Whenever the NASCAR Cup Series visits a drafting-style racetrack, underdog drivers are always one of the biggest storylines. Ahead of Sunday’s Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, here are underdogs to watch.
Corey LaJoie, No. 01 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Rick Ware Racing
LaJoie was leading on the second-to-last restart in Sunday’s Daytona 500, and his No. 01 Ford clearly had speed. LaJoie is running a limited part-time schedule in 2025, making every race that much more important for a driver looking for future opportunities. Since Atlanta was reconfigured into a superspeedway in 2022, it’s arguably been LaJoie’s best track. He finished inside the top-five at Atlanta in the spring of 2022 and 2023, and led 19 laps in the summer of 2022 before he was passed for the lead by Chase Elliott with two laps to go. If he has the car underneath him to get to the front, LaJoie should be in the mix late.
Justin Haley, No. 7 Chevrolet, Spire Motorsports
Haley was a superspeedway ace in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and while his superspeedway prowess hasn’t completely translated to the Cup Series, he’s still a safe bet to dice it up with the leaders. Haley has two top-10s at Atlanta since the reconfiguration, and finished 12th at the 1.5 mile track in September of 2024. He didn’t have the speed he was expected to have at Daytona, but it was in the Spire No. 7 that LaJoie nearly won at Atlanta in July of 2022.
Ty Dillon, No. 10 Chevrolet, Kaulig Racing
Dillon rallied from a lap down to finish 14th in the Daytona 500, and showed solid speed at both Bowman Gray Stadium and Daytona. His best finish at the reconfigured AMS is only 19th, but if Daytona was any indication, he should be able to run with the leaders. Dillon is a driver with plenty to prove, so if he’s given the opportunity to fight for the race win, he’ll take advantage of that opportunity.
Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Ford Mustang Dark Horse, Front Row Motorsports
Perhaps Gilliland’s most impressive Cup Series performance to this point in his career came at Atlanta in February of 2024. While a late incident took him out of contention, Gilliland qualified fourth and led 58 laps. Gilliland qualified third at Atlanta in September, so it’s likely that the No. 34 will start inside the top-10 on Sunday. From there, Gilliland’s biggest challenge will be ensuring he’s not caught up in the inevitable ‘Big One’. If he can keep his Ford clean, he should have enough speed to contend for his first career Cup Series win.
Ambetter Health 400 Weekend Schedule:
Saturday, Feb. 22: NASCAR Cup Series Pole Qualifying (11 a.m. ET, Amazon Prime)
Sunday, Feb. 23: NASCAR Raceday (2 p.m. ET, FOX)
Sunday, Feb. 23: NASCAR Cup Series Ambetter Health 400 (3 p.m. ET, FOX, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Note: The NASCAR Cup Series will not have practice for the remainder of superspeedway races in 2025. This rule will also be in effect for the NASCAR Xfinity Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
Joey Logano won the last Cup Series race at Atlanta in September of 2024, while Daniel Suarez is the defending winner of the Ambetter Health 400.
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