Drivers to watch in NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway

After three consecutive short track races, the NASCAR Cup Series returns to high speeds and drafting this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama.

Sunday’s 500-mile race will mark the third high-banks drafting event of the season. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won the Daytona 500 in February, and Joey Logano finished first last month at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Christopher Bell leads the points standings entering the Talladega weekend.

A look at drivers to watch at Talladega:

Kevin Harvick

Harvick, in his final full-time season as a driver, will be making his 800th career start at Talladega. He is the fifth youngest driver to reach that total. Harvick finished 10th and 29th at Talladega last year.

Ross Chastain

Chastain won this race last year and finished fourth in the October Talladega race. He has raced well on all drafting tracks.

Chase Elliott

Elliott, returning to racing Sunday after missing six events because of a broken leg, surprised many by finishing a strong 10th at Martinsville. He has won twice at Talladega and could be a threat to win for the first time this year.

Ryan Preece

Preece is still looking for answers after a rough start to the season. He won the pole and led the first 135 laps at Martinsville but made a mistake leaving the pits, absorbing a speeding penalty. Preece ranks seventh in laps led this year but is one of four full-time drivers yet to finish in the top 10.

Ryan Blaney

Another week and another chance for Blaney to come in from the cold. His 55-race winless streak is his longest since he started his Cup career with a 67-race winless streak. He was runner-up last October at Talladega and has won two of the past seven races there. Team Penske has won eight of the past 15