On Sunday, the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series will embark on a 312-lap duel in the desert around the one-mile Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona.
Here’s what you need to know ahead of the fourth race of the 2026 Cup Series season.
Favorite: Ryan Blaney (+500, per DraftKings)
There hasn’t been a driver better at Phoenix in the Next-Gen era than Blaney, who has seven top-fives in his last eight starts at the track. That includes a win in the 2025 Cup Series season finale and a total of 286 laps led over those eight starts.
Blaney is always good in the long run, and at a racetrack that usually features plenty of green flag racing, he’s sure to be up front.
Underdog: Bubba Wallace (+4000, per DraftKings)
There’s no sugarcoating it: Phoenix has not been a good track for Wallace. In 16 starts, he has an average finish of 20.7, and he’s failed to finish the last two races at the venue.
But two of three top-10 runs at Phoenix have come in the Next-Gen era, and he finished no worse than 16th in the last four races at the track where he finished. He’s second in the standings after three races, and his No. 23 team has to be brimming with confidence.
If Wallace is inside the top-10 on Sunday, one crazy restart could be all he needs to jump into contention.
How will Anthony Alfredo fare in the No. 48?
Anthony Alfredo will have the best opportunity of his NASCAR career thus far when he drives the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet on Sunday in place of an injured Alex Bowman.
But the 26-year-old with 43 Cup Series starts to his name won’t be drinking out of a fire hose this weekend. As the full-time sim driver for HMS, he has plenty of virtual experience at Phoenix.
Will Alfredo contend for the win? Likely not. But Sunday will be an impromptu audition for a driver looking for a big break.
Tyler Reddick looking for four wins in a row
Not since Jimmie Johnson in 2007 has a Cup Series driver won four straight races. Tyler Reddick can do that and extend his own record of four straight victories to start a season on Sunday.
Like his 23XI teammate in Wallace, Phoenix hasn’t been a great track for Reddick. He finished 20th and 26th in the two races at the one-mile oval a season ago. But Reddick wasn’t necessarily an acclaimed superspeedway racer, either, yet he won at Daytona and Atlanta to open the season.
And as if he needs any more motivation to win Sunday, 23XI Racing co-owner Michael Jordan will be watching on-site as his driver looks to make more history.