The NASCAR Cup Series continues on this week as it visits Dover Motor Speedway for the Würth 400. The one mile, concrete track was built in 1969 and is one of the most abrasive tracks for tires on the circuit. Last year’s edition was won by Chase Elliott, who outlasted the rain and held off Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Ross Chastain for the victory.
Driver to Fade:
It has been a quiet season so far for Austin Cindric, with just 2 top 10’s in the first 10 races. Cindric has not fared much better at Dover, with a 36th place finish here last year. Cindric has been pretty underwhelming since his Daytona 500 win last season, finishing in the top 5 in just 4 other races out of the 45 races since his victory, even more so given that he races for one of the top teams in the sport. Cindric has found success at certain tracks, but Dover has not been one of them, as we predict that Cindric will finish outside the top 20 here again.
Dark Horse:
Filling in for Chase Elliott this year in the Cup Series, Josh Berry certainly held his own, with 2 top 10 finishes in 5 starts, including a runner-up showing at Richmond. Berry is looking to find even more success as he fills in yet again, only this time for Alex Bowman. Berry has had immense success here while racing in the Xfinity Series, with 1 win and 2 runner-up finishes in his 3 career starts. Berry is definitely going to be a threat for an upset victory at Dover, given the quality of the equipment he is racing in, but a top 10 finish is certainly well within reach.
Top 10:
Many may call him “Golden Boy,” but Chase Elliott has the stats to back up his success at Dover, with 2 wins and 9 top 5’s in 12 career starts here. The defending winner of this race, Elliott showed top 5 pace in Practice this weekend and is looking to pick back up where he left off at here last year. He’s still coming back off of a leg injury, but he’s done well in his limited starts this season, with 3 top 12 finishes in 4 starts. Dover is definitely going to be challenging on a physical level for Elliott, but we predict that he will be able to overcome that challenge and bring home his 3rd top 10 finish of the season.
Winner:
A former Dover winner, Kyle Larson has done quite well here in his career, with 1 win, 7 top 5’s, and 11 top 10’s in 14 starts. Larson is back to his winning ways early on in 2023, with 2 wins and 4 top 5’s in the first 10 races of the season. Larson has been locked in on tracks of 1 mile or less in length this season also, with his wins coming at Martinsville and Richmond, as well as a 4th place finish at Phoenix. Larson may be starting the race in 18th place, but we predict that he will work his way to the front quickly and pick up his 3rd win of the season at Dover!