4 drivers to watch at Phoenix Raceway

It was a lackluster race in Las Vegas for Ford as its stable of drivers combined to lead just 14 laps. This weekend at Phoenix Raceway is an opportunity to bounce back in a significant way.

Ford led a whopping 89.4% of laps across the two races in Avondale last year. If that wasn't enough, Chase Elliott - the only non-Ford driver to lead more than 12 laps at Phoenix in 2022 - isn't in the race due to a broken tibia sustained snowboarding last week.

Everything shapes up for a big weekend for Ford. We'll see if Chevrolet and/or Toyota have any improvements to battle at the front with NASCAR's new short-track changes for 2023.

This weekend sees the debut of the updated short track and road course package for the Cup Series. Among the changes is a move to a two-inch rear spoiler - a reduction from the four-inch version - as NASCAR looks to improve the racing product at these track types.

"(The changes) basically adds up to about a 30% downforce reduction," Dr. Eric Jacuzzi told NASCAR.com in February. "We're now in a downforce level we haven't been at since pre-2000s for sure - like mid-'90s."

With plenty of storylines to follow this Sunday, here are four drivers to watch at Phoenix Raceway.

Joey Logano

Logano is among the favorites heading into the weekend, having won his second Cup Series championship in November at this venue.

The No. 22 Ford ran away with the title in last year's race. With a 1.9 average running position, 187 laps led, and an outstanding 143.8 driver rating, Logano was untouchable among the championship contenders. Only teammate Ryan Blaney, who was eliminated from title contention, was remotely close to taking the checkered flag ahead of Logano throughout the day.

It's not just that performance that makes Logano one of the top drivers to watch on Sunday, either. The 32-year-old was the only driver to complete all 624 laps across the two races at Phoenix Raceway inside the top 15 positions.

Over the past six races in Avondale, Logano has the most laps led, the highest average finishing position, and is the lone driver with multiple wins.

Logano's recent success at this race track has spanned multiple aerodynamic and engine packages in addition to two generations of cars. That bodes well for Logano being in the hunt Sunday as NASCAR debuts the new short track package for 2023.

Coming off of a disappointing race in Las Vegas, where he crashed and finished last, Logano has an excellent chance to redeem himself this weekend at Phoenix Raceway.

Ryan Blaney

Phoenix Raceway has quickly turned into one of Blaney's best race tracks.

The 29-year-old has three consecutive top fives at the venue - the longest active streak in the Cup Series - and led over 100 laps in each race in Avondale last year.

In fact, Blaney has been among the top contenders here since 2019. He finished third in both races that year, having captured the pole in the spring race. His only non-top-10 finish in that span was due to a crash in the 2020 spring race.

Across the two Phoenix races in 2022, Blaney's 3.4 average running position paced the field. So did his 252 total laps led.

Despite his prowess at Phoenix Raceway, Blaney's yet to go to victory lane here in his Cup Series career. Only Brad Keselowski has more top-10 finishes at Phoenix without a win in Cup Series history.

Blaney's shown an ability to run consistently but has yet to translate that into victories. His last points-paying win was all the way back in August 2021. After consecutive disappointing finishes in Fontana and Las Vegas, a strong run at one of his best venues in Phoenix would do a lot to help Blaney get back on track.

Kevin Harvick

Harvick's top-10 streak at Phoenix Raceway is one of the most impressive statistics in recent NASCAR history.

Harvick hasn't finished outside of the top 10 there since 2013. That's an incredible 19 consecutive races. Included in this mightily impressive streak are six wins and 13 top-five finishes.

Over the past decade, nobody even comes close to touching Harvick's consistency in Avondale.

That being said, Harvick's dominance at Phoenix Raceway has slipped in recent years. He's led just one lap over the past five races there and only has one top-five finish in that span, which came in November's season finale.

The No. 4 Ford may not be the utterly dominant car that we saw from fall 2013 through spring 2016, where Harvick won five of six races, but that doesn't mean they're no longer contenders.

Stewart-Haas Racing had its best results last year on this track type, winning with Chase Briscoe at Phoenix and with Harvick at Richmond. Should they have that speed again, Harvick will not only be in a prime position to extend his top-10 streak to a ridiculous 20 consecutive races at Phoenix Raceway, but he'll also be in the mix for the victory as well.

Chase Briscoe

The defending winner of the spring race at Phoenix, Briscoe proved his first Cup Series victory was no fluke in November's season finale.

Briscoe had an average running position of 3.5 in the fall race and finished fourth. He only led 11 laps in November compared to 101 in the spring, but his average running position was better in the fall race.

With two top-five runs in 2022, Phoenix Raceway is the only track where Briscoe's finished in the top five more than once in his young Cup Series career.

The 28-year-old had an excellent run of form at the end of 2022, finishing top 10 in six of the final seven races of the season. That hasn't translated early in 2023, as Briscoe has yet to finish inside the top 15 and hasn't earned stage points in any of the three races so far.

A strong showing this weekend from the No. 14 Ford is vital to turning the season around.

(Statistics: FRCS, Racing Reference, Driver Averages)