NASCAR: What to watch for in the 2018 Consumers Energy 400

This weekend, the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series travels to Michigan International Speedway for the Consumers Energy 400.

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series is heading to Michigan International Speedway with a new face among the list of race winners. This week, it’s back to oval racing and strictly left-hand turns. It’s getting close to crunch time for the 2018 playoffs with just four races remaining in the regular season.

Many people said that this past Sunday’s race, the Go Bowling at The Glen, at Watkins Glen International would be the last “wild card” race on the schedule before the playoffs. If a driver outside of the top 16 would get in, this race gave them their best shot to do so.

Chase Elliott was able to hold off a charging Martin Truex Jr. to secure his first career Cup Series victory in that race, locking him into the playoffs and all but ending the playoff dreams of several other drivers.

It’s time for the second Michigan race of the season this Sunday, which means high banks and high speeds reaching over 200 miles per hour. Clint Bowyer was the winner of the race in June, but it was shortened due to rain. This weekend, we could see something similar, as rain once again plagues the forecast. Here is what to watch for in this weekend’s Consumers Energy 400.

What to watch

Kyle Busch might snap if he doesn’t win

One thing that many people didn’t see on Sunday at Watkins Glen was Kyle Busch spinning out in turn one after the completion of the Go Bowling at The Glen. He was so frustrated with the way the race went that he went too hot into the first turn and spun.

Then in his post-race interview, Busch sounded rather disgusted. Sure, he had the car to beat and if 10 more laps had been added to the race, he probably would have caught the leaders. I would look for him to win at all costs this weekend.

Chevrolet is still in the Cup Series

After a 20-race win drought, Chase Elliott found victory lane for Chevrolet, giving them their second win of the season. Could this mean bigger things for the 2018 season for Chevrolet? Winning at Watkins Glen gives Chevrolet teams the mindset that the manufacturer can still win in the Cup Series. It will be very interesting to see where Chevrolet drivers go from here. Toyota and Ford drivers have had the spotlight, but now it’s Chevrolet’s turn to find victory lane more consistently.

Rain again?

Early alerts show a 30% chance of rain on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway. It is very early in the week to get a real accurate reading, but the threat of rain as of Monday is imminent. We saw rain tires used for a short period of time in Saturday’s Zippo 200 at The Glen, the Xfinity Series race, but chances are pretty good that we won’t be seeing them this weekend at Michigan.

One driver I am sure would like to see rain tires used more often is A.J. Allmendinger. Allmendinger was flying in the Zippo 200 at The Glen in the rain tires. Sorry, though, “Dinger”; you won’t be using them this weekend, unfortunately.

What will you be watching for this weekend at Michigan International Speedway? Who is your pick to win the Consumers Energy 400? Tune into all of the action on NBC Sports Network this Sunday, August 12 starting at 2:30 p.m. ET.