On Sunday, NASCAR heads back to the desert for the Phoenix Freeway Insurance 500. The championship won’t be decided here this year, but drivers can certainly get eliminated from title contention. Others might be able to step up to the plate and bring their championship hopes back to life. Phoenix is a 1.0‑mile shorter‑flat track where the driver can be a difference maker, and you’ll often see the same faces finish up front. Here’s a look at Phoenix Next Gen Average Finishes and Phoenix Next Gen Speed Rankings.

On Saturday, NASCAR practice and qualifying was held. Make sure you check out our Phoenix Practice Notes, 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. Starting up front has been important at Phoenix and in the Next Gen the average starting position of the winner is 6.0, and every race has been won from a top 13 starting position.

Phoenix Full Field Fantasy Rankings

1) Ryan Blaney
Start 1st / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – High
Phoenix Fantasy Outlook – Ryan Blaney has back-to-back Phoenix wins and on Sunday, the road to victory lane likely once again goes thru the #12. Blaney’s performed at a super-elite level at Phoenix and he’s been the driver to beat at shorter-flat tracks in 2026. For the season at shorter-flat tracks, Blaney ranks #1 for Speed, he’s won twice and has a 5.8 average finish minus Gateway. At Phoenix in the Next Gen, Blaney ranks #1 across the board for Speed, Driver Rating and Average Finish (5.2). In terms of the results column, he’s 8 for 9 at finishing in the top five and minus an engine failure in spring 2025, his average finish is 2.8. This spring, Blaney had a ton of problems on pit road but still emerged victorious. To begin the last Stage, Blaney was in 10th and he then drove to the front from there. Despite his laundry list of problems, Blaney still had a 7.4 average running position, led 28 laps and earned the best Driver Rating. In terms of Speed Stats, Blaney had the 2nd Fastest Car Late In A Run and ranked 4th for Total Speed Rankings, despite spending much of his afternoon back in traffic. Last fall, Blaney had a rocket and then snuck in a win at the end. In the race, Blaney finished 2nd in the two opening Stages, 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 was a top five contender 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. Over the six races prior to that, Blaney had results of 2nd, 5th, 2nd, 2nd, 2nd and 4th. In practice, Blaney was fast and Hamlin said the #12 had “God Like Grip.”
DraftKings $11,500/ FanDuel $14,000

Further Recommended Reading = Phoenix Finish Projections, Phoenix Quick Rankings, DraftKings Phoenix Scoring Projections, FanDuel Phoenix Scoring Projections, 2026 Shorter Flat Track Average Finishes, 2026 Shorter Flat Track Total Speed Rankings

2) Christopher Bell
Start 5th / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – High
Phoenix Fantasy Outlook – Christopher Bell is a super-elite shorter-flat track performer who’ll be tough to beat at Phoenix. Bell was the class of the field this spring and over the last five Phoenix races, Bell’s won twice, has the best average finish (4.0), the best average running position (4.9), the best Driver Rating and the best average Speed Ranking (2.8). This spring, Bell was the driver to beat but pit strategy when he took 4-tires from the lead during a late caution which dropped him back to 8th cost him the win. In the race, Bell finished 2nd in Stage #1, won Stage #2, led 176 laps, had a 2.7 average running position and earned the best Driver Rating. In terms of Speed Stats, Bell ranked 1st for both Total Speed Rankings and Speed Late In A Run. Last fall, Bell finished 11th but I’ll note he was in 8th before the Green-White-Checker caution came out. Additionally, Bell ranked 7th for Speed, earned the 7th best Driver Rating and had an 8.2 average running position. 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 finished 4th in Stage #1, won Stage #2, had a race best 2.6 average running position, earned the best Driver Rating and led the most laps (105). If it wasn’t for option tire funny business, he would’ve been even more dominant. In terms of speed analytics, Bell ranked #1 for Total Speed Rankings and Speed Late In A Run. This year at shorter-flat tracks, Bell has the 3rd best average finish (8.8) and ranks 4th for Speed. To close out practice, Bell had a run where he posted the fastest 10,15,20,25 and 30-lap average.
DraftKings $11,200/ FanDuel $13,500

3) Joey Logano
Start 2nd / Projected Finish Range 1-6 / Dominator Potential – Medium-High
Phoenix Fantasy Outlook – 4-time Phoenix winner, Joey Logano should be high on your radar. Logano’s been elite here and he’s been one of the premiere performers at shorter-flat tracks in 2026. This year at shorter-flat tracks, Logano’s won twice, he’s tied for #1 for Speed and his average finish minus Phoenix is 6.6. At Phoenix in the Next Gen, Logano’s won twice, ranks 6th for Speed, 7th for Driver Rating and his average finish minus this spring and spring 2024 is 8.0. This spring, Logano was top five good but finished an asterisk mark 31st. In the race, Logano won the pole, finished 3rd in both of the opening Stages, led 73 laps but then in the last Stage he had multiple problems. His first accident was on lap 217 during a restart when he got aggressive (was in 3rd prior to that caution) and his second was on lap 253 when he spun and wrecked which cemented him to his poor result. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Logano was tied for being the 2nd fastest. Last fall, Logano had a 7.3 average running position, had the 4th best Total Speed Ranking and then finished 4th overall. In spring 2025, Logano finished 13th but you can get out an asterisk mark. In the race, Logano started on the pole, was the leader under caution on lap 11 but then during the ensuing restart while leading, NASCAR black flagged him. That put Logano behind, but the option tires created an opportunity for him to rebound with out of sync tire strategy which allowed him to lead 81 laps. At the end unfortunately, Logano wasn’t on option tires and others were, so that led to his 13th. In terms of Total Speed Rankings, Logano ranked 6th. In fall 2024 when Phoenix was the championship finale, Logano came up clutch and raced his way to victory lane (led 107 laps, best Speed Ranking). In practice, Logano liked his car.
DraftKings $10,200/ FanDuel $12,500