NASCAR.com’s 36 for 36 picks for Michigan

NASCAR.com‘s 36 for 36 continues at Michigan International Speedway. 

With 36 races and 36 full-time Charter cars, our players select one car per race, but there‘s a simple twist: once they‘ve made the pick, they can‘t choose that car again for the rest of the 36-race season. Yes, that means every car will be selected exactly once … a survivor pool, by another name. 

Follow along weekly as our panel of pickers — Dustin Albino from Jayski, along with Steve Luvender and Cameron Richardson from NASCAR.com — embarks on a season-long journey to think like strategists and prove their picking prowess. 

We‘ll also feature a fourth “community” 36 for 36 pick each week, as decided by fan vote on the r/NASCAR subreddit. Can the collective vote topple our trio of full-timers?

Current Standings:

1. Steve Luvender: 578

2. Dustin Albino: -63

3. r/NASCAR Community: -64

4. Cameron Richardson: -108

Race 24 of 36: Michigan

Last week‘s race at Richmond didn‘t shake up our 36 for 36 standings much. Cameron Richardson‘s pick of Noah Gragson landed him 17 points, while Dustin Albino and Steve Luvender earned 24 apiece from Josh Berry. The NASCAR subreddit earned the highest points total — 32 points — from Joey Logano, despite a last-lap spin courtesy of Austin Dillon.

Our panel now faces Michigan, the Cup Series‘ lone stop on a high-speed two-mile D-shaped oval, while the playoffs draw near.

Jayski‘s Dustin Albino: No. 71, Zane Smith

Dustin‘s pick last week: No. 4, Josh Berry (24 points)

Total season points: 515 (second place)

Dustin: With how brutal the first three months were for Smith‘s rookie season, he could only salvage his rookie campaign so much after being buried in the championship standings. The No. 71 team has seemingly turned the corner in recent weeks, however, with five top-20 finishes — including a runner-up result at Nashville — over the last nine events. The 2022 Craftsman Truck Series champion has only competed in one national touring series race at Michigan, which resulted in his first truck victory. Here’s to thinking Smith will have another fond memory of MIS this weekend.

NASCAR.com‘s Steve Luvender: No. 17, Chris Buescher

Steve‘s pick last week: No. 4, Josh Berry (24 points)

Total season points: 578 (first place)

Steve: Chris Buescher has five career race wins, and they‘ve all taken place in a 49-day window between July 30 and September 17. Sunday‘s race at Michigan falls within the “Buescher Window” (trademarking that) and the pressure‘s on to lock the No. 17 into the playoffs. Of course, Buescher won at Michigan last year as part of his freakishly good three-win August. The Buescher Window is real.

NASCAR.com‘s Cameron Richardson: No. 17, Chris Buescher

Cameron‘s pick last week:  No. 10, Noah Gragson (17 points)

Total season points: 470 (fourth place)

Cameron: I am sticking to the plan for the long game. I still have 13 races to go even though I‘m more than 100 points back of the lead, but a Chris Buescher pick for Michigan could get me back under that mark. Ford‘s going for its 10th consecutive win at the 2-mile oval and Buescher is the defending winner. He‘s been well overdue to break through in 2024 and with him and Ross Chastain being dead even for the final playoff spot, Sunday would be the perfect day for Buescher to become the 13th driver into the Cup Series Playoffs.

r/NASCAR Community: No. 17, Chris Buescher

r/NASCAR‘s pick last week: No. 22, Joey Logano (32 points)
Total season points: 514 (third place)

The NASCAR subreddit voted defending race winner Chris Buescher as the pick for Sunday. Here‘s what some Redditors had to say in this week‘s voting thread:

u/Blue8844: “I’m okay with burning this pick earlier than I would’ve thought. He needs a solid points day, hoping RFK can deliver.”

u/FridgusDomin8or: “Yes. Defending race winner, RFK is typically the Ford team to beat on the intermediates, and this track has been Ford‘s stomping ground the last number of years.”

u/Extreme-Bite-9123: “We take this guy now. We need a solid points day, and Buescher needs a solid points day. It‘s a no-brainer to pick the guy who won last year”

Check back next week to see how our pickers fared as the season-long 36 for 36 journey continues.

And, if you‘ve got a competitive itch beyond meticulously managing your Fantasy Live lineup each week, feel free to save or print your own 36 for 36 sheet and see if you can beat our pickers and the Reddit community!