NASCAR Fantasy Racing Expert Darkhorse Picks: Carfax 400 at MIS

August 11, 2010

The On Pit Row fantasy racing experts opinions of the best Sprint Cup driver currently outside the top 12 in Sprint Cup Series points, for this weekends race.

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
Matt Mercer On Pit Row A J Allmendiger 17 15.04
James Jones On Pit Row Jamie McMurray 20 11.52
Josh Lobdell FFToolbox Dale Earnhardt Jr 19 22.17
Dennis Mickelson RaceTalkRadio.com Kasey Kahne 14 11.00
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Dale Earnhardt Jr 19 13.87
Jerry LaggerEric McGuire One and Done Game WinnerFree agent Dale Earnhardt JrDale Earnhardt Jr 19

19

13.26

13.04

Charlie Turner On Pit Row A J Allmendinger 17 13.74
Tall Glass of Milk Answerthis.com Juan Pablo Montoya 7 9.52
Adam Ansell Roto Experts Kasey Kahne 14 11.65
Charles Rantz ifantasyrace.com Kasey Kahne 14 12.78
Darren Fauth Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet Juan Pablo Montoya 7 12.30
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Jamie McMurray 20 12.91
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row Kasey Kahne 14 14.26
Eric McClung On Pit Row Kasey Kahne 14 19.13
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Kasey Kahne 14 11.87
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Clint Bowyer 13 15.43
Chris Leone On Pit Row Bill Elliott 22 19.52
Dan Beaver Fantasy Racing Games Joey Logano 10 10.61

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Experts Picks: Carfax 400 from Michigan International Speedway

August 11, 2010

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
Josh Lobdell FFToolbox Carl Edwards 3 16.17
Jerry Lagger One and Done Game Winner Carl Edwards 3 11.91
Dennis Michelsen RaceTalkRadio.com Kevin Harvick 1 11.04
Tall Glass of Milk Answerthis.com Mark Martin 28 12.61
Eric McClung On Pit Row Kurt Busch 40 15.91
Eric McGuire free agent Jeff Gordon 27 12.91
Dan Beaver Fantasy Racing Games Carl Edwards 3 10.39
Matt Mercer On Pit Row Carl Edwards 3 13.39
Adam Ansell Roto Experts Kurt Busch 40 16.43  
Chris Leone On Pit Row Carl Edwards 3 12.91
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Kevin Harvick 1 10.91
CharlieTurner On Pit Row Carl Edwards 3 16.09
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Jimmie Johnson 12 13.78
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Jimmie Johnson 12 14.52
James Jones On Pit Row Kevin Harvick 1 14.26
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row Carl Edwards 3 12.52
Darren Fauth Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet Jimmie Johnson 12 13.26
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Jimmie Johnson 12 11.96
Charles Rantz ifantasyrace.com Kurt Busch 40 17.26

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview: Carfax 400 from Michigan Speedway

August 11, 2010

The NASCAR Sprint Cup circuit returns to the 2.0-mile, D-shaped oval track at Michigan International Speedway for the second time this season. In addition to the June race at MIS, review the results from Auto Club Speedway. Fontana has less banking but is the only other 2.0-mile track on the schedule. The most recent intermediate race was held at Chicagoland Speedway, which has very similar banking to MIS.
Fuel mileage has created a lot of luck in both directions for drivers at Michigan, so pay close attention to loop data statistics like average running position over basics such as Top Fives and Top 10s.

Chasing the pole at Michigan International Speedway

  1. Kurt Busch… Won the pole in March, started fifth and sixth last year.
  2.  Jamie McMurray… Started second in March. Won the pole at Fontana and and Chicagoland.
  3. Jimmie Johnson… Started third in March, third and fourth last year. Started second at Chicagoland.

Here’s an explanation of the highlighted text in the rankings

  •  Y! A/B/C - The top options in the Yahoo! Fantasy Auto Racing game by driver list.
  •  Value play - Sneaky plays at this week’s track. Drivers to consider as low-rent salary cap options or alternatives in allocation formats.
  1.  Jeff Gordon… Two-time winner (6/01, 8/98) at Michigan, runner-up in both ‘09 races, finished fourth in June. Y!-A1
  2. Jimmie Johnson… Average running position of fifth or better in six of the last nine races at Michigan, ran second and third last year- led 279 of 400 laps. Finished sixth in June. Y!-A2
  3. Kurt Busch… Two-time winner (8/07, 6/03) at Michigan. Won the pole in June, finished in third. Y!-A3
  4. Denny Hamlin… Won June race at Michigan, led 123 of 200 laps. Finished third and 10th last year. Y!-A4
  5. Carl Edwards… Two-time winner (8/08, 6/07) at Michigan, average finish of 6.6 in 12 career starts.
  6. Greg Biffle… Two-time winner (6/05, 8/04) at Michigan, Top 10s in three of the last four, two Top Fives.
  7. Kevin Harvick… Nine straight Top 20s at Michigan. Y!-B1
  8. Tony Stewart… Won 6/00 race at Michigan, six Top Fives, eight Top 10s in the last 11 starts.
  9. Kasey Kahne… Won 6/06 race at Michigan, runner-up in June. Has spent over 85 percent of laps running in the Top 15 in three of the last five. Y!-B2
  10. Jeff Burton… Finished eighth in June race at Michigan, first Top 10 since 8/02. Average finish of 15.9 in 33 career starts. Y!-B3
  11. Clint Bowyer… Two Top 10s in ‘09 at Michigan, finished 22nd in June. Y!-B4
  12. Kyle Busch… Finished 20th or worse in the last two starts at Michigan, average running position of ninth or better in five straight prior.
  13. Matt Kenseth… Two-time winner (8/06, 6/02) at Michigan, finished 14th in the last two. Y!-B5.
  14. Juan Pablo Montoya… Average running position of 15th or better in three straight starts at Michigan.
  15. A.J. Allmendinger… Strong value play. Finished a career-high 11th in June at Michigan. Y!-C1
  16. Jamie McMurray… Average finish of 19.3 in 15 career starts at Michigan.
  17. Mark Martin… Three-time winner (6/09, 6/98, 8/97, 8/93, 8/90) at Michigan. Finished 16th in June, average running position of 22nd. Ran 10th and fourth last year.
  18. Joey Logano… Strong value play. Two straight Top 10s at Michigan, average running position of 11th and 15th. Y!-B6
  19. Ryan Newman… Two-time winner (6/04, 8/03) at Michigan, no Top 10s since. Average running position of 16th in June, finished 32nd. Y!-B7
  20. Dale Earnhardt, Jr…. Won race 6/08 at Michigan- average running position of 17th or better in 10 straight, three straight Top 15s. Y!-B8
  21. David Reutimann… Four straight Top 20s at Michigan.
  22. Martin Truex, Jr…. Average finish of 17.4 in nine career starts at Michigan.
  23. Sam Hornish, Jr…. Average finish of 20.8 in five career starts at Michigan. Y!-C2
  24. Paul Menard… Average finish of 23.9 in eight career starts at Michigan. Y!-C3
  25. Elliott Sadler… Average finish of 22.2 in 23 career starts at Michigan.
  26. Brad Keselowski… Average finish of 25.5 in two career starts at Michigan.
  27. Marcos Ambrose… Finished a career-best 15th in June race at Michigan, average running position of 25th.
  28. Reed Sorenson… Average finish of 28.0 in ‘09 races at Michigan. Y!-C4
  29. Bill Elliott… Seven-time winner (6/89, 8/87, ‘86 sweep, ‘85 sweep, 6/84) at Michigan. Finished 16th in both races last year, 29th in June.
  30. David Ragan… Finished 30th or worse in last two starts at Michigan.
  31. Regan Smith… Finished 23rd in June race at Michigan.
  32. Scott Speed… Average finish of 33.0 in three career starts at Michigan, no lead lap finishes.
  33. Bobby Labonte… Three-time winner (8/99, ‘95 sweep) at Michigan, finished 27th or worse in five straight.
  34. Travis Kvapil… Finished 31st in June race at Michigan.
  35. Robby Gordon… Finished 33rd in June race at Michigan.
  36. David Gilliland… Finished 35th in June race at Michigan.
  37. Kevin Conway… DNF (engine) in June race at Michigan.
  38. Casey Mears… Likely start and park.
  39. Mike Bliss… Likely start and park.
  40. J.J. Yeley… Likely start and park.
  41. Landon Cassill… Likely start and park.
  42. Joe Nemechek… Likely start and park.
  43. Dave Blaney… Likely start and park.
  44. Michael McDowell… Likely start and park.
  45. Tony Raines… Likely start and park.
  46. TBA (Germain Racing)… Likely start and park.
  47. TBA (Latitude 43 Motorsports)… Likely start and park.

Contender or Pretender: Michigan 2

August 10, 2010

Carl Edwards (Contender) – In 2004 Carl Edwards made his Sprint Cup debut in the August Michigan race and there will be no better way for him to celebrate his seventh anniversary in the series than a trip to victory lane.

Michigan has always been an extremely friendly track to Edwards and his Roush teammates. In twelve races at Michigan Edwards has only finished outside the top ten twice. One thing Carl Edwards has right now is “momentum” (it exists, it’s measurable, and it’s important) and no team is hotter than the 99. If you need one more thing to sway you towards Carl Edwards remember how well he ran at Chicagoland (finished second).

Jimmie Johnson (Pretender) – Jimmie Johnson absolutely dominated Michigan in 2009 and earlier this year he finished sixth. What Jimmie Johnson has going against him is “negative momentum”. This team can’t seem to do anything right over the duration of a whole race at this time. I know I’m not going to be picking Jimmie Johnson anytime soon until things start getting turned around.

Greg Biffle (Contender) – Greg Biffle and the 16 team have been performing on an extremely high level in recent weeks. His win at Pocono demonstrated that he’s got plenty of horse power under his hood and at Michigan that’s extremely important. Since 2008 (COT Era) Greg Biffle has the third best average finish (9.4) in the series.

Ryan Newman (Pretender) – This multi time Michigan winner shouldn’t even be on your radar this week. The good news about Newman is that the last time two times he finished in the top ten at Michigan he won. The bad news is that by no means can anyone say 2004 was recent.

Kasey Kahne (Contender) – Kahne finished second to Denny Hamlin earlier this year at Michigan. Kahne is also a previous winner and with the recent re-emergence of Ford look for Kahne to be a Contender once again at Michigan.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Pretender) – I know I was wrong last time I said Earnhardt Jr. was a pretender at Michigan but I really mean it this time. There’s nothing positive about this team right now. His best finish over the last four races is 23rd, and it seems his confidence has almost hit a new all time low.

Printable NASCAR TV Schedule for August 2010

July 28, 2010

Download your August 2010 NASCAR television schedule in PDF

NASCAR’ Sprint Cup Series travels to Pocono Raceway, Watkins Glen, Michigan International Speedway,  and Bristol Motor Speedway  in August. The Nationwide Series goes road racing in Montreal while the Camping World Truck Series heads to Chicagoland.

Click here to download your printable August 2010 NASCAR TV schedule

 

Printable NASCAR TV Schedule for June 2010

June 15, 2010

Click the link below to download your NASCAR TV schedule for June 2010 in PDF format. June includes Sprint Cup races at Pocono Raceway, Michigan InternationalSpeedway, Infineon Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Nationwide Series trips to Kentucky Speedway and Road America.

2010 NASCAR TV Schedule in PDF

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Expert Darkhorse Picks: Heluva Good! 400 from MIS

June 10, 2010

The On Pit Row fantasy racing experts opinions of the best Sprint Cup driver currently outside the top 12 in Sprint Cup Series points, for this weekends race.

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
Matt Mercer On Pit Row Joey Logano 10 16.40
James Jones On Pit Row Tony Stewart 5 11.07
Josh Lobdell FFToolbox No Pick 44 21.87
Dennis Mickelson RaceTalkRadio.com Juan Pablo Montoya 13 12.47
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Joey Logano 10 12.00
Jerry Lagger

Eric McGuire

One and Done Game Winner

Free agent

Dale Earnhardt Jr

Joey Logano

7

10

12.13

12.93

Charlie Turner On Pit Row Tony Stewart 5 10.80
Tall Glass of Milk Answerthis.com Joey Logano 10 8.73
Adam Ansell Roto Experts Jamie McMurray 24 11.40
Charles Rantz ifantasyrace.com Martin Truex Jr 17 12.93
Darren Fauth Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet David Reutimann 18 12.07
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Dale Earnhardt Jr 7 13.47
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row David Reutimann 18 16.20
Eric McClung On Pit Row Joey Logano 10 19.13
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Joey Logano 10 11.27
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Jamie McMurray 24 13.67
Chris Leone On Pit Row Bill Elliott 29 21.33
Dan Beaver Fantasy Racing Games Joey Logano 10 9.87

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Experts Picks: Heluva Good! 400 from Michigan

June 10, 2010

Expert Website Pick to Win Finish Experts Avg
Josh Lobdell FFToolbox No Pick 44 11.87
Jerry Lagger One and Done Game Winner Carl Edwards 12 10.13
Dennis Michelsen RaceTalkRadio.com Kurt Busch 3 12.87
Tall Glass of Milk Answerthis.com Greg Biffle 9 13.00
Eric McClung On Pit Row Mark Martin 16 15.00
Eric McGuire free agent Jimmie Johnson 6 12.80
Dan Beaver Fantasy Racing Games Carl Edwards 12 7.87
Matt Mercer On Pit Row Greg Biffle 9 13.13
Adam Ansell Roto Experts Kurt Busch 3 14.53
Chris Leone On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 4 15.00
Bob Ellis NASCAR Ranting and Raving Kurt Busch 3 10.27
CharlieTurner On Pit Row Jimmie Johnson 6 17.20
Lou Lauer USAR Fans Jimmie Johnson 6 14.07
Jon Rodgers Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner Jimmie Johnson 6 11.80
James Jones On Pit Row Jeff Gordon 4 9.53
Ryan Rantz On Pit Row Jimmie Johnson 6 9.80
Darren Fauth Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet Denny Hamlin 1 13.53
P J Walsh FantasyNASCARPreview.com Jimmie Johnson 6 10.40
Charles Rantz ifantasyrace.com Denny Hamlin 1 14.67

Contender Or Pretender: Michigan

June 8, 2010

Jimmie Johnson (Contender) - No driver was more dominant than Jimmie Johnson at Michigan last year. He didn’t finish in the top twenty in either race but fuel mileage is to blame for that. In 2009 Jimmie Johnson led 279 laps and raced in the top 15  for 97.5% percent of the laps . Lets also not forget that Johnson won at California which is Michigan’s sister track last fall and earlier this year.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Pretender) - Did you know that Dale Earnhardt Jr. has the second best Michigan average finish over the last five years? It’s true. Michigan is also the site of his last win. What’s also true is that you shouldn’t put your fantasy hopes in Earnhardt Jr. this weekend. His third place finish in the second Michigan race last year was highly influenced by being a guy who runs toward the back of the pack who could take gambles. I expect him to be a mid teens driver at best.

Jeff Gordon (Contender) - Jeff Gordon has been fast all year long on intermediate tracks. He was fast at Las Vegas, Texas and Lowes this year. Last year in both Michigan and California races Jeff Gordon finished second in every race. I expect Jeff Gordon to definitely be a contender Sunday.

Carl Edwards (Pretender) - Only once in Carl Edwards career has he finished outside the top ten at Michigan. I think this Sunday he could very easily finish outside that mark again. For whatever reason Carl Edwards and the 99 team aren’t competitive at this moment. If you haven’t been paying attention then even his recent finishes might fool you and give you the perception he’s been good.

Matt Kenseth (Contender) - If you want to pick a Ford this weekend look no further than Matt Kenseth. Michigan has always been a Roush track and to me there’s no question who’s been the best Ford driver this year. Matt Kenseth’s been a top ten car at every high speed intermediate track this year except Texas where he had problems late in the race.

Kasey Kahne (Pretender) - Kasey Kahne is an elite intermediate track driver when things are going his way. At Michigan throughout his career Kasey Kahne has either been a “Hero or a Zero”. He has 5 top fives, and 6 finishes outside the top 18. His only other finish outside these parameters is a 11th place finish. So as I said he’s either a Hero or a Zero. With the way his luck is I’m leaning towards a zero this weekend.

NASCAR Fantasy Tool: 2009 Average Finish at Fontana and Michigan [2.0 mile, D-shaped ovals]

February 16, 2010

This table show the average finish of 43 drivers in the four races at Auto Club Speedway and Michigan International Speedway during the 2009 season.

CA1 MI1 MI2 CA2 AVERAGE
Jeff Gordon 2 2 2 2 2.0
Carl Edwards 7 4 4 6 5.3
Tony Stewart 8 7 17 5 9.3
Juan Pablo Montoya 11 6 19 3 9.8
Clint Bowyer 19 10 8 9 11.5
Matt Kenseth 1 20 14 13 12.0
Brian Vickers 10 9 1 29 12.3
Greg Biffle 4 5 20 20 12.3
Denny Hamlin 6 3 10 37 14.0
Kurt Busch 5 8 36 8 14.3
David Reutimann 14 19 9 18 15.0
Kyle Busch 3 13 23 24 15.8
Bill Elliott 16 16 16.0
Casey Mears 24 24 6 11 16.3
Jimmie Johnson 9 22 33 1 16.3
David Ragan 17 15 30 7 17.3
Sam Hornish, Jr. 23 29 5 12 17.3
Joey Logano 26 25 7 14 18.0
Travis Kvapil 18 18.0
Mark Martin 40 1 31 4 19.0
Kasey Kahne 12 21 11 34 19.5
Kevin Harvick 38 18 12 10 19.5
Dale Earnhardt, Jr. 39 14 3 25 20.3
Ryan Newman 28 23 15 15 20.3
Elliott Sadler 25 12 25 32 23.5
Jamie McMurray 16 11 32 36 23.8
Brad Keselowski 24 24.0
Jeff Burton 32 26 18 30 26.5
Martin Truex, Jr. 27 36 21 22 26.5
Marcos Ambrose 22 31 35 23 27.8
Regan Smith 28 28.0
Bobby Labonte 20 28 43 26 29.3
Robby Gordon 30 17 37 38 30.5
A.J. Allmendinger 29 39 22 33 30.8
Paul Menard 37 34 26 27 31.0
Scott Speed 41 37 34 21 33.3
Aric Almirola 35 35.0
Max Papis 35 35 35.0
David Gilliland 33 32 40 42 36.8
Michael McDowell 40 40.0
Mike Bliss 38 43 40.5
Joe Nemechek 43 42 39 39 40.8
Dave Blaney 42 40 42 41 41.3

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