Weekly picks from Spade Racing’s writer/webmaster/janitor Mike Mackler’s uncle.
Its a time of change in Nascar—changing networks (from Fox to NBC), going back to tracks for the first time all season, and probably about the 8th different guy to drive the 23 car this year. Now WHY is that? Who the heck starts a race team and figures, “hey, why don’t we put about a dozen different random guys in the car all year, THAT’LL make us successful!”
Speaking of which, I’ll be one of the many of my friends working the BBQ at my friend Jerry’s Fourth of July Cookout. I don’t get a chance to bar-be-que as much as I’d like to (my apartment complex doesn’t allow them), but I’m more than willing to help out. And here’s a word of advice—if someone buys beer-flavored brats and one of the guys at the party is allergic to beer, DON’T try to “burn off all the beer”—you’ll wind up with meat the consistency of Lincoln Logs.
Anyways, here’s my picks for the upcoming race weekend at Daytona (total wins in parenthesis):
Xfinity Series Coca-Cola Firecracker 250 (5 wins)—Justin Allgaier—at least any start-and-parkers can claim they thought it was a 15 lap race.
Cup Series Coke Zero 400: FAVORITE (3 wins)—Martin Truex Jr.—the king of stages holds off any cinderellas of the restrictor plates. NEXT FAVORITE (1 win)—Ryan Blaney—how cool would it be to see the 21 car back in Victory Lane in Daytona…well, with someone who actually has a future in racing this time. DARK HORSE—Bubba Wallace—you just KNOW the 43 team is going to throw everything they have at this race.