2026 season is progressing. Berry’s finished in 12th in 2 of his 4 Bristol races but in the other two, he finished 29th or worse. I’ll note, his two 12ths were in the last two spring races, so there’s hope if you’re looking for it. Overall in the Next Gen at Bristol, Berry has a 23rd place average finish but ranks 14th in terms of Next Gen Speed Rankings.
Bristol Track History – At Bristol, Josh Berry is 3 for 4 at showing potential. Last summer, Berry showed “Potential” but finished 39th. In the race, Berry started 10th, was in 9th on lap 70 but then on lap 76, the #21 was on fire which marked the end of his race. Last spring, Berry finished 12th, had the 13th best Total Speed Ranking and had a 14.1 average running position. In summer 2024, Berry was pretty bad and I also do believe he got into the wall at some point. In the race, Berry finished 29th, had a 29.5 average running position and then ranked 32nd in terms of Total Speed Rankings. In spring 2024, Berry started 2nd, led 25 laps, had a 10.0 average running position and then finished 12th. In terms of speed stats, Berry ranked 8th for Speed Late In A Run and then 9th for Total Speed Rankings.

Ross Chastain
Bristol Fantasy Outlook – Ross Chastain has had some solid showings at Bristol in the Next Gen, but I think it’s best to just have mid-teen expectations based on the #1’s current form. In the Next Gen at Bristol, Chastain ranks 9th for average finish (13.3), 15th for Driver Rating and 16th for Speed Rankings. In terms of the results column, he’s finished in the top ten 50% of the time and is 4 for 6 at finishing in the top 15.
Bristol Track History – At Bristol, Ross Chastain has been respectable with a 13.3 Next Gen average finish. I’ll note in low-tire wear races, he’s been better overall and is 3 for 4 at finishing in the top ten. In last summer’s high-wear race, Chastain finished 19th, had a 19.5 average running position and ranked 19th in terms of Total Speed Rankings. It was a quiet uncompetitive evening. Last spring, Chastain started 35th but raced his way to a 7th place finish, in a race where passing was tough. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Chastain ranked 11th. In summer 2024, Chastain finished 10th, had the 10th best Total Speed Ranking and had a 13.8 average running position. In spring 2024 which was the other high-tire wear race, Chastain finished 15th and had a 19.5 average running position.

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