Race Picks ATLANTA: Spade Racing vs. AI


Join me as I test my wits against various AI programs in picking the 2026 Cup races.  Once they’ve made their picks, I’ll make my normal Favorite, Next Favorite, and Dark Horse picks (in addition to my regular O’Reilly & Truck Series picks).  At the end of the year we’ll see who knows more—me, or a soulless machine gobbling up water and electricity.


Google Gemini sez: “Because the race is live/imminent, we don't have a winner yet, but here is the breakdown of who is most likely to take the checkered flag based on the latest odds and track history.  Atlanta's "new" configuration (re-profiled in 2022) makes it a "drafting track," similar to Daytona or Talladega. This means drivers with strong superspeedway skills have the edge.  William Byron: The defending winner of this race (2025). He has mastered the drafting style at Atlanta and is currently one of the safest bets.”


Meanwhile, here’s MY human picks:

Truck Series Fr8 208 Saturday 1:30pm ET on FS1: KYLE BUSCH—its Groundhog Day all over again.


O’Reilly Series Bennett 250 Saturday 5pm ET on CW: AUSTIN HILL—same time, same day, same channel, same winner.


Cup Series Daytona 500 Sunday 3pm on Fox  FAVORITE: DENNY HAMLIN—“break up the Toyotas!”.  NEXT FAVORITE: KYLE LARSON—the four cars of Hendrick could be a HUGE advantage at this drafting track.  DARK HORSE: anyone from SPIRE—7, 71, or 77 (so Geoff Bodine, Dave Marcis, or Bobby Hillin Jr.)



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A MOXOC Media production

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Spade Racing Opens Two Blaster Boxes of 2025 Select Cards—Pack 12 of 12


Rather than a “hobby box”, I decided to go with the more economical choice of two “Blaster Boxes” for the 2025 Select cards.  With six packs of five cards each in each box, that’s twelve packs to open!


Pack 12: Taking its Toll, Highlights of Cole, and On a Roll


First Look: Denny seems to be thinking here about strategy calls for the near future.  Or how many millions he’s gone through in legal fees for the Charter lawsuit.


To the Back: Yup, Cole’s a real modern version of Bobby Hillin Jr.


Say What: “Sponsorship and a great ride—now I just need a win…or top five… or top twenty.”


Final Rating: 5 post-race interviews out of 10




www.spaderacing.com updated four times weekly


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Foundational Bricks—The 1994 Brickyard 400: 7th, Brett Bodine

Join me as I take a look back every Monday at the starting lineup for one of the biggest races in NASCAR history, the inaugural Brickyard 400.


Starting 7th: Brett Bodine #26 Quaker State/NationaLease King Racing Ford


Finished: 2nd


Brett Bodine's car (in green)
pre-Brickyard 400
Career Highlights: This race, one-time Cup Series race-winner, current pace car driver, ran the former Junior Johnson team into the ground.


Total Brickyard 400 Starts: 9


Best Brickyard 400 Finish: 2nd (1994)


1994 Fun Fact: The 1994 Brickyard 400 was the highlight of the season for Brett, who finished a surprising runner-up.  And hey—sometimes when someone says “I’d knock my own family out of the way to try and win”, they really mean it.



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Five More Dale Earnhardt Documentaries Currently in Production


This is a parody

Following the success of Prime’s “Earnhardt” and FS1’s “We’ve Lost Dale Earnhardt”, nearly half-a-dozen additional documentaries have been green-lit for production on Dale Earnhardt, sources have confirmed.

“We’ve barely scratched the surface on what can be done”, said Nascar Communications spokesman Steve Wright.  “There’s so many more perspectives to be seen, so many more moments to analyze, so much more money to be made.  Um, scratch that last one.”

NBC Sports confirmed that they are working on a two-hour-long documentary titled “Earnhardt: Extended Family, Extended Mourning” which will look at lesser-known members of the racing family and how Dale Sr’s death affected them.

“We have some great interviews with Nicki Earnhardt-McNair, Dale Sr’s second cousin”, said a producer on the special.  “Plus, you won’t want to miss how Earnhardt’s perishing on national tv has affected the karting career of Joey Foreman, Dale’s great-nephew’s half-brother.”

TNT Sports, meanwhile, is going in a different direction.

“Thanks to our longtime relationship with Nascar, we have access to some amazing never-before-seen footage of The Intimidator”, said John Forde about a currently untitled three-part series.  “You’ll love to see how Kenny Wallace reacts to footage of Dale brushing his teeth before the 1989 Winston Cup Awards Banquet.  And just wait until you realize the impact that Hank Parker Sr. had on Dale before the 1993 Coca-Cola 600—I don’t want to give anything away, but he told him ‘good luck’”.

All five documentaries under production are expected to be released later this fall, at which point they’ll be crushed in the ratings by a replay of a pre-season NFL game.


www.spaderacing.com updated four times weekly


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Race Picks DAYTONA/PREVIEW: Spade Racing vs. AI

With my Uncle Max retiring from making race picks, I decided to start making my OWN picks again in 2026.  But who would I compete against?  An expert?  A friend?  Past performance?

No—how about Artificial Intelligence.

Every week this year I’ll ask an AI platform who it thinks is going to win the Cup race.  Then, I’ll make my normal Favorite, Next Favorite, and Dark Horse picks (in addition to my regular O’Reilly & Truck Series picks).  At the end of the year we’ll see who knows more—me, or a soulless machine gobbling up water and electricity.


ChatGPT sez: “I can’t definitively predict who will win the 2026 Daytona 500 — the race itself hasn’t happened yet (it’s scheduled for Sunday, February 15, 2026) and the outcome is uncertain until the checkered flag falls.

However, based on current odds, expert forecasts, and early betting markets, here’s a snapshot of the top contenders and likely favorites heading into the race:

Ryan Blaney—One of the top early favorites in betting markets.”


Meanwhile, here’s MY human picks:

Truck Series Fresh From Florida 250 Friday 7:30pm ET on FS1: TONY STEWART—no, it’s not fixed.  But it does help having four teammates in the draft.


O’Reilly (formerly Xfinity) Series United Rentals 300 Saturday 5pm ET on CW: BRANDON JONES—perfect combo of experience, teammates, and equipment…at Menards.


Cup Series Daytona 500 Sunday 2:30pm on Fox  FAVORITE: AUSTIN CINDRIC—the Austin who races for a family team that we like.  NEXT FAVORITE: AUSTIN DILLON—the Austin who races for a family team that we don’t like.  DARK HORSE: JUSTIN ALLGAIER—if only to bring back the glory days of the diecast market.



www.spaderacing.com updated four times weekly


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Visit the store https://www.cafepress.com/spaderacing


Buy the book 100 Stock Car Racing What Ifs Unauthorized


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A MOXOC Media production

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Spade Racing Opens Two Blaster Boxes of 2025 Select Cards—Pack 11 of 12


Rather than a “hobby box”, I decided to go with the more economical choice of two “Blaster Boxes” for the 2025 Select cards.  With six packs of five cards each in each box, that’s twelve packs to open!


Pack 11: Ensations, Two Different Occasions, and Orange Nation


First Look: With Freeway taking over as lead sponsor for Daniel at Spire, AND becoming a premiere partner next season, Suarez has what its take to rocket all the way to 15th.


To the Back: Odd wording there.  Maybe eliminate the second line and mention how it was the rare occasion he didn’t wreck half the field.


Say What: “Ugh—with all this orange I feel like I’m from Syracuse.”


Final Rating: 6 overtime restart out of 10



www.spaderacing.com updated four times weekly


www.facebook.com/spaderacing


www.twitter.com/spaderacing


Visit the store https://www.cafepress.com/spaderacing


Buy the book 100 Stock Car Racing What Ifs Unauthorized


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A MOXOC Media production

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Foundational Bricks—The 1994 Brickyard 400: 6th, Bill Elliott

Join me as I take a look back every Monday at the starting lineup for one of the biggest races in NASCAR history, the inaugural Brickyard 400.


Starting 6th: Bill Elliott #11 Budweiser Junior Johnson & Associates Ford


Finished: 3rd


Career Highlights: 1989 Cup Series champion, 44 Cup Series wins, first-ever Winston Million winner, all but one win in a red car!


Total Brickyard 400 Starts: 16


Best Brickyard 400 Finish: Winner (2002)

Elliott's 1994 car


1994 Fun Fact: Bill’s win in the 1994 Southern 500 was his last win for over seven years, during which time he struggled in his own equipment.  On the plus side, he DID get a lifetime supply of McNuggets.



www.spaderacing.com updated four times weekly


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Spade Racing’s 2026 Previews TRUCK SERIES: Pick Your Game

When we go to the casino, we like to picture ourselves playing massive bets like James Bond.  In reality, we’re mostly middle class people just trying to make a little extra cash and have fun while doing it—just like most of the Truck Series!  Here’s a preview of the 2026 season, with a matching casino game to boot.


KEY: #. Driver name Car # & Team

#—predicted finish in the regular season standings

Chevrolet, Dodge/Ram, Ford, Toyota

Special thanks to Jayski for most of the information here, all of which is subject to change

Full-time teams/drivers only

All pictures courtesy Wikipedia


1. Ty Majeski #88 ThorSport Racing: High-stakes baccarat, in the room you can only enter if you’re wearing a suit or a cocktail dress.


2. Grant Enfinger #9 CR7 Motorsports: No-limit poker, where every player has a free casino jacket on.


3. Tyler Ankrum #18 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing: Dollar slots where you get a free drink every hour for playing.


4. Layne Riggs #34 Front Row Motorsports: Craps, but the kind where people actually know how the heck to play it.


5. Kaden Honeycutt #11 Tricon Garage: Blackjack with a really pretty dealer.


6. Jake Garcia #98 ThorSport Racing: Sports book “exotics” betting where everybody has “a system”.


7. Ben Rhodes #99 ThorSport Racing: Regular baccarat, with most of the players there because their casino guidebook told them to.


8. Justin Haley #16 Kaulig Racing: Progressive jackpot slots.


9. Daniel Hemric #19 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing: “Exotic” poker games that, deep down, you know you can’t win.


10. Chandler Smith #38 Front Row Motorsports: OTB parimutuel horse race betting (the kind where the median age of the bettors is about 80).


11. Brenden “Butterbean” Queen  #12 Kaulig Racing: Blackjack with an average-looking dealer—and the guy next to you is wearing pajama pants.


12. Tanner Gray #15 Tricon Garage: That one gigantic slot machine with the huge lever to pull every casino seems to have.


13. Gio Ruggiero #17 Tricon Garage: Low-limit poker with at least one player who used to be a day trader.


14. Cole Butcher #13 ThorSport Racing: The “big wheel” that nobody ever wins at.


15. Stewart Friesen #13 Halmar Friesen Racing: Double-zero roulette.


16. Christian Eckes #91 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing: Craps, but the kind where nobody knows what the heck they’re doing.


17. Andres Perez de Lara #44 Niece Motorsports: Triple-zero roulette.


18. Daniel Dye #10 Kaulig Racing: Penny slots, aka the best way to drain $100 in fifteen minutes.


19. Dawson Sutton #26 Rackley W.A.R.: Sports book betting where everyone is paying for their wagers in crumpled-up bills.


20. Kris Wright #81 McAnally-Hilgemann Racing: Pin the tail on the donkey.


21. Frankie Muniz #33 Team Reaume: I’m thinking of a number between 1 and 10.



www.spaderacing.com updated four times weekly


www.facebook.com/spaderacing


www.twitter.com/spaderacing


Visit the store https://www.cafepress.com/spaderacing


Buy the book 100 Stock Car Racing What Ifs Unauthorized


Does this track have lights?


A MOXOC Media production

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