NASCAR
Stratta’s Six: Who Can Win Big at Watkins Glen?
A road course plays host to NASCAR action once again this week. The annual trek to upstate New York’s Watkins Glen International is on deck. The Playoffs are only two weeks away, with three spots still open for the taking. Last week’s road course race at Indianapolis came down to a chess match between three bubble drivers. One of Watkins Glen’s best drivers ever enters Sunday in a win or go home scenario. Here are a few contenders to keep a watchful eye for in Sunday’s Go Bowling at The Glen.
Chase Elliott
Nobody will have more attention on them this weekend than two-time Watkins Glen winner Chase Elliott. The 9 went to Watkins Glen victory lane for two of his first five career wins in 2018 and 2019. Elliott had prime winning chances in the last two races here as well. Coming off a strong runner-up result on the Indy Road Course, Elliott appears poised for a breakthrough win at one of his best racetracks.
“Watkins Glen always stands out to me because of the first win,” Elliott said. “That one will always be special because of that. Will it always be good to us? Probably not, but I do enjoy going up there. It is a very nice part of the country – a very underrated part of the country. Just the memories I have from that first win weekend are super special and something that I will hold onto forever.”
“Certainly, don’t want to have yourself in a position to have to win at Daytona, but that’s a possibility at this point. I feel way better about going to Watkins Glen than I do Daytona because there is more in my control going there verses a plate race.”
Even with top-10s in seven of the 10 Next Gen road course races, last week was arguably Elliott’s best showing yet. The seven-time road course winner has not grabbed a checkered flag in over two years. If not for a flat tire and being ran wide on a late restart though, Elliott could have four-straight Watkins Glen triumphs. Coming into Sunday with the shortest odds and as the sentimental favorite, Elliott may just end up in familiar victory lane again.
Martin Truex Jr.
2017 Watkins Glen winner Martin Truex Jr. has also not been too shabby here in recent years. Last year’s 23rd-place run ended a five-race top-10 streak, including his victory. The points leader is also looking for a second road course win this year, trying to seal up the regular season championship a week early.
“Every single race is important,” Truex said. “I don’t know how anyone can say they don’t matter. We are looking at locking up 15 bonus points by trying to get the regular season championship. It’s an opportunity to lock up a lot of bonus points and that’s what matters in the Playoffs. Every race is equally important. All 26 matter and all 26 can earn you points and do things that will help you in the Playoffs. For us, it’s business as usual and these races are all important.”
“It’s a tough corner,” Truex said about Watkins Glen turn one. “It’s downhill and bumpy and heaving-braking, it sets up the whole run through the esses. The esses are really fast and you have to come out of (turn) one up to speed. If you bleed time off of turn one, your whole lap is over, so it’s very critical. It’s a high-speed track and a momentum track so they are all critical spots, but that’s what starts the lap, so it’s the first most important part there. And if you make it through there, you have to navigate the bus stop and that’s probably the biggest challenge at the track. We have Siemens on board with us this week for the first time, so it’s a good track for them to be along with us, a place I like a lot. They’ve been a technology partner with JGR since 1999 and they do a lot of things behind the scenes to help our engineers to keep learning and make us better. Excited to have them on our car this weekend at Watkins Glen.”
Truex quietly persevered at Indy and came home seventh. While other title contenders have faltered over the past few weeks, Truex remains consistently up front. Now riding a streak of five-straight top-10s, MTJ should be seen as a sleeper pick for any race, but especially Watkins Glen.
Kyle Larson
While Chase Elliott has narrowly lost the last two Watkins Glen races, each of them went to teammate Kyle Larson. Aiming to become the third driver with a Watkins Glen three-peat, the 5 team is desperately looking for any positive Playoff momentum.
“From 2019 to 2021 with the old car, (Hendrick) had a great road course package,” Larson said. “We (the No. 5 team) were really fast there at Watkins Glen. Chase (Elliott) and I have had really good cars the past few years. With the Next Gen, the car drove great from what I remember last year. I felt like Chase and I were fast in the field for sure. I hope it’s the same when we get back because it’s always fun when you’re fast.”
Larson does enter The Glen with two-straight top-10s, but with a grand total of two laps led since Pocono in July. Watkins Glen is shockingly the only track Larson’s won on multiple times with the 5 team. Expect this Hendrick crew to be ones to beat again on Sunday.
Daniel Suarez
Much like Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez had his most impressive outing of the season a week ago at Indy. From the pole to eventually finishing third, the 99 was up front all race long among the leaders. If not for a miscue on their last pit stop, Suarez may have ended up in victory lane. Coming to a different road course at Watkins Glen, Suarez is confident in another strong day from his Trackhouse team.
“We just need to keep doing what we are doing,” Suarez said. “That’s qualify well and earn Stage points and get a good finish. There is still a lot of racing left and we know we can do this. If we have as good a car at Watkins Glen as we had at Indianapolis we know we can win there. That’s true about Daytona as well.”
“This is fun. This is what we like to do. If we are relaxed we will perform our best. We are excited about going to Watkins Glen. We want the trophy! That’s what matters. I don’t even think about points or what someone else is doing. We control what we can control.”
Watkins Glen is surprisingly one of Suarez’s best statistical tracks. In five career starts at The Glen, Suarez has three top-fives, including fifth last year. If the 99 team brings another car as strong as last week, then they will have another optimal winning chance.
Chris Buescher
The unprecedented road course top-10 streak for Chris Buescher did end at Indianapolis. The No. 17 Ford was 11th, being oh so close to extending it to nine races. Watkins Glen a year ago was a part of this streak. Buescher placed a career-best ninth that day in New York. Simply going for broke now as a Playoff lock, Buescher could be scary good again at The Glen.
RFK Racing appears to be peaking just in time for a postseason push. Dating back to Bristol Dirt in April, Buescher has not finished worse than 20th. This consistency spans a 17-race stretch, a career-best for Buescher. Clearly dialed in for road courses of every type, another great day should be in store for the 17 team.
Michael McDowell
Front Row Motorsports stunned many a week ago by having the dominant car with Michael McDowell at Indy. Can the 34 team possibly go back-to-back? McDowell started third and finished sixth here last year, spending 14 laps out front. McDowell calls Watkins Glen his favorite road course; lightning could very well strike twice for this Playoff upset team.
“At Watkins Glen, I always know what I need out of the car,” McDowell said. “Where this team is good, and why we were good last year, our Love’s guys can quickly adjust in a short practice or qualifying. I can also give them feedback on our setup before we get to the track of what we need to do to be fast. So, yes, I think that gives us a lot of confidence.”
Across the 10 Next Gen road course races, McDowell has seven top-10s including last week’s win. By far one of the most consistent road course drivers in the sport today, the 34 cannot be counted out of Sunday’s winning contenders.
Crunch time is here for the Playoffs, with many stout road course racers still outside the top-16. While many are immediately pointing to Chase Elliott as a shoe-in for Sunday’s win, the 9 will have stiff competition. The green flag will wave in the Empire State Sunday at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. A very timely win caused a major shift on the Playoff bubble last week. Can another road course in Watkins Glen give us a repeat of this drama?
Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo Credit to Sean Gardner/Getty Images
