Critical Path Security 2026 5 Drivers to Watch: Atlanta

After running on the highbanks of Daytona, NASCAR heads to their second straight superspeedway with all three series. NASCAR’s creation that is EchoPark Speedway has done the near impossible by winning over the fans. While some will argue it was not necessary, it is difficult to argue that the racing at the former Atlanta Motor Speedway is not excellent. Well, at least for the Cup Series. The two lower series still get caught between superspeedway and standard intermediate racing. Still, EchoPark Speedway has become a highlight on the NASCAR calendar. This weekend should be no different. Since it is pack racing still, there are plenty of drivers who could be contenders. Will any of those be part of the 2026 5 Drivers to Watch list for Atlanta?

Kyle Busch

Although Kyle Busch has struggled to find victory lane in the Cup Series, the same cannot be said for his tenure in the Craftsman Truck Series. Over the past 2 seasons, Busch has stepped into Spire Motorsports’ 7 truck for his 5-starts. In each of those seasons, Rowdy has managed to win at EchoPark Speedway. Working the front of the pack, the Truck Series veteran manages to keep the regulars in his rearview. For the third straight season, that looks to be a possibility. As seen as Daytona, the Spire trucks are still fast working the draft. How many times did Carson Hocevar and Michael McDowell drive through the field last Friday?

With what should be a fast truck, Kyle Busch should have no issue qualifying up front and keeping it out there. The draft at EchoPark is a bit more strung out than Daytona. It should be easier for the leader to control the lanes behind him, as fans have seen in recent years. There is no reason to expect anything different this weekend. Bank on it being the Kyle Busch show whenever the Truck Series manages to get on track.

Austin Hill

From one potentially dominant driver to another, Austin Hill cannot be stopped. Even with the entire field trying to best him, Hill is almost undeniable on superspeedways. Last week, Hill collected his 11th O’Reilly Series superspeedway win. At EchoPark, the RCR driver has managed to win 5 of the 8 races held at the track. Unless the 21 team stumbles on pit road or Hill is wiped out early, expect him to win again this weekend. It might not be the most exciting result, but it is greatness on display. The skill is second to none, only potentially rivaled by his teammate Jesse Love. Maybe if the entire field decides to dump him, then Austin Hill will not win this weekend.

Nick Sanchez

For the lower series of NASCAR, one of the most bizarre silly season moves was the announcement that Nick Sanchez would not be returning to Big Machine Racing. After completing a successful rookie season that included a win and playoff appearance, the Chevy organization let Sanchez go after funding issues. There was not much news about Sanchez through December and January, which was a bit of a surprise. The young driver certainly has demonstrated talent between his Truck and O’Reilly Series starts. It was not a question of if someone would pick up Sanchez, but who?

In another bizarre silly season fiasco, AM Racing was set to be sold to Sigma Racing and run under that banner. However, shortly before Daytona, it was announced the deal fell through and AM Racing was back. Still running the 25 car, AM Racing tabbed Nick Sanchez to pilot their fulltime entry. The pairing does make sense and could yield promising results. An incident at Daytona left Sanchez with a poor finish, but maybe EchoPark is what he needs right now. The location of his first career O’Reilly win, Sanchez should be a contender to upset Hill. The big problem for Sanchez might be the lack of help. Per the entry list, there is only one other Ford in the field. Hopefully for Sanchez, he can rely on some old Chevy friends.

Chase Briscoe

Chase Briscoe qualified on the front row of the Daytona 500. That is the end of anything positive that happened for the 19 team at Daytona. Other than leading a handful of laps in his duel, Briscoe’s Daytona experience was not one to remember. Culminating in a DNF, Briscoe now sits last in points. With the return of The Chase, sitting last in points leaving Daytona actually has some impact on the championship hunt. Obviously, no one is pushing the panic button for Briscoe. But, it is refreshing that there are ramifications for bad weekends now without win-and-in.

Unfortunately for Chase Briscoe, EchoPark Speedway is not a great track for the JGR driver. In 10 starts (8 being on the reconfigured track), Briscoe has yet to finish inside the Top-10. His best finish is 15th (twice) and 3 of his last 4 starts have ended in a DNF. Entering this weekend sitting last in points, the potential is there that Briscoe could still leave Atlanta at the bottom of the standings. Once again, it will not be panic time. But it will still a hole that Briscoe has to climb out of moving forward in the season.

Austin Cindric

The Daytona 500 certainly lacked that Team Penske drafting magic. While Austin Cindric picked up 9 points in Stage 1, there was never a moment where the Penske trio (plus Josh Berry) had control of the field. They were unable to link up in the pack very often. When they did, it was usually only Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano drafting together. To be fair to Cindric, he did sustain damage in the Stage 2 wreck. That effectively took him out of the running. Cindric spent the final stage puttering around by himself, only finding the occasional friend with Austin Dillon’s nose-less car.

Unlike Chase Briscoe, Austin Cindric has a great shot at turning his season around in one race. Cindric is still a strong driver in the draft. Whether he finds his Penske teammates or not, the 2 car will likely be featured near the front of the pack. Stage points will be where Cindric could cash in. Even when Cindric does not have a solid finish, he usually finishes inside the Top-5 in each stage. That alone would boost the Penske driver from 29th to a more respectable position in points. Watch out for Austin Cindric throughout the race, making moves through the pack and battling for stage points.

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