By Walker Polivka
The NASCAR Cup Series continues today with the inaugural 2022 Enjoy Illinois 300 presented by TicketSmarter at World Wide Technology Raceway. Read on below to see our prediction for who will win the race, as well as our top 10, dark horse, and driver to fade predictions.
Driver to Fade: Cole Custer- 2022 has been a pretty down year for Custer, as he has had 3 top 15 finishes and 4 finishes outside the top 25 through 14 races. Custer had slow pace in Practice and even though he showed enough speed to qualify in 14th, we don’t see Custer moving forward once the green flag drops. Custer is a lock to finish outside the top 20 today.
Dark Horse: Aric Almirola- After starting the season with 3 straight top 10’s, Almirola had only had 1 top 10 in the 11 races since. However, Almirola has 4 top 15 finishes during that 11 race stretch, including a solid 11th place finish at Darlington. Not a copy cat track by any means, World Wide Technology Raceway has some similarities to Darlington in the way it races. Almirola may not have race winning speed, but another top 15 finish seems realistic today.
Top 10: Tyler Reddick- The Heartbreak Kid, Reddick has been having a career year in 2022, with 6 top 10 finishes, including 2 runner-ups, through 14 races. Reddick had a fast car in both Practice and Qualifying and is due for that first win. Reddick finished 2nd at Darlington earlier in the year and we predict that the knowledge he gained there will serve him well at World Wide Technology Raceway as he brings home another top 10 finish this afternoon.
Winner: Joey Logano- A winner at Darlington this season, Logano has had 1 win, 4 top 5’s, and 6 top finishes in his 2022 campaign. Logano unloaded off the truck with a rocket this week, as he led the field in Practice and qualified 7th for today’s race. This is the first time the Cup Series had raced at World Wide Technology Raceway and Logano has done well in maiden races at tracks of late, winning the inaugural Bristol Dirt Race last season and winning at the LA Coliseum to start off 2022. All of this leads to another trip to Victory Lane this afternoon for Joey Logano!