NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Ford 400 from Homestead Miami Speedway

November 18, 2009

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row Mark Martin 12 8.26
James Jones On Pit Row Denny Hamlin 1 8.29
Dennis Michelsen RaceTalkRadio.com Carl Edwards 7 9.43
Yahoo Users Yahoo! Sports Mark Martin 12 10.37
Gerritt Ritt FOX Sports Matt Kenseth 13 10.51
Mike Harmon FOX Sports Jeff Gordon 6 11.11
Eric Brewer Mark Martin 12 11.40
Roger Rotter FOX Sports Ryan Newman 23 11.57
Cheryl Lauer Speed Couch Greg Biffle 14 11.71
Eric McClung On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 6 11.97
Darren Fauth Fantasy NASCAR Names Greg Biffle 14 12.49
CharlieTurner On Pit Row Juan Pablo Montoya 38 12.60
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Greg Biffle 14 12.63
Eric McGuire FFToolbox Matt Kenseth 13 12.89
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Mark Martin 12 13.06
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Mark Martin 12 16.74
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Kurt Busch 4 17.94

2009 Average Finish at Flat Tracks - Martinsville, Phoenix, Richmond, New Hampshire

November 11, 2009

This table is a companion for my NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview of the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. Below are 24 drivers of fantasy interest and their average finish this season at four flat tracks: Martinsville Speedway, Phoenix, Richmond International Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

The four flat tracks vary in length but do feature similar banking. Over the last nine races this season, three have been on flat tracks: Richmond is a little shorter (0.75 miles) and banked 14 degrees; New Hampshire is a little longer (1.06 miles) and most recently, Martinsville which is much shorter (0.53 miles) both are banked 12 degrees. Phoenix is 1.00 miles and banked 11 degrees and held its first race in April, the eighth race of the season.

MVILLE 1 PHX Rich 1 NH 1 RICH 2 NH 2 MVILLE2 AVG
Mark Martin 7 1 5 14 4 1 8 5.7
Denny Hamlin 2 6 14 15 1 2 1 5.9
Tony Stewart 3 2 2 5 17 14 9 7.4
Kurt Busch 18 3 12 3 2 6 17 8.7
Jeff Gordon 4 25 8 2 3 15 5 8.9
Kyle Busch 24 17 1 7 5 5 4 9
Jimmie Johnson 1 4 36 9 11 4 2 9.6
Ryan Newman 6 16 4 29 10 7 7 11.3
Juan Pablo Montoya 12 24 10 12 19 3 3 11.9
Clint Bowyer 5 26 18 20 6 10 19 14.9
David Reutimann 20 8 28 4 20 12 16 15.4
Jamie McMurray 10 11 7 33 27 18 6 16.0
Jeff Burton 15 15 3 31 18 16 15 16.1
Greg Biffle 28 5 17 18 13 9 25 16.4
Joey Lagano 32 21 19 1 14 21 12 17.1
Casey Mears 21 20 9 11 30 13 18 17.4
Brian Vickers 33 19 15 35 7 11 11 18.7
Marcos Ambrose 14 14 11 23 22 20 27 18.7
Carl Edwards 26 10 26 19 15 17 20 19.0
Sam Hornish, Jr. 34 9 6 8 8 37 36 19.7
Matt Kenseth 23 27 13 22 25 23 14 21.0
Kasey Kahne 19 13 29 10 12 38 32 21.9
Kevin Harvick 11 30 34 34 9 32 10 22.9
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 8 31 27 13 21 35 29 23.4

NASCAR Fantasy Tool: 2009 Average Finish at Similar Tracks - Atlanta, Texas and Lowe’s UPDATED

November 3, 2009

This table is a companion for my NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview of the Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. Below are 32 drivers of fantasy interest and their average finish at three similar tracks: Atlanta Motor Speedway, Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Texas.

Also see my 2009 Average Finish at Chase Tracks Table which is very useful for planning your lineup for the rest of the season.

Atlanta 1 Texas Lowe’s Atlanta 2 Lowe’s 2 AVERAGE
Jeff Gordon 2 1 14 8 4 5.8
Kasey Kahne 7 19 7 1 3 7.4
Matt Kenseth 12 5 10 12 2 8.2
Tony Stewart 8 4 19 11 13 11.0
Ryan Newman 22 15 2 9 11 11.8
Jimmie Johnson 9 2 13 36 1 12.2
David Reutimann 32 11 1 4 15 12.6
Kyle Busch 18 18 6 13 8 12.6
Brian Vickers 5 16 5 7 34 13.4
Mark Martin 31 6 17 5 17 15.2
Juan Pablo Montoya 27 7 8 3 35 16.0
Greg Biffle 34 3 20 10 16 16.6
Denny Hamlin 13 12 11 6 42 16.8
Brad Keselowski 23 12 17.5
Kurt Busch 1 8 34 38 10 18.2
David Stremme 23 14 22 14 19 18.4
Kevin Harvick 4 27 41 2 18 18.4
Carl Edwards 3 10 4 37 39 18.6
Martin Truex Jr. 10 25 23 26 9 18.6
Jeff Burton 14 9 25 34 14 19.2
Joey Logano 30 30 9 22 5 19.2
Clint Bowyer 6 22 36 29 6 19.8
Casey Mears 16 21 33 25 7 20.4
Paul Menard 28 13 29 15 27 22.4
Robby Gordon 26 39 3 16 30 22.8
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 11 20 40 17 38 25.2
AJ Allmendinger 17 34 32 20 23 25.2
Bill Elliott* 36 28 15 19 29 25.4
Jamie McMurray 15 38 21 28 33 27.0
Bobby Labonte 40 40 12 18 31 28.2
Sam Hornish Jr. 37 17 16 35 40 29.0
Marcos Ambrose 38 41 26 23 22 30.0

*David Gilliland drove the No. 21 Wood Brothers in the second race at Atlanta. Bill Elliott cracked three ribs during a dirt bike accident and was unable to race. Elliott finished 19th two weeks ago at Kansas Motor Speedway in his first race back.

NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Tums Fast Relief 500 from Martinsville

October 21, 2009

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row Jimmie Johnson 2 7.35
James Jones On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 5 7.84
Mike Harmon FOX Sports Jimmie Johnson 2 9.84
Dennis Michelsen RaceTalkRadio.com Jimmie Johnson 2 10.03
Roger Rotter FOX Sports Jimmie Johnson 2 10.13
Gerritt Ritt FOX Sports Kurt Busch 17 10.16
Yahoo Users Yahoo! Sports Jimmie Johnson 2 10.23
Cheryl Lauer Speed Couch Jeff Gordon 5 10.68
Eric Brewer Jeff Gordon 5 11.42
Darren Fauth Fantasy NASCAR Names Jimmie Johnson 2 11.65
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Jimmie Johnson 2 11.81
Eric McClung On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 5 11.87
Charlie Turner On Pit Row Jimmie Johnson 2 12.06
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Jeff Gordon 5 12.52
Eric McGuire FFToolbox Jimmie Johnson 2 13.10
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Jimmie Johnson 2 15.77
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Kyle Busch 4 18.52

NASCAR Fantasy Tool: 2009 Average Finish at Similar Tracks - Atlanta, Texas and Lowe’s

October 14, 2009

This table is a companion for my NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview of the NASCAR Banking 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Below are 31 drivers of fantasy interest and their average finish at three similar tracks: Atlanta Motor Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway and Lowe’s. The table will be updated with this week’s results to be used for the upcoming Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 8th.

Also see my 2009 Average Finish at Chase Tracks Table which is very useful for planning your lineup for the rest of the season.

Atlanta 1 Texas Lowe’s Atlanta 2 AVERAGE
Jeff Gordon 2 1 14 8 6.3
Brian Vickers 5 16 5 7 8.3
Kasey Kahne 7 19 7 1 8.5
Matt Kenseth 12 5 10 12 9.8
Denny Hamlin 13 12 11 6 10.5
Tony Stewart 8 4 19 11 10.5
Juan Pablo Montoya 27 7 8 3 11.3
David Reutimann 32 11 1 4 12.0
Ryan Newman 22 15 2 9 12.0
Carl Edwards 3 10 4 37 13.5
Kyle Busch 18 18 6 13 13.8
Mark Martin 31 6 17 5 14.8
Jimmie Johnson 9 2 13 36 15.0
Greg Biffle 34 3 20 10 16.8
David Stremme 23 14 22 14 18.3
Kevin Harvick 4 27 41 2 18.5
Kurt Busch 1 8 34 38 20.3
Jeff Burton 14 9 25 34 20.5
Martin Truex Jr. 10 25 23 26 21.0
Robby Gordon 26 39 3 16 21.0
Paul Menard 28 13 29 15 21.3
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 11 20 40 17 22.0
Joey Logano 30 30 9 22 22.8
Clint Bowyer 6 22 36 29 23.3
Casey Mears 16 21 33 25 23.8
Bill Elliott* 36 28 15 19 24.5
Jamie McMurray 15 38 21 28 25.5
AJ Allmendinger 17 34 32 20 25.8
Sam Hornish Jr. 37 17 16 35 26.3
Bobby Labonte 40 40 12 18 27.5
Marcos Ambrose 38 41 26 23 32.0

*David Gilliland drove the No. 21 Wood Brothers in the second race at Atlanta. Bill Elliott cracked three ribs during a dirt bike accident and was unable to race. Elliott finished 19th two weeks ago at Kansas Motor Speedway in his first race back.

NASCAR Fantasy Tool: 2009 Average Finish at Similar Tracks [Auto Club Speedway and Michigan International Speedway]

October 6, 2009

This table is a companion for my NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview of the Pepsi 500 at Auto Club Speedway.  Below you can check the results and average finish for the 26 most fantasy-relevant drivers. The first race at Fontana was the second race of the season, MIS held events in June and August.

The track at Fontana, California is a two-mile, low-banked, D-shaped oval which is configured very similarly to Michigan International Speedway.

When looking at this table keep in mind that Jimmie Johnson ran out of fuel at the both races at MIS. Johnson recorded the best average running position among all drivers and was leading at the halfway mark at both races. Johnson also led the most laps at both events.

Mark Martin also ran out of fuel in the August MIS race. Martin was running second midway through and ran fourth, on the average during the race.

Also see my 2009 Average Finish at Chase Tracks Table which is very useful for planning your lineup for the rest of the season.

Fontana MIS 1 MIS 2 AVERAGE
Jeff Gordon 2 2 2 2.0
Carl Edwards 7 4 4 5.0
Denny Hamlin 6 3 10 6.3
Brian Vickers 10 9 1 6.7
Greg Biffle 4 5 20 9.7
Tony Stewart 8 7 17 10.7
Matt Kenseth 1 20 14 11.7
Juan Pablo Montoya 11 6 19 12.0
Clint Bowyer 19 10 8 12.3
Kyle Busch 3 13 23 13.0
David Reutimann 14 19 9 14.0
Kasey Kahne 12 21 11 14.7
Kurt Busch 5 8 36 16.3
Casey Mears 24 24 6 18.0
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 39 14 3 18.7
Sam Hornish Jr. 23 29 5 19.0
Joey Logano 26 25 7 19.3
Jamie McMurray 16 11 32 19.7
Jimmie Johnson* 9 22 33 21.3
Ryan Newman 28 23 15 22.0
Kevin Harvick 38 18 12 22.7
Mark Martin* 40 1 31 24.0
Jeff Burton 32 26 18 25.3
Martin Truex Jr. 27 36 21 28.0
Marcos Ambrose 22 31 35 29.3
AJ Allmendinger 29 39 22 30.0

NASCAR Power Rankings Chase Edition: Week 2

September 22, 2009

Loudon

Change from last week

Who's Up

Change from last week

Who's Down

Biggest Gain This Week:

Mark Martin: 3rd to 1st

Biggest Drop This Week:

Kasey Kahne: 7th to 10th

No new drivers this week. No drivers dropped out this week.
NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 1st

Mark Martin- 5 Wins, 15 Top Tens

Not only did Mark Martin get his first career win at Loudon but he also extended his contract last week. Will this be his year? Someone will win it. Did you know that Martin first announced his "Salute to you tour" in 2004.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 2nd

Jimmie Johnson- 3 Wins, 16 Top Tens

Johnson dominated the Dover race earlier this year but there are no guarantee's in NASCAR. It will be difficult for the 48 team to duplicate their previous dominate performance.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 3rd

Jeff Gordon- 1 Win, 18 Top Tens

I don't really know what happened to this team Sunday. They were the fastest team on the track at the start of the race then all of a sudden they were junk. As a result of his bad day Gordon now sits 10th in the point standings.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 4th

Kurt Busch- 1 Win, 15 Top Tens

This team will try their hardest having their crew chief Pat Tryson there part time but I don't really think this is a sustainable strategy. I expect this problem to grow over the course of the remaining 9 races.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 5th

Denny Hamlin- 2 Wins, 15 Top Tens

Hamlin was definitely the most aggressive driver on the track at New Hampshire. He was running into other cars frequently and he even ran over a guy on pit road. If his high aggression level continues trouble will certainly find him on the track.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 6th

Tony Stewart- 3 Wins, 18 Top Tens

There have been a lot of people saying this team is testing but I'm going to hold my ground on this one and say they're simply making mistakes. In order for Stewart to win the championship he really needed to score more points here.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 7th

Juan Pablo Montoya- 3 Top Fives, 13 Top Tens

The 42 is truly a top team in the series. The main thing people hold against him is his lackluster history. This year is vastly different from years in the past. If you haven't thrown out the history book on him yet, do it now.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 8th

Brian Vickers- 1 Win, 13 Top Tens

Not too many teams made a mistake at Loudon but this team did. I honestly don't trust this pit crew at all. Fun Fact: Did you know that Brian Vickers best finish in the last 10 races in 2008 was 11th and his team was caught cheating after that race.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 9th

Greg Biffle- 8 Top Fives, 13 Top Tens

Biffle is the only Roush car that is showing a heart beat now but in order to win the championship teams need to do a lot more then that. Anything less then a top 5 for Biffle at Dover will be considered a failure.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 10th

Kasey Kahne- 2 Wins, 10 Top Tens

Can you stick a fork in this team yet? I say hold off for now but their championship chances are greatly reduced. At least he won't have to worry about the R6 motor next year.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 11th

Ryan Newman- 5 Top Fives, 13 Top Tens

I bet you didn't know this but Newman now has 4 consecutive top tens in a row. Ryan Newman once owned Dover and even won here without power steering. A good day for this team is crucial for their championship aspirations.

NASCAR Power Ranking On Pit Row

Rank: 12th

Carl Edwards- 7 Top Fives, 11 Top Tens

One race into the Chase and this team is already 113 points behind Mark Martin. If there performance is flat at Dover then it will be time to stick a fork in them for the year.

NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire

September 17, 2009

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
James Jones On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 15 8.0
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 15 8.08
Roger Rotter FOX Sports Mark Martin 1 10.31
Gerritt Ritt FOX Sports Denny Hamlin 2 10.62
Mike Harmon FOX Sports Jimmie Johnson 4 10.65
Dennis Michelson RaceTalkRadio.com Mark Martin 1 10.85
Yahoo Users Yahoo! Sports Jimmie Johnson 4 11.65
Cheryl Lauer Speed Couch Kurt Busch 6 11.77
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Tony Stewart 14 12.5
Eric Brewer Jimmie Johnson 4 12.77
Charlie Turner On Pit Row Denny Hamlin 2 12.77
Darren Fauth Fantasy NASCAR Names Jimmie Johnson 4 12.88
Eric McClung On Pit Row Denny Hamlin 2 13.42
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Denny Hamlin 2 14.19
Eric McGuire FFToolbox Jimmie Johnson 4 15.04
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Jimmie Johnson 4 16.62
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Carl Edwards 17 18.69

NASCAR Fantasy Tool: 2009 Average Finish at Chase Tracks Table

September 15, 2009

This table designed primarily to help fantasy NASCAR owners with deciding on how to spend their remaining driver starts as we progress through the Chase for the Sprint Cup. The table ranks the 26 most relevant drivers by their average finish at the eight Chase tracks that held their first Cup event earlier in the season.

Loudon Dover Fontana
Lowe’s Martinsville Talladega Texas Phoenix AVG
Tony Stewart 5 2 8 19 3 23 4 2 8.25
Jimmie Johnson 9 1 9 13 1 30 2 4 8.63
Kurt Busch 3 5 5 34 18 6 8 3 10.25
Greg Biffle 18 3 4 20 28 7 3 5 11.00
David Reutimann 4 18 14 1 20 26 11 8 12.75
Ryan Newman 29 8 28 2 6 3 15 16 13.38
Carl Edwards 19 7 7 4 26 24 10 10 13.38
Matt Kenseth 22 4 1 10 23 17 5 27 13.63
Denny Hamlin 15 36 6 11 2 22 12 6 13.75
Jeff Gordon 2 26 2 14 4 37 1 25 13.88
Kasey Kahne 10 6 12 7 19 36 19 13 15.25
Kyle Busch 7 23 3 6 24 25 18 17 15.38
Juan Montoya 12 30 11 8 12 20 7 24 15.50
Mark Martin 14 10 40 17 7 43 6 1 17.25
Joey Logano 1 15 26 9 32 9 30 21 17.88
Brian Vickers 35 25 10 5 33 8 16 19 18.88
Jeff Burton 31 16 32 25 15 10 9 15 19.13
Sam Hornish Jr. 8 13 23 16 34 34 17 9 19.25
Casey Mears 11 9 24 33 21 16 21 20 19.38
Marcos Ambrose 23 20 22 26 14 4 41 14 20.50
Dale Earnhardt Jr. 13 12 39 40 8 2 20 31 20.63
Clint Bowyer 20 11 19 36 5 39 22 26 22.25
Jamie McMurray 33 14 16 21 10 42 38 11 23.13
Martin Truex Jr. 37 21 27 23 29 33 25 7 25.25
AJ Allmendinger 32 29 29 32 9 35 34 35 29.38
Kevin Harvick 34 17 38 41 11 38 27 30 29.50