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Pocono
Who's Up
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Who's Down
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Biggest Gain This Week:
Jimmie Johnson: 2nd to 1st
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Biggest Drop This Week:
Carl Edwards: 7th to 9th
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New This Week:
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Dropped Out This Week:
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Rank: 1st
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Jimmie Johnson- Driver Rating-110.7If you would of seen the race Monday then you would know why this is the best team in NASCAR. The 48 team was able to overcome serious motor problems and they still finished 13th. |
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Rank: 2nd
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Tony Stewart- Driver Rating 105.0If you didn't see the race and all your heard was that Tony Stewart got a top 10 finish, then you would of never believed it. The 14 got off to a bad start for the weekend and they were never competitive. It was a very deceptive top 10. |
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Rank: 3rd
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Mark Martin- Driver Rating 97.4Did you know Mark Martin's been passed the least amount of times in the series. What makes that even more amazing is that Martin is a good qualifier who always starts up near the front. |
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Rank: 4th
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Jeff Gordon- Driver Rating 101.6The main thing I see wrong with the 24 is that recently they have only been a top 10 team. That may seem good for some, but the Championship is won by teams who win and get top 5's. |
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Rank: 5th
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Kasey Kahne- Driver Rating 90.1During the ESPN telecast they mentioned the difference between how the 9 performs in even & odd years. I've been saying that for a long time. This year is an outlier season for Kahne going by that reasoning. ESPN and I need to make up new theori |
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Rank: 6th
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Kurt Busch- Driver Rating 99.3Did you know that Kurt Busch has passed more cars then anybody this season. I really think that if the stars align correctly for Busch in the Chase then he might very easily be Johnson's biggest threat. |
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Rank: 7th
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Juan Pablo Montoya- Driver Rating 87.3At Pocono Montoya captured his first top 5 of the season. PARTY!! Also you may of noticed I changed my individual driver headers to provide different info every week, but yes he would be credited with a top 5 this week if everything remained the same |
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Rank: 8th
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Denny Hamlin- Driver Rating 98.9At Pocono Denny Hamlin snapped his 50 race winless streak. Denny Hamlin Insider Fantasy Tip: Hamlin is a "skill track" driver that always performs his best when driver skill is a big factor in the race outcome. |
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Rank: 9th
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Carl Edwards- Driver Rating 93.7The 99 looked like a contender at the start of summer but right now the 99 isn't even competitive. In the last 6 races Edwards only has one top ten and that occurred at Daytona a track that doesn't necessarily reflect how good a team is performing. |
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Rank: 10th
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Brian Vickers- Driver Rating 85.7In my opinion I think Brian Vickers is the driver currently outside the Chase who has the best chance of making the playoffs. In the last 6 races Vickers has outscored Kyle Busch by 183 points. |
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Rank: 11th
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Ryan Newman- Driver Rating 82.4Among Chase contenders Newman is the worst team in Avg Running Position, Avg Mid Race, # of fastest laps, he has been passed the second most times but to show his cumulative problems he also has the lowest driver rating. Defense at rest. |
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Rank: 12th
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Clint Bowyer- Driver Rating 79.9RCR is starting to look like an organization that has life in it once again, and luckily for Clint Bowyer he still has an outside shot of making the Chase. The schedule is also semi favorable for Clint and the 33 car. |
Greetings On Pit Row readers.
Fresh off an unexpected finish at Indianapolis, we shift to Pocono Raceway - a unique triangle that features three turns, each modeled after different tracks. Since each of the three turns are so different, Pocono has drawn comparisons to a road course. Turn Two, “The Tunnel Turn”, is banked nine degrees and modeled after the turns at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Like Indianapolis, Pocono has also been proven as a place that has been difficult to make passes. In the June race, of the drivers who qualified in the top-16 only four finished worse than 16th; two were due to mechanical issues (Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin). Also, half of the field finished within five spots of their original starting position.
I will be among the media covering Sunday’s race! I’m hoping to squeak out a blog entry or two in addition to sending out updates over Twitter. Follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/ericmcclung
Oh, props to rambler14 who called Mark Martin’s top-five finish at Indianapolis. I also goofed up on this week’s show; I said Tony Stewart won the pole in the June race at Pocono when in fact the starting grid was set due to points after rain canceled qualifying.
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.
- Strong qualifier - History of winning poles or qualifying inside the top-five.
- Good qualifier - History of qualifying inside the top-10.
- Value play - Good recent history at this week’s track. Drivers to consider as low-rent salary cap options or alternative options in allocation formats.
- Risky play - Good overall history at this week’s track but poor recent finishes.
Good luck this week and please leave your comments below! Download a printer-friendly version here.
- Tony Stewart… Won from the pole in June but started from the rear, runner-up last year. Last eight races this season: 3.1 average finish. Y!-B1
- Carl Edwards… Won last year, runner-up in June and led the most laps (103). Led an average of 78 laps in both races. Y!-A1
- Jimmie Johnson… Strong qualifier. Last five races: 4.0 average start. Last four races: 5.3 average finish. Has led at least 30 laps in three straight. Last eight races this season: 6.75 average finish. Y!-A2
- Jeff Gordon… Last six races: one victory, four top-fives, five top-10 finishes. Y!-A3
- Denny Hamlin… Risky play. Last two races: finished 38th and 23rd. Prior five races: 2.8 average finish, two victories, led an average of 60 laps. Y!-B2
- Juan Pablo Montoya… Career best eighth-place finish in June, average finish of 9.0 in the six races since. Y!-B3
- Mark Martin… Good qualifier. Last five races: 10.6 average finish but finishing worse than he starts: 6/09- 12th/19th, 8/08- second/eighth, 6/08- third/10th. Y!-A4
- Kurt Busch… Last two races: finished 37th and 38th. Prior six races: average finish of 5.0; two victories, runner-up twice. Y!-B4
- David Reutimann… Career-best start (13th) and finish (third) in June. Y!-B5
- Ryan Newman… Risky play. Started and finished fifth in June. Average finish of 18.2 in the six races since, only one top-10 finish. Y!-B6
- Kasey Kahne… Finishes where he starts: 6/09- 14th/15th, 8/08- seventh/seventh, 6/08- first/first. Y!-B7
- Matt Kenseth… Last four races: average of 3.0 laps led, average finish of 12.0.
- Greg Biffle… Last three races: average of 3.3 laps led, average finish of 13.0. Only two top-10 finishes in 13 career starts.
- Kyle Busch… Last top-10 finish: 6/07, average finish of 28.25 in the four races since, one DNF.
- Clint Bowyer… Seven career starts, two of his three top-10 finishes have come in August: 8/07- eighth, 8/08- sixth.
- Marcos Ambrose… Strong value play. Started 20th and finished sixth in June, first career start at Pocono. Y!-C1
- Joey Logano… Strong value play. Started and finished 23rd in June, first career start at Pocono. Won the ARCA series race. Y!-B8
- Jeff Burton… Last seven races: average finish of 11.0, four top-10 finishes.
- Jamie McMurray… Weak value play. Led an average of 1.5 laps in the last two races, 11.0 average finish. Finished 20th or worse in the prior four races.
- Casey Mears… Weak value play. Last three races, finishing and starting better: 6/09- 14th/21th, 8/08- 22nd/33rd, 6/08- 26th/34th
- AJ Allmendinger… Started and finished 30th in June, finished 19th and 12th in ‘08. Y!-C2
- Brian Vickers… Last five races: 23.0 average finish. Only one career finish better than 20th, runner-up 6/08.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr…. Last four races, finishing and starting worse: 6/09- 27th/18th, 8/08- 12th/12th, 6/08- fourth/seventh, 8/07- won the pole, finished runner-up.
- Sam Hornish Jr…. Long shot value play. Career best 10th-place finish in June, finished 26th and 42nd in ‘08. Y!-C3
- Martin Truex Jr…. Long shot value play. Seven career starts: average start and finish each 15.6.
- Kevin Harvick… Started and finished 24th in June, breaking a streak of eight races of finishes 17th or better.
- Bobby Labonte… Started and finished 28th in June, finished 33rd and 11th in ‘08. Y!-C4
- Elliott Sadler… Last three races: 28.6 average finish, led eight laps in two.
- Reed Sorenson… Career best 20th-place finish in June, only start in seven attempts which he gained track position.
- David Ragan… Finished 26th in June, finished fifth and 24th in ‘08.
- Joe Nemechek… DNFs in two straight races, 22.5 average finish in four previous starts.
- Paul Menard… DNF last August, average finish of 27.0 in four other career starts.
- David Gilliland… DNF in June, 30.8 average finish in four other career starts.
- Michael Waltrip… Finished 17th in June, best finish since ‘05.
- Robby Gordon… Last three races: 34.6 average finish.
- David Stremme… Finished a career-worst 34th in June.
- John Andretti… Started and finished 35th in June, first start at Pocono since ‘03.
- Scott Speed… Finished 32nd in June, first career start at Pocono.
- Patrick Carpentier… DNF in June, finished 32nd in ‘08.
- Tony Raines… Did not start in June, 16.5 average finish in two previous August starts.
- Dave Blaney… DNF in June, 24.3 average finish in three previous starts.
- Sterling Marlin… DNF in June, first start at Pocono since ‘07.
- Mike Wallace… Did not start in June, no Pocono starts since ‘05.
- Derrike Cope… Did not start in June, no Pocono starts since ‘03.
Indianapolis
Who's Up
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Who's Down
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Biggest Gain This Week:
Mark Martin: 5th to 3rd
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Biggest Drop This Week:
Jeff Gordon: 3rd to 4th
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New This Week:
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Dropped Out This Week:
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Rank: 1st
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Tony Stewart- 2 Wins, 16 Top TensTony Stewart has been the picture of consistency this season. The last time Tony Stewart didn't finish in the top ten (excluding rain out events) was at Talladega where he finished 23rd with a dying motor. |
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Rank: 2nd
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Jimmie Johnson- 3 Wins, 14 Top TensIndy is a unique race because the best team of the season usually wins. The "Real Season" hasn't started yet and with his third win of the season Johnson will now start the Chase with 30 bonus points. |
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Rank: 3rd
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Mark Martin- 4 Wins, 10 Top TensMark Martin almost had the perfect weekend but his teammate Jimmie Johnson showed why he is the defending 3-time champion with his clutch performance. More importantly then the win Martin is now stretching his lead over 13th place David Reuitimann. |
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Rank: 4th
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Jeff Gordon- 1 Win, 14 Top TensIt was just an off weekend for the 24. I expected more out of Gordon at Indy. He started off mid pack, moved up slowly, and finished a disappointing 9th. |
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Rank: 5th
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Kurt Busch- 1 Win, 10 Top TensChampionship teams overcome problems and Kurt Busch just wasn't able to bounce back after an early pit road problem. Track position was key at Indy and Kurt's 40th place starting position didn't help. |
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Rank: 6th
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Kasey Kahne- 1 Win, 8 Top TensOver the last 6 races Kasey Kahne has accumulated the 4th most points. Only Stewart, Johnson, and Gordon have scored more. Expect a good showing out of Kahne at Pocono. |
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Rank: 7th
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Carl Edwards- 5 Top Fives, 9 Top TensI learned something new at Indy about Roush-Fenway Racing. Roush-Fenway selects one team every week and that selected team runs an experimental setup that weekend. At such a prestigious race Carl's setup was only good for a 15th place finish. |
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Rank: 8th
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Juan Pablo Montoya- 1 Pole, 9 Top TensJuan Pablo Montoya had the best car but the late speeding penalty did him in. To bad, I was actually hoping for a win or at least his first top five. It sure would be interesting if he made the Chase without a single top 5. |
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Rank: 9th
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Denny Hamlin- 6 Top Fives, 8 Top TensDenny Hamlin looked good at Indy but mechanical problems once again affected the 11. In fantasy racing people often relate Pocono and Indy to each other. Hamlin looked the same in both races with his car coasting back to the garage. |
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Rank: 10th
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Brian Vickers- 3 Top Fives, 9 Top TensBrain Vickers is quietly making a run towards the Chase. Will he make it? The answer to that question can be found if you were to study the schedule. Quick Answer: It will be really close, but he wall fall just short. |
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Rank: 11th
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Ryan Newman- 5 Top Fives, 9 Top TensOut of all the teams in the Chase Ryan Newman is currently running the worst. The 39 had a good stretch from Talladega through Pocono but other then that there really hasn't been much to say positive about Newman's season. |
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Rank: 12th
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Greg Biffle- 6 Top Fives, 9 Top TensGreg Biffle makes his re-emergence in the Power Rankings with his solid 4th place finish. Greg needs to continue to perform well if this team is going to make the Chase, and if he's going to prove me correct Kyle Busch will miss it. |
Greetings On Pit Row readers.
The debut of the NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview last week was good one. The format is still a little bit influx so I appreciate your patience as we work on the best way to provide you with the top quick-hitting preview possible. The drivers are broken down into the A, B, C ranks that Yahoo! uses to divide the drivers. Salary cap owners can expect the price of the drivers to follow a similar structure. As we move forward, I’ll be looking to mark some drivers as good values in cap formats. For now, enjoy the ranking and feel free to add your comments below!
A List
- Jimmie Johnson… Two career victories, both in 2004, top-12s in seven of eight since. Top-sixes in four the last five. Qualified first and second last year.
- Jeff Gordon… Thirty-two career starts: 22 top-10s. Top-fives in three of the last five, including one victory.
- Carl Edwards… Two career victories, first start in 2005 and most recent race in August. Two top-10s in the six races in between.
- Mark Martin… Top-10s in seven of the last nine and four straight. Qualified second and third last season. No wins in forty-four career starts but 31 top-10s.
- Matt Kenseth… Top-14s in six straight. Led a lap three straight but only tallying six. Has led laps in nine of 18 starts but only totally 32, zero victories.
- Greg Biffle… Finished 13th and 15th last season, led a total of six laps. Finished outside of the top-20 in the three previous starts.
- Kyle Busch… Too inconstant to trust at the Triangle; 2008: 36th and 43rd, 2007: eighth and 12th
- Jeff Burton… Top-13 finishes in five of the last six, 19th or worse in four straight prior.
- Kevin Harvick… Has qualified outside of the top-20 in three straight. Finished eighth or better in four the last eight.
- Clint Bowyer… Six career starts: 21st or worse in half, but three top-10s in the last four.
B List
- Denny Hamlin… Owns the best average finish, 6.2. Two career victories, both in 2006. Six career starts: five top-six finishes, four top-threes.
- Kurt Busch… Sixteen career starts: two victories, runner-up four times, has qualified second or third on five occasions. Laps led in five of the last seven.
- Tony Stewart… Top-seven finishes in six of the last seven and 14 top-sevens for his career, 20 starts.
- Kasey Kahne… Finished where he started last season: won from the pole in last year’s Pocono 500, seventh place in August. Twenty-second or worse in five of 10 career starts.
- Brian Vickers… Ten career starts: four top-fours and runner-up twice, including last year’s Pocono 500. Has qualified outside of the top-10 only twice but they were in the last three races.
- Ryan Newman… Fourteen career starts: worse than 18th only three times. Five top-fives but only one since 2005.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr…. Top-12s in four straight, including one pole- 25th or worse in four of five prior.
- Jamie McMurray… Tied a career-best ninth place finish in August after starting 41st. Top-20s in six of the last eight.
- Joey Logano… No starts at Pocono, but three top-10s over the last five races this season.
- Juan Pablo Montoya… Two top-20s in 2007, two DNFs in 2008.
- David Reutimann… One top-20 in four career starts.
- Martin Truex Jr…. Has led laps in three of the last four but only totaling four. Finished 15th and 17th last season.
- David Ragan… Career-best fifth-place finish in August, 24th or worse in three races prior.
- Casey Mears… Would the real Mears please stand up? 2008: 22nd and 26th, 2007: fourth and 10th.
- Michael Waltrip… 26th or worse in six straight.
- Elliott Sadler… Has finished outside of the top-20 in five straight.
- David Stremme… Four career starts: never finished better than 23rd.
- Paul Menard… Four career starts: never finished better than 25th.
- David Gilliland… Four career starts: never finished better than 34th.
C List
- Sam Hornish Jr…. Started and finished 26th in the August race last year, DNF in June.
- AJ Allmendinger… Three career starts: 12th and 19th last season
- Bobby Labonte… Three victories, none since 2001- only three top-10s since. Thirty-two career starts, had led one or two laps on eight occasions.
- Marcos Ambrose… No starts at Pocono, average finish of 26.33 over the last three races.
- Reed Sorenson… Six career starts, never finished better than 24th.
- Scott Speed… No starts at Pocono.
- Joe Nemechek… Started in top-10 four times over last nine chances, finished in the top-15 only twice.
- Robby Gordon… Finished seventh and eighth back in 2004, 36th and 37th last year.
- Dave Blaney… 2008 finishes: 22nd, 31st.
- Patrick Carpentier… Started in last year’s Pocono 500: finished 32nd
- Sterling Marlin… Last start: 31st in 2007.
- John Andretti… Two starts in 2003: 23rd and 33rd.
- Mike Wallace… Two starts in 2005: 29th, 31st.
- Derrike Cope… Last start in 2003: 42nd.
- Dexter Bean… No starts at Pocono.
If you are thinking of doing any actual NASCAR betting you may be better served by finding actual NASCAR odds at a service that is involved in online wagering or something. We, most assuredly, are not.
Charlotte
Who's Up
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Who's Down
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Biggest Gain This Week:
Mark Martin: 3rd to 1st
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Biggest Drop This Week:
Jeff Gordon: 1st to 5th
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New This Week:
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Dropped Out This Week:
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Rank: 1st
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Mark Martin- New #1 in Power RankingsMark Martin might not make history for being the oldest driver to win a race, but he is the oldest driver to ever be in first place in my Power Rankings. At Pocono Martin finishes in the top ten 70% of the time. |
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Rank: 2nd
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Tony Stewart- New #1 in the Point StandingsTony Stewart had about a 10th place car at Dover and through pit strategy he wheeled the 14 to a 2nd place finish. The 14 hasn't been the fastest this year, but they have been consistent and Stewart collected his series high 9th top ten at Dover. |
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Rank: 3rd
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Jimmie Johnson- Had a 150 Driver rating at DoverJohnson had the field covered at Dover and lead 298 laps out of 400. When this team is hot there is no stopping them. Expect a good run out of this team at Pocono where Johnson has a career average finish of 9.2.
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Rank: 4th
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Kyle Busch- Should of never mentioned 200 winsDover was a perfect example of what I said about Kyle last week. Kyle doomed himself by saying he wanted to win 200 races. Will he ever win again (not with his recent luck)? Last year at Pocono Kyle finished 36th & 43rd. |
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Rank: 5th
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Jeff Gordon- Did he even try to race at Dover?Gordon started in the back and finished there at Dover. Gordon was caught on pit row during caution and never recovered. If his back pains are still a problem then I would suggest maybe the 24 team should get a Kenseth winning robot to sub. |
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Rank: 6th
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Ryan Newman- Hello NewmanBeing a Ryan Newman fan (like his name) I really hope he isn't fooling us with his recent strong performances this year. He does however have 4 top 5's and 5 top 10's over the last 6 races. |
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Rank: 7th
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Kurt Busch- 2 career wins at PoconoKurt Busch will be a top contender at Pocono this weekend. He's had the ability to stink up this race in the past and on Sunday it might just happen again. |
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Rank: 8th
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Greg Biffle- Getting momentumOver the last 6 races only Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart have accumulated more points then Biffle. From a fantasy racing perspective I would steer clear of him this weekend because he only has 1 top ten over the last 6 races at Pocono. |
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Rank: 9th
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Matt Kenseth- Pocono SleeperMatt Kenseth might not be the first person who comes to your mind at Pocono but over the last 6 races he does have an average finish of 10th. More importantly he collects a top ten finish every other race at Pocono and he's due for another top ten. |
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Rank: 10th
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Carl Edwards- Last Pocono winnerCarl Edwards had a good run at Dover but as I've mentioned in previous Power Rankings (not at onpitrow.com) the magic just isn't there for the 99 team in 2009. His performance however was good enough for him to make a Power Rankings appearance. |
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Rank: 11th
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Kasey Kahne- New R6 engine might be the answerPocono is a track that is all about horsepower and accelerating off the turns. The new R6 motor is geared for acceleration. This week Kahne is testing at Indy so he might just learn something for Pocono there. |
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Rank: 12th
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Denny Hamlin- Pocono medicine on the wayDenny Hamlin might not be the best driver on the Intermediate tracks but he's a master on the short and flat ones. His numbers at Pocono are almost unrivaled. In the first 5 races of his career (6 total) his average finish was 2.8. |
On Pit Row’s first ever NASCAR fantasy game - the 13 race One and Done Spring Thing - is over.
Nice job by jlagg22 in coming from behind on the last race to grab first place and the Dale Jarrett Racing Adventure package that goes with the win.
All in all, we doled out 23 prizes during the 13 race game. Not bad for a free NASCAR fantasy game. Game number two - The One and Done Race to the Chase starts this week with the Pocono 500. Prizes for the One and Done Race to the Chase will be announced later this week, but you won’t be disappointed.
Picks will open on Wednesday this week, giving us an extra day to switch things over. As always, picks will close at 4 PM ET Saturday. If you played the first game, you’re already entered for the next one. If you haven’t played - come on, what’s stopping you? This is the easiest NASCAR fantasy game on the planet!
Sign up today! Click here.
