DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The NASCAR season is upon us, which means that every team believes it can win or at least contend for a playoff spot. Much like other sports, everyone is a champion on opening day.
Of course, the first few races will quickly split the contenders and the teams with more work to do. Some will get off to a hot start. others will continue pushing to make progress before the start of the playoffs so that they can peak at the right time.
Another group of teams will look at their shortcomings and try to address them before it is too late in the season.
How will the 2025 Cup Series season play out? No one really knows, but that won't stop us from making some bold predictions.
AltDriver Predictions for the 2025 NASCAR Season
Denny Hamlin makes Championship 4 for the first time in the Gen 7 era - Denny Hamlin has accomplished an extraordinary amount in his Cup Series career. He has won three crown jewel events, including the Daytona 500 three times.
What he hasn't done, however, is reach the Championship 4 in the Gen 7 era (2022-present). His best finish in the championship standings in this era was fifth in 2022 and '23.
That changes this season. Hamlin will win multiple races for the seventh consecutive season and will return to the playoffs. He will avoid the bad luck that has disrupted previous runs, and he will benefit from Toyota's offseason work to become more competitive at tracks where it has struggled since 2022.
Will Hamlin finally win the championship? No one knows. But he will put himself in a position to have the opportunity for the first time since 2021.
Front Row Motorsports celebrates a win - Front Row Motorsports underwent a significant change over the offseason. Longtime driver Michael McDowell headed to Spire Motorsports while Noah Gragson and Zane Smith joined Todd Gilliland in the lineup.
This group of drivers is young and talented yet still unproven at NASCAR's top level. They all have delivered strong runs at times, but they haven't consistently contended for wins.
This season's schedule, as well as FRM's push for improved performance, provide an opportunity for Gilliland, Gragson, and Smith to showcase their skills behind the wheel.
Smith has top-10 finishes on four intermediate tracks and a road course. Gragson has top-10s at multiple superspeedways and intermediate tracks. Gilliland has top-10s on road courses, short tracks, and superspeedways.
It may be too early for all three drivers to contend for spots in the playoffs, but we predict that at least one will deliver a win to Front Row Motorsports. They have shown enough promise on a variety of tracks early in their Cup careers and they drive for what is now a Tier 1 Ford team.
Chase Briscoe wins multiple races - Chase Briscoe is already a Cup Series winner. He captured a win at Phoenix Raceway in 2022 and then returned to victory lane at Darlington Raceway last season. He won both of those races for Stewart-Haas Racing, a team on the downswing and destined for a departure from the Cup Series.
This season, Briscoe is in a significantly different situation. He drives for Joe Gibbs Racing, a team that regularly sends drivers to the Championship 4, and he joins forces with the No. 19 team as it moves on from the Martin Truex Jr. era.
Briscoe has the best equipment of his career, and he has a championship-contending team surrounding him. He also has James Small, a crew chief with something to prove, calling the shots.
This is a recipe for success, and we predict that Briscoe will deliver with at least two trips to victory lane. He will join his Joe Gibbs Racing teammates in the playoffs and will push for at least an appearance in the Round of 8.
Bubba Wallace gets back to victory lane - Bubba Wallace's first two seasons with 23XI Racing featured him celebrating wins at Talladega Superspeedway and Kansas Speedway. He did not make the playoffs due to the timing of these wins, but he showed he could deliver success with this team.
Wallace went winless during the 2023 season, but he made the playoffs on points. He reached the Round of 12 and ultimately finished 10th in the championship standings. Last season, Wallace posted career-best numbers across the board but missed the playoffs due to the number of drivers who won races.
Our prediction is that Wallace will return to victory lane this season while punching his ticket to the playoffs. He is a more experienced driver and he will benefit from the continued work by TRD USA.
Another big reason is that 23XI Racing continues to bring in key contributors. This includes Wallace's new crew chief, Charles Denike, who made the leap from the Truck Series.
Hamlin even made a bold proclamation about the effect the crew chief would have on Wallace and the No. 23 team after a top-five finish in the Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium.
"I truly believe he's going to be a game-changer for 23XI," Hamlin said. "He is special. All I can say is I'm glad we found him. Certainly, I think he's going to be taking that 23 team to the next level."
Chase Elliott wins the NASCAR In-Season Tournament - This season, the Cup Series introduces a new money-making opportunity for its drivers. They will compete in the NASCAR In-Season Tournament, which takes place over five races and pays $1 million to the winner.
This tournament will start with the night race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. It will continue with the Chicago Street Race, Sonoma, Dover, and the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis.
At first glance, it would be simple enough to predict that Kyle Larson will win the in-season tournament. After all, he led the series in wins last season and he has 13 wins in the Next Gen era.
The issue is that the opening race of the tournament is at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Larson has crashed in five of the six Gen 7 races at the reconfigured track and finished 30th or worse. His best finish was 13th in the 2022 summer race.
It will be difficult to beat out his first opponent on the bracket and advance if he doesn't finish the race.
These stats are the reason why we predict that Chase Elliott will be the driver to claim the payday. The 2020 Cup champion has been consistent at every track on the tournament schedule, and he has celebrated wins at multiple tracks.
Elliott won at Atlanta in 2022. He posted two other top-10 finishes at the track in the Gen 7 era. He has one win at Dover and another top-five finish at the 1-mile track since 2022.
Elliott has finished eighth or better in the three Gen 7 races at Sonoma, and he has a third-place finish on the streets of Chicago on his resume. He finished 10th in last season's race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.