Supercomputer simulates Hull City, Wrexham & Derby County’s final fixtures - Who nicks 6th? | OneFootball

The race for sixth is set to go down to the 46th and final game of the season

The Championship season has been full of drama and chaos at both ends of the campaign yet again, and in the case of the battle for promotion to the Premier League, those elements will be going the distance.

Only a handful of sides are currently aware of their fate when it comes to the division they will be playing in next season, with Coventry City recently securing a first return to the Premier League in 25 years before being crowned champions in midweek, whilst both Sheffield Wednesday and Leicester City have been relegated to League One amid backdrops of extreme financial uncertainty.

It now remains to be seen who will join the Sky Blues in the top-flight, with the automatic promotion battle still involving the likes of Millwall, Ipswich Town, Southampton and, to an extent, Middlesbrough, after they returned to winning ways against the Owls on Wednesday night.

However, below them is the intriguing battle for sixth place, which is now a three-way shootout between Wrexham, Hull City and Derby County with just two games remaining.

The Tigers had occupied an unexpected position in the top six for effectively half the season despite a transfer fee restriction and a multitude of injuries, but a dire run of one win in seven games has seen them slip into seventh behind the Red Dragons on goal difference.

Derby also suffered a setback of their own on Tuesday as they lost 2-1 at a resurgent Norwich City, meaning they have plenty of ground to make up with limited time left.

Wrexham, Hull City and Derby County's remaining fixtures in play-off race

Phil Parkinson's side have enjoyed a remarkable recent rise that has been funded by Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, and they are hoping to reach the Premier League for the first time in the club's history with a fourth straight promotion.

The Welsh side leapfrogged Parkinson's old club as a result of their 1-0 win over Oxford United on Tuesday, whilst Sergej Jakirovic's men were frustrated in a 2-2 draw at Leicester.

On paper, the Red Dragons have the hardest fixture run-in of the three sides who could still finish sixth, as they travel to Coventry on Sunday lunchtime, before hosting Middlesbrough at the Stok Cae Ras on the final day.

Hull, meanwhile, have the chance to put the pressure back on Wrexham when they face Charlton Athletic at The Valley 24 hours beforehand this weekend, before rounding off their campaign against Norwich at the MKM Stadium.

Derby, of course, are the outsiders in this race, but they will be searching for maximum points against both Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road on Saturday and Sheffield United at Pride Park on May 2nd, even though a win for either, or both, their rivals on matchday 45 would make it impossible for John Eustace's team to finish in the top six.

Supercomputer predicts further misery for Hull City in play-off race

Given the fixtures remaining, the current runs of form each of the three sides are on and the fact Wrexham are only in front of Hull by a two-goal margin, FLW asked AI to predict the final outcome of this play-off race.

Unfortunately for the East Yorkshire side, they have been tipped to continue their recent wobble which has come at the worst possible time, with the computer predicting they will draw 1-1 with the Addicks and lose 2-1 to the Canaries on May 2nd.

Even though their remaining fixtures against the Sky Blues and Boro don't look kind on paper, AI believes Wrexham will take full advantage of those slip-ups and secure sixth spot with a 1-1 draw and a 2-1 win in those encounters, finishing three points clear of Hull as a result.

It has been claimed that no positional changes will occur, although AI also predicts the Rams will end one point behind City by also taking four points from their final six available with a 1-1 draw in West London and a 2-1 victory over the Blades.

The computer has also predicted that this would see the Red Dragons face Millwall in the play-off semi-finals, which would certainly be an intriguing two-legged affair given the fact that, in the two regular-season fixtures, the away side has won at The Den or Stok Cae Ras respectively.