Road Warriors: Cup Series best on the road courses

Worldwide Copyright ©2021 Action Sports Photography, Inc

With so many unknowns for the teams this weekend, a lot of eyes will be on the known road course ringers in the NASCAR Cup Series, specifically 2020 series champion Chase Elliott who leads all active drivers in road course career wins with five victories. But Elliott isn’t the only active driver entered this weekend with road course wins on his resume, a total of nine drivers entered this weekend have a former NASCAR Cup Series road course victory. 

Active Cup Drivers With Road Course Wins & Where

Active DriversRoad Course WinsTracks/Seasons
Chase Elliott5Charlotte RC (2019, 2020), Daytona RC (2020), Watkins Glen (2018, 2019)
Martin Truex Jr4Sonoma (2013, 2018, 2019), Watkins Glen (2017)
Kyle Busch4Sonoma (2008, 2015), Kyle Busch (2008, 2013)
Kevin Harvick2Sonoma (2017), Watkins Glen (2006)
Christopher Bell1Daytona RC (2021)
Ryan Blaney1Charlotte RC (2018)
Denny Hamlin1Watkins Glen (2016)
Joey Logano1Watkins Glen (2015)
AJ Allmendinger1Watkins Glen (2014)
Kurt Busch1Sonoma (2011)

Three drivers thirsty for a win this season, Kevin Harvick (nine wins), Denny Hamlin (seven wins) and Chase Elliott (five wins), led the series in wins last season scoring victories in 21 of the 36 races. But this season all three have goose eggs in the win’s column, but this weekend that could all change.

If Elliott secures his sixth NASCAR Cup Series road course victory this weekend, he will become the seventh driver all-time with six or more road course victories, joining the all-time series leaders and NASCAR Hall of Famers Jeff Gordon (nine road course wins), Tony Stewart (eight wins), Bobby Allison (six), Richard Petty (six), Rusty Wallace (six) and Ricky Rudd (six). Elliott almost got his sixth at the Daytona Road Course earlier this season, leading a race high 44 laps but was shuffled in a late restart that took him off the course, he rebounded to finish 21st.

Expect the former road course winners to contend for the victory this weekend as well. Six of the nine former Cup road course winners entered this weekend finished in the top-10 at the Daytona Road Course earlier this season: Christopher Bell (first), Joey Logano (second), Denny Hamlin (third), Kurt Busch (fourth), Kevin Harvick (sixth), and AJ Allmendinger (seventh). 

Several of the Cup drivers will be pulling double duty this weekend, to log those much-needed extra laps, one such driver is Kevin Harvick who will be in both Cup and Xfinity races this weekend. 

“I want to make sure we’ve hit most of the curbs and know where you can take a risk making a pass and where to make time and how to get on and off pit road in a live situation, because the practices are short,” said Harvick. “The Xfinity car is going to be the best tool, and just being able to make laps is the most important thing.”

Harvick will be joined by fellow Cup drivers – Austin Dillon, Kyle Busch, Cole Custer and Tyler Reddick – in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race on Saturday. 

Spread the love