Who Captures NASCAR's In-Season Tourney? Predictions For Every Round

Need help filling out your NASCAR in-season tournament bracket?

Well, here is a look at mine in picking the matchups that will run concurrently with the regular-season races over the next five weeks. Either take these picks as gold or as a sign to pick my losers. But use at your own risk.

Denny Hamlin drives during the NASCAR Cup Series The Great American Getaway 400 

My picks are in bold and the seeding (determined by best finish in the last three races) is in parentheses. Obviously, my matchups beyond the first round are dependent on my picks.

FIRST ROUND — Atlanta

Denny Hamlin (1) vs.Ty Dillon (32)

Hamlin’s results at Atlanta since it became a drafting-style track haven’t been great, but they have been better than Dillon’s. 

Kyle Busch (16) vs. Brad Keselowski (17)

This might be the toughest pick of the entire opening round. But I would go with Busch. He has led 65 laps in the last three races. And he's nearly won, as he was part of that incredibly close three-way finish with Daniel Suarez and Ryan Blaney. He has five consecutive top-10 finishes at Atlanta. Keselowski has failed to finish two of the last three.

Alex Bowman (8) vs. Joey Logano (25)

Sorry, Bowman, but Logano has two wins in his last five Atlanta starts. Of course, like most drafting tracks, his other three finishes aren’t all that great. But Logano typically is the stronger drafting-track racer.

Joey Logano looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series The Great American Getaway 400 at Pocono Raceway 

Bubba Wallace (9) vs. Daniel Suarez (24)

I know, I know, Suarez won at Atlanta last year. And he has two second-place finishes in the last four races. But Wallace overall has run better this season. Both drivers have immense pressure on them to