NASCAR
Stratta’s Six: Who Can Wind Their Way to a Road Course Win at Watkins Glen?
The twisting corners and high speeds of Watkins Glen lie ahead for 38 drivers in Sunday’s Go Bowling at The Glen. One of the fastest road courses anywhere will see its earliest and longest NASCAR race ever. Now 100 laps long and in May, the upstate New York track could be a big wildcard race this weekend. Here are a few who hope to tear up the track with a stellar Sunday performance.
Shane van Gisbergen
Modern NASCAR’s road course king, Shane van Gisbergen chases win number seven this weekend. The Trackhouse Racing star is also the defending Watkins Glen winner, taming this race by 11 seconds last year. SVG is coming off a rare road course defeat at COTA where he was second, and is eager to have another great opportunity as the prerace favorite.
“Yeah, of course but I think it’s an expectation you have to manage,” van Gisbergen said. “We can’t go there and just expect to win, but hopefully we are good and competitive and competing for the win at the end.”
“Yeah, I want to race everything! I would love to do it on ovals as well, especially at tracks like Texas. I would love to do more on ovals to get better, but obviously it’s easier for me to get sponsorship on road courses. Hopefully, if I have good races with these teams, it will lead to more on ovals. All three series should be awesome racing.”
“I hate racing in the rain. But I’m good at it. I’ll adapt if it happens, but I hope it’s dry for all three races. It’s just no fun racing in the rain. You can’t be precise, you got to just wing it, stuff goes wrong, I’ve just never enjoyed it.”
As mentioned above, van Gisbergen will not be short on track time this weekend running all three series. The Supercars road racing ace took very well to Watkins Glen last summer. Entering his third Cup race at Watkins Glen, SVG hopes to find a very familiar victory lane. The No. 97 enters this weekend 19th in the standings, 27 points out of the Chase. Van Gisbergen’s Chase chances may just hinge on max-points Sundays at Watkins Glen and the two other road courses.
Shane van Gisbergen’s No. 97 Red Bull Chevrolet Camaro on pit road from EchoPark (Atlanta) Speedway before winning the Autotrader 400 on Sunday, February 22, 2026. Photo credit: Peter Stratta/TSJSports
Tyler Reddick
The man who beat SVG to the COTA checkers in March, Tyler Reddick rides high into Watkins Glen. The Cup Series points leader has four career road course wins, but none at The Glen. Owning a best New York result of seventh, Reddick has been sneaky good here with four top-10s in five starts. Only two laps led ever around The Glen, though, proves that Reddick’s not been a prime contender yet.
Coming off a fourth-place day in Texas, 23XI Racing appears to still be firing on all cylinders. Reddick already played the role of David vanquishing the Road Course Goliath once this year. If anyone is to stay in touch with SVG on Sunday, the 45 may just take it to the Kiwi.
Tyler Reddick’s No. 45 Pinnacle Toyota Camry on pit road from EchoPark (Atlanta) Speedway before winning the Autotrader 400 on Sunday, February 22, 2026. Photo credit: Peter Stratta/TSJSports
Chris Buescher
2024’s iconic Watkins Glen finish saw Chris Buescher best SVG for the finish with a thrilling last-lap pass. This marked a maiden Cup road course triumph for the Ford driver who’s been a top-10 machine. The RFK Racing No. 17 was uncharacteristically off in COTA, but comes into The Glen on the heels of two-straight top-fives. Buescher aims for another banner Sunday ahead at one of his favorite road courses.
“I like that they added some laps to it,” Buescher said. “I wouldn’t say Watkins Glen was ever a race that felt like it was over as soon as it started from inside the car. It didn’t feel like a short race, but I like the fact that we’re gonna add some more to it. I like that you put a little bit more physical work in everybody. You change up the strategy, albeit it may not be a huge change, but it’s still something different – kind of like Talladega was where when you make a change that does alter what we’ve almost grown accustomed to or we merged in on a pretty common strategy across the entire field, simply making a change like that can put some people off on two or three or more different paths to try and figure out what they want to race for, and whether that’s ultimately setting up to be able to win a race, or if they feel like the stage points are going to be their play on the day, do those 10 laps change that enough? I don’t have that answer yet, but certainly just with those extra laps and that change it has the potential where it can move some things around and sometimes it can be in a rather large way. Obviously, the Talladega stages were a massive departure from what we’ve done there, so lots of unknowns, but I like the fact that it’s a little bit longer. I think the little bit of fan sentiment that I’ve seen today, that people are kind of realizing it’s 10 laps longer, has been pretty positive as well, so I’m here for it.”
“When we go to The Glen, I think that that’s a track where you know, our mind[set] is we’ve been able to win there. We’ve run really well there the last three races, four races. It’s always a good track for us. We always have good speed, so I guess we’re focused on our own race on that one. Certainly, I don’t feel like with what we do, we’re going to be in the hunt to win it. But there is a certain group of drivers that, you’re going to be competing against. It’s going to be the same group that it’s been the last couple of times, [van Gisbergen] included.”
The fall 2024 win here was shockingly Buescher’s most recent Cup triumph, falling 55 races ago. The 17 is now firmly at fifth in points and has been trending towards peak form with three-straight top-10s. This recent stretch was highlighted by a second-place Talladega run. It would not be shocking to see Buescher claim his second Watkins Glen trophy in three years.
Chris Buescher’s No. 17 Trimble Ford Mustang at Bristol Motor Speedway before the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 12, 2026. Photo credit: Peter Stratta/TSJSports
Chase Elliott
Once an almost shoo-in at every NASCAR road course, it’s now been almost five years since Chase Elliott’s most recent win. The seven-time road race winner still finds himself third on the all-time victory list. Watkins Glen in 2018 was Elliott’s breakout first Cup win, and repeated a year later. Fresh off another win at Texas last week, Engine Engine No. 9 hopes to recapture a similar line around The Glen.
“I don’t think the race is going to look a lot different,” Elliott said. “I’d be really surprised if it did. I think the track is already so fast as it is. It was already inside of the window of track position and having to qualify well and all that. And a lot of times, you can have some tracks on the schedule that can change if it gets cooler outside or if it’s warm. It can go from a wide racetrack to one groove, but I think that one in particular was already so far on the side of the fence of pace and line sensitive and just really quick that I don’t see it changing a whole lot.”
Elliott may still be winless on road courses in the Next Gen era, but he’s been close multiple times. The last seven road races dating back to last year have seen the 9 earn five top-10s and an average finish of 9.6, both fourth-best among all drivers. Coming into Watkins Glen as last week’s winner, Elliott hopes to deliver his New York fans another unforgettable Sunday.
Chase Elliott’s No. 9 Napa Auto Parts Chevrolet Camaro on pit road from EchoPark (Atlanta) Speedway before winning the Autotrader 400 on Sunday, February 22, 2026. Photo credit: Peter Stratta/TSJSports
Kyle Larson
Watkins Glen marks one full year since Kyle Larson’s most recent win. The Hendrick 5 does have recent Watkins Glen success, taking the New York checkers in 2021 and 2022. Since then, however, Larson’s best run at The Glen was 12th two years ago. The reigning Cup champion finds himself in a very unique circumstance this weekend, possibly facing a year-long winless streak. Larson was a front runner in COTA, however, and believes that speed can translate to The Glen.
“Watkins Glen is a place where we’ve had some good speed over the years,” Larson said. “We’ll take what we’ve learned earlier this season at COTA with this package and apply it to Watkins Glen. Hopefully this weekend will be a place where we get back on track and leave with the kind of finish we know we’re capable of.”
Back-to-back sub 30th-place results have seen Larson free fall from fifth to eighth in points. Prior to his recent bout of bad luck, however, Larson did earn a pair of podium results. In short, the 5 team has been very hot or ice cold lately — we will see which one shows up at The Glen.
Kyle Larson’s No. 5 HendrickCars.Com Chevrolet Camaro at Bristol Motor Speedway before the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 12, 2026. Photo credit: Peter Stratta/TSJSports
Connor Zilisch
Already seeing two first-time Cup winners in 2026, can Connor Zilisch make it three at The Glen? Running triple duty this weekend, the Trackhouse Racing rookie calls Watkins Glen his favorite track and is no stranger to success here. Zilisch won his O’Reilly debut at Watkins Glen in 2024, backed up that win last year, and led over 100 laps in both races. Zilisch’s rookie season to date is in desperate need of some spark; The Glen could be that silver lining.
“Watkins Glen gives us the chance to kind of level the playing field,” Zilisch said. “The road courses are a strong suit for Trackhouse as a whole and I’m looking forward to this weekend. It’s an opportunity for me to go out and have a good finish and Watkins Glen is a place where we can do that. The Cup Series is tough, and it certainly hasn’t been easy for me, but I enjoy the challenge of coming to these places and learning. It’s a lot different than Saturdays. I have a lot to learn at these tracks.”
“I feel like the track has a good rhythm. You never feel like you’re having to slow down that much. All the corners are pretty high speed, and it just has a good flow to it. Watkins Glen has always treated me well. I feel like I’ve always ran well at Watkins Glen. I’m excited to do my first Cup race there and try to get a good result and continue to build on the momentum we have from Texas.”
COTA could be characterized as a microcosm of Zilisch’s rookie campaign. The No. 88 had some of the fastest laps of anyone, only to be turned on multiple restarts and finish 14th. At 33rd in points, Zilisch needs something to go right for him results-wise to restore the teenager’s confidence and outlook. Similar to SVG, a triple-duty onslaught weekend will only help Zilisch with added track time. Watkins Glen has the chance to kickstart the second half of Zilisch’s maiden Cup year with an upward trajectory.
Connor Zilisch’s No. 88 Roto-Rooter Chevrolet Camaro at Bristol Motor Speedway before the Food City 500 on Sunday, April 12, 2026. Photo credit: Peter Stratta/TSJSports
Watkins Glen is perhaps the most stock car-friendly road course on the circuit. This is due to its high speeds and flowing corners. Who ends up mastering all 11 turns over 100 laps will be rewarded with a very hard-fought win. They will have taken down some of NASCAR’s best road course talent ever. The Go Bowling at The Glen goes green Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on FS1, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Written by Peter Stratta
Be sure to follow us on Twitter/X
Be sure to follow the writer on Twitter/X
Photo credit to Chris Graythen/Getty Images
