At last, the off week is over. A hate off weeks. I probably have said that a million times. Now on to Sonoma. One of Nascar’s two road courses, this track has been the home of some amazing finishes, including last year when Kyle Busch began his dramatic championship run with a close win in this race over his brother Kurt.

Road courses have rarely been dominated by one driver in particular. But there is one who is the master of these courses: Tony Stewart. Stewart has 7 road course wins, including two at Sonoma. He has always been good at these tracks, and he is coming off a very strong run at Michigan. He is one to watch this weekend.

Stewart’s teammate Kurt Busch also merits watching. Kurt Busch has run well at this track many times, and has a win here. Kevin Harvick has had some road course success, but no wins here. Danica Patrick isn’t outstanding here either. But with Kurt Busch and Tony Stewart on the track, this team has a good chance at win this weekend.\

Hendrick Motorsports will come into this race, and for the first time in 20 years, they won’t have Jeff Gordon. And Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kasey Kahne aren’t exactly known for success here. That leaves rookie Chase Elliot. Well, if you ask me, Elliot is undoubtedly the team’s best shot at a win this weekend. Elliot has a road course win in the Truck Series, and has very good road course stats in the Xfinity Series. So watch for him this weekend.

The other team to watch is Joe Gibbs Racing. Kyle Busch has won this race twice, and teammate Carl Edwards has won it once. Denny Hamlin and Matt Kenseth have never won this race. But between Carl and Kyle, JGR has a good shot this weekend. Also, Martin Truex Jr., driving for Furniture Row Racing, has won here before, and the help of JGR tech may help.

Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Jamie McMurray and Kyle Larson may have a chance this weekend. Both have consistently good starts here, but McMurray is a better finisher than Larson. Can they close the deal? Maybe.

So who wins this weekend? Well, I really like Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch. Both have great history here, and Stewart needs a win. Last year Stewart had a good chance to win this race and his pit crew had a bad stop late in the race. If he can avoid that, I think he has a good chance this weekend.