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NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview: DirecTV Head2Head Knockout

FOX Sports.com is hosting the DirecTV Head2Head Knockout, a bracket that pits 28 of the best NASCAR Sprint Cup drivers against each other. Registration ends April 18th, 3:00PM ET. I’ve put together a preview of all the first round matchups, my Fastest Four selections, my championship pick and a peak at my entire bracket.

• Round 1 - Texas Motor Speedway
• Round 2 - Talladega Superspeedway
• Round 3 - Richmond International Raceway
• Fastest Four - Darlington Raceway

Turn 1

• Kurt Busch (1) vs. Elliot Sadler (8) – Busch finished eighth, first last year at Texas.
• Kyle Busch (4) vs. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (5) – Neither one had a Top 10 last year at Texas, but Busch was much better on intermediate tracks.
• Carl Edwards (3) vs. Paul Menard (6) - *Possible upset* Menard finished fifth at Atlanta (a similar 1.5 mile, 24 degree-banked track) earlier this year. 4/09 race at Texas: Edwards 10th, Menard 13th.
• Denny Hamlin (2) vs. Brad Keselowski (7) - *Possible upset* Hamlin’s knee is still an uncertain. Keselowski was running in the Top Six before getting wrecked by Edwards at Atlanta.

Turn 2

• Mark Martin (1) vs. David Ragan (8) – Martin finished sixth, fourth last year at Texas.
• Joey Logano (4) vs. Jamie McMurray (5) – 2009 finishes at Texas… Logano: 30th, 19th. McMurray: 38th, 20th.
• Jeff Burton (3) vs. Martin Truex, Jr. (6) – Burton finished ninth in both races last year at Texas.
• Tony Stewart (2) vs. A.J. Allmendinger (7) – *Possible upset* Stewart finished fourth, sixth last year at Texas. Allmendinger finished sixth at Atlanta earlier this season.

Turn 3

• Jimmie Johnson (1) vs. Regan Smith (8)
• Brian Vickers (4) vs. Juan Pablo Montoya (5) – Montoya finished third at Atlanta, Vickers finished seventh.
• Kevin Harvick (3) vs. Marcos Ambrose (6) - Harvick finished ninth at Atlanta, Ambrose finished 11th.
• Greg Biffle (2) vs. Sam Hornish, Jr. (7) – Biffle finished third, eighth last year at Texas.

Turn 4

• Jeff Gordon (1) vs. Bobby Labonte (8)
• Kasey Kahne (4) vs. Ryan Newman (5) - 2009 finishes at Texas… Kahne: 19th, 33rd. Newman: 15th, 12th.
• Clint Bowyer (3) vs. David Reutimann (6) - *Possible upset* 2009 finishes at Texas… Bowyer: 23rd, 22nd. Reutimann: 11th, 16th.
• Matt Kenseth (2) vs. Scott Speed (7) – Kenseth finished second at Atlanta, two Top Fives last year at Texas. Speed finished 10th at Atlanta.

Fastest Four picks

• Turn 1 – Kyle Busch: It has been a rough season for Rowdy, but if he advances past Talladega I don’t see anyone in this bracket outdoing him at Richmond.
• Turn 2 – Tony Stewart: Smoke is great at Talladega and Richmond. I have Mark Martin, the number one seed, going down in round two since he crashed in both races at Talladega last year.
• Turn 3 – Jimmie Johnson: If Montoya was a better plate racer I would be tempted to have Johnson fall in round two. Don’t count me among the surprised if it does indeed happen.
• Turn 4 – Jeff Gordon: Consistency at Richmond is what makes Gordon the favorite in this bracket. All of the other top seeds have shaky recent history at Talladega, which could blow up this entire part of the bracket.

Champion – Jeff Gordon: The final matchup at Darlington pits all of the Fastest Four against each other. Gordon and Johnson have ridiculously good numbers there. After reviewing loop data numbers, I’m going with Gordon for a couple of reasons. Since loop data was introduced in 2005, Gordon has met or exceeded Johnson in percentage of laps in the Top 15 at Darlington in all five races. In that span, Gordon’s average driver rating (114.4) is better than Johnson (112.1). Finally, Gordon has topped 111.0 driver rating in all five races at Darlington; Johnson has been below 100.0 in each of the last two races there.

• View my entire bracket here.

NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Heluva Good Sour Cream Dips at the Glen

Expert	Website	Pick to Win	Finish	Experts Avg
James Jones	On Pit Row	Juan Montoya	6	7.14
Ryan Rantz	On Pit Row	Tony Stewart	1	8.57
Cheryl Lauer	Speed Couch	Tony Stewart	1	9.38
Yahoo Users	Yahoo! Sports	Jimmie Johnson	12	9.62
Dennis Michelsen	RaceTalkRadio.com	Tony Stewart	1	10.0
Mike Harmon	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	1	10.19
Roger Rotter	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	1	11.14
Gerrit Ritt	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	1	12.05
Lou Lauer	USAR Fans	Juan Montoya	6	12.76
Eric Brewer		Marcos Ambrose	2	12.76
Darren Fauth	Fantasy NASCAR Names	Jimmie Johnson	12	13.52
Charlie Turner	On Pit Row	Juan Montoya	6	13.95
P J Walsh	FantasyNASCARPreview.com	Marcos Ambrose	2	14.33
Bob Ellis	NASCAR Ranting and Raving	Marcos Ambrose	2	14.62
Eric McClung	On Pit Row	Juan Montoya	6	15.67
Eric McGuire	FFToolbox	Tony Stewart	1	15.67
Jon Rodgers	Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner	Kyle Busch	4	18.19

NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Pennsylvania 500

Expert	Website	Pick to Win	Finish	Experts Avg
James Jones	On Pit Row	Tony Stewart	10	7.2
Ryan Rantz	On Pit Row	Jimmie Johnson	13	8.95
Yahoo Users	Yahoo! Sports	Jimmie Johnson	13	9.5
Cheryl Lauer	Speed Couch	Jeff Gordon	8	9.8
Dennis Michelsen	RaceTalkRadio.com	Tony Stewart	10	10.45
Mike Harmon	FOX Sports	Jimmy Johnson	13	10.65
Roger Rotter	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	10	11.65
Gerrit Ritt	FOX Sports	Kurt Busch	9	12.6
Lou Lauer	USAR Fans	Mark Martin	7	13.1
Eric Brewer		Tony Stewart	10	13.3
Darren Fauth	Fantasy NASCAR Names	Carl Edwards	18	13.6
Charlie Turner	On Pit Row	Tony Stewart	10	14.35
P J Walsh	FantasyNASCARPreview.com	Tony Stewart	10	14.95
Bob Ellis	NASCAR Ranting and Raving	Mark Martin	7	15.25
Eric McClung	On Pit Row	Carl Edwards	18	16.15
Eric McGuire	FFToolbox	Carl Edwards	18	16.4
Jon Rodgers	Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner	Joey Logano	27	18.9

NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Allstate 400 at the Brickyard

Expert	Website	Pick to Win	Finish	Experts Avg
James Jones	On Pit Row	Jeff Gordon	9	7.1
Ryan Rantz	On Pit Row	Kasey Kahne	7	8.7
Yahoo Users	Yahoo! Sports	Jimmie Johnson	1	9.3
Dennis Michelsen	RaceTalkRadio.com	Tony Stewart	3	10.5
Cheryl Lauer	Speed Couch	Jeff Gordon	9	9.9
Mike Harmon	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	3	10.5
Roger Rotter	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	3	11.7
Gerrit Ritt	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	3	12.8
Darren Fauth	Fantasy NASCAR Names	Kasey Kahne	7	13.4
Eric Brewer		Ryan Newman	14	13.5
Lou Lauer	USAR Fans	Jeff Gordon	9	13.4
Charlie Turner	On Pit Row	Kasey Kahne	7	14.6
P J Walsh	FantasyNASCARPreview.com	Tony Stewart	3	15.2
Bob Ellis	NASCAR Ranting and Raving	Tony Stewart	3	15.7
Eric McClung	On Pit Row	Jeff Gordon	9	16.1
Eric McGuire	FFToolbox	Jimmie Johnson	1	16.3
Jon Rodgers	Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner	Dale Earnhardt Jr	36	18.5

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview: Allstate 400 at the Brickyard

Greetings On Pit Row readers.
The historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway was built back in 1909 but the configuration has remained similar, a flat 2.5-mile rectangular track. The venue has hosts the largest single-day sporting event the world, the Indianapolis 500 (IndyCar Series) but added an annual NASCAR event starting in 1994. The track lends itself more to battles for track position and fuel mileage rather than side-by-side racing.

Last year marked the first time the Car of Tomorrow was raced here and the results were dreadful. Tire issues plagued the race, no more than 12 consecutive green-flag laps were recorded and 52 of the 160 laps were completed under caution. Since the debacle, seven tire tests have been held with very positive results.

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.

Good luck this week and please leave your comments below! Download a printer-friendly version here.

1. Tony Stewart… Finished 23rd last year but eighth or better in four of the last five starts, including wins in ‘05 and ‘07. Led 40 or more laps in four of the last seven. Y! B-1
2. Jeff Gordon… Four career wins. Top-10 finishes in 12 of 15 career starts. Top-eight finishes in seven of the last eight. Y! A-1
3. Jimmie Johnson… Last five starts: won from the pole last year, won in ‘06. Finished worse than 30th in the other three. Y! A-2
4. Carl Edwards… Started ninth, finished second last year. Average finish of 13.0 in three other career starts. Y! A-3
5. Kasey Kahne… Strong qualifier. Started fourth or fifth in four straight attempts. Accidents in ‘06 and ‘07, but finished seventh or better in three other career races. Y! B-2
6. Juan Pablo Montoya… Finished 39th (DNF, engine) last year. Runner-up only other Cup series start at Indianapolis. Won the ‘00 Indy 500, started second. Y! B-3
7. Denny Hamlin… Started 23rd, finished third last year. Finished 22nd and 10th in two other career starts. Y! B-4
8. Kyle Busch… Four career starts: three top-10 finishes, has never finished worse than 15th. Has led laps in three straight. Y! A-4
9. Mark Martin… Finished 11th or better in five of the last six starts.
10. Matt Kenseth… Last seven starts: four top-five finishes but 38th and 10th in the last two.
11. Kurt Busch… Good qualifier. Started seventh or better in three straight starts but finished 40th, 11th and 12 in those races. Y! B-5
12. Greg Biffle… Only two top-10 finishes (’04, ‘08) in six career starts.
13. Ryan Newman… Strong qualifier. Only one career top-10 finish but has never started worse than eighth. Started fifth or better in five of eight career attempts. Y! B-6
14. Clint Bowyer… Going the wrong way in three career starts: started 40th, 26th and second, finished 19th, 13th and fourth.
15. Jeff Burton… Only four top-10 finishes in 15 career starts, but two have come in the last two years.
16. AJ Allmendinger… Strong value play. Started 26th, finished 10th last year and led four laps last year, first career Indianapolis start. Y! C-1
17. Marcos Ambrose… Started 24th and finished 22nd last year, first career Indianapolis start. Y! C-2
18. Brian Vickers… Going the wrong way in last four starts: finished 42nd, 21st, 17th and third. Y! B-7
19. Dale Earnhardt Jr…. Only one top-10 finish (’06) in the last seven starts. Led laps the last two years. Y! B-8
20. Joey Logano… No starts at Indianapolis.
21. Sam Hornish Jr…. Started 38th and finished 21nd last year, first Cup series Indianapolis start. Won the ‘06 Indy 500 from the pole, finished fourth in ‘07. Y! C-3.
22. Reed Sorenson… Weak value play. Won the pole in ‘07, finished fifth, led 16 laps. Started 22nd and finished 17th last year. Y! C-4
23. David Ragan… Weak value play. Two career starts: finished 14th and 16th.
24. David Reutimann… Two career starts: started 33rd and 34th, finished 30th and 38th.
25. David Gilliland… Long shot value play. ‘07- 20th, ‘08- 17th.
26. Kevin Harvick… Won from the pole in ‘03, average finish of 14.8 in the five starts since.
27. Martin Truex Jr…. DNF in his first career start, average finish of 18.33 over the last three.
28. Jamie McMurray… Finished six last year, breaking a streak of three finishes of 17th or worse.
29. Elliott Sadler… Started sixth, finished fourth last year, finished 28th or worse in the previous three.
30. Casey Mears… Only one top-10 finish in six career starts (’05), finished 23rd or worse in the other five.
31. Bill Elliott… Won in ‘02, finished 23rd or 24th in three straight starts.
32. Bobby Labonte… Won in ‘00, zero no top-10s in the eight starts since.
33. Robby Gordon… Two top-10 finishes in ‘02 and ‘03, average finish of 28.2 in the five races since.
34. John Andretti… Average finish of 21.7 in the last three Indy 500s. No Cup starts since ‘03. Only one top-10 finish in 10 career starts (’98), average finish of 32.4 in the five races since.
35. Max Papis… Started in the ‘02 and ‘06 Indy 500, average finish of 18.5
36. Michael Waltrip… Only one top-10 finish in 13 career starts (’94).
37. Joe Nemechek… Zero top-15 finishes in 14 career starts (24.6 average finish).
38. David Stremme… ‘06- 18th, ‘07- 26th.
39. Paul Menard… ‘07- 20th, ‘08- 41st.
40. Regan Smith… Started 42nd and finished 31st last year, first career Indianapolis start.
41. Dave Blaney… Only one top-10 finish in 10 career starts (’07).
42. Scott Speed… No starts at Indianapolis.
43. Sterling Marlin… No starts since ‘06. Average finish of 26.8 from ‘02-’06.
44. Terry Labonte… Finished 27th or worse in four straight starts (three DNFs).
45. Mike Skinner… No starts since ‘06. Average finish of 34.25 from ‘02-’06 (two DNFs).
46. Derrike Cope… No starts since ‘04. Average finish of 32.9 in seven career starts.
47. Mike Wallace… No starts since ‘02, crashed after completing 10 laps.

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview: LifeLock.com 400

Greetings On Pit Row readers,
Chicagoland Speedway hosts one race a year and only eight Cup races have been held here so many fantasy owners may look for data from some of the similar cookie-cutter tracks. The most similar configuration is Kansas Speedway. Both are 1.5-mile, D-shaped ovals. The race at Kansas is held during the Chase so you’ll have to go back to last season for those numbers. Las Vegas Motor Speedway has some similarities and has been visited once earlier in the season.

Qualifying has not been very important at Chicago - anywhere in teens will do. Kyle Busch won from the pole last year but of the eight Cup races held at Chicagoland, the winner has started from outside of the top-10 on five occasions.

As I stated on this week’s On Pit Row, I prefer to look at each start individually but similar track numbers are helpful to break a split decision between two drivers. For more advice, please join me for this week’s live fantasy chat Thursday at 7PM Eastern!

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.

Good luck this week and please leave your comments below! Download a printer-friendly version here.

1. Tony Stewart… Six top-five finishes over the eight races held at Chicagoland, including two wins (’04, ‘07) Has led laps in six races, leading all drivers in total laps led. Y! B-1
2. Jimmie Johnson… Good qualifier. Seven career starts: no wins but six finishes of sixth or better. Had led laps in six races. After his first attempt never started worse than eighth. Y! A-1
3. Matt Kenseth… Good qualifier. Last four starts: started 10th or better in all four. Finished seventh or better in the last three races- led laps in all of them. Has led laps in six of the eight races held, finished 14th or better in seven of them. Led an average of 144.0 laps in the ‘05 and ‘06 races. Y! A-2
4. Kyle Busch… Won from the pole last year, leading 165 laps. Has never finished worse than 14th in four races. Y! A-3
5. Jeff Gordon… Four top-five finishes, including a victory in ‘06. Has finished worse than 17th only once, due to an accident. Has led laps in four races. Y! A-4
6. Greg Biffle… Improving slowly but surely. Finished 20th in ‘03 and ‘04, finished 11th ‘05-’07, career-best four-place finish last year, led 43 laps
7. Brian Vickers… Strong qualifier. Started fifth or better in three of four attempts. Two top-10 finishes, never finished worse than 14th. Y! B-2
8. Kevin Harvick… Strong value play. Won the first Chicagoland races in ‘01 and ‘02. Has top-five finishes in three straight races. Had led laps in five of eight career starts, including two of the last three
9. Ryan Newman… Strong qualifier. Has started third or better three times in seven attempts. Won the pole in ‘02, won the race in ‘03. Poor finishes from ‘04-’06 but top-10s in ‘07 and ‘08. Y! B-3
10. Kurt Busch… Has finished in sixth or eight place on five occasions. Finished 28th or worse in three other starts. Y! B-4
11. Mark Martin… Had led laps in four races. Last top-10 came in ‘05, finished inside the top-20 in the three races since.
12. Jeff Burton… Good qualifier. Won the pole in ‘06, started third last year. Two of his three career top-10s have come in the last three races. Finished 30th or worse three times in the five previous races.
13. Clint Bowyer… Three career starts: ninth, 10th, 22nd.
14. Dale Earnhardt Jr…. Good qualifier. Started second and fifth in the last two races, finished 16th and 19th. Started 25th in ‘05 and ‘06- finished with a win and another top-five. Had led laps in four of eight races and in three of the last four. Y! B-5
15. Carl Edwards… Four career starts: only one finish better than 20th. Kasey Kahne… Career-best 15th-place finish last year, finished 23rd or worse in the four other career starts. Y! B-6
16. David Reutimann… Two career starts: 43rd (engine), 14th-place finishes. Y! B-7
17. AJ Allmendinger… Strong value play. Started 39th, finished 13th last year in first career Chicagoland start. Y! C-1
18. Denny Hamlin… Three career starts: has never finished better than 14th, but has started 13th or better each time. Y! B-8
19. Juan Pablo Montoya… Two career starts: 15th and 18th-place finishes.Joey Logano… Started 13th, finished ninth last year at Kansas in the Nationwide Series.
20. Martin Truex Jr…. Career-best ninth-place last year, led laps in the last two races.
21. Sam Hornish Jr…. Started 35th, finished 37th last year last year in first career Chicagoland start. Y! C-2
22. David Ragan… Two career starts: 25th and eighth-place finishes.
23. Casey Mears… Weak value play. Strong qualifier (in odd number years). Six career starts: has started fourth in ‘03, third in ‘05 (finished ninth) and first in ‘07 (finished fifth).
24. Marcos Ambrose… Started 24th, finished 15th last year in the Nationwide Series. Y! C-3
25. Bobby Labonte… No top-10 finishes in eight races, 23.1 average finish. Y! C-4
26. Jamie McMurray… Career-best eighth-place finish as a rookie in ‘03, finished 22nd or worse in the last four races.
27. Elliott Sadler… Finished 12th last year, finished 21st or worse in five of the previous six races.
28. Brad Keselowski… Long shot value play. Two Nationwide Series starts: finished 14th and third.
29. Reed Sorenson… Heading the wrong way in qualifying and finishes: ‘06- 18th/seventh, ‘07- 22nd/12th, 08- 32nd/31st.
30. Scott Speed… Truck series: started and finished eighth at Kansas. ARCA series: won at Kansas, finished third at Chicagoland.
31. Paul Menard… Two career starts: 42nd and 26th-place finishes.
32. David Stremme… Declining in three career starts: ‘05- 16th, ‘06- 21st, ‘07- 34th.
33. Michael Waltrip… Finished 30th or worse in four straight races.
34. Robby Gordon… Two top-20 finishes in the last five races.
35. Bill Elliott… Solid from ‘01-’03. Finished 28th or worse in three straight races.
36. John Andretti… No starts since ‘07: finished 18th.
37. David Gilliland… Two career starts: 16th and 42th-place (engine) finishes.Regan Smith… Started 33rd, finished 34th last year in first career Chicagoland start.
38. Joe Nemechek… Finished 29th or worse in three straight races.
39. Dexter Bean… ARCA series: average finish 13.0 in four starts (best finishes: fourth, seventh)
40. Mike Bliss… Starts in ‘04 and ‘05. Average start 9.0 but two DNFs.
41. Dave Blaney… Three DNFs in the last five races, finished 17th in ‘06, 23rd last year.
42. Tony Raines… Last start came in ‘07, finished 24rd.
43. Mike Wallace… Last start came in ‘05, finished 25th.
44. Mike Skinner… Last start came in ‘02, finished 23rd.

NASCAR Fantasy Racing Preview: Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca Cola

Greetings On Pit Row readers.

There have been two restrictor plate races held thus far, so consider the results of the Daytona 500 and the Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway when  evaluating your lineup for this week.

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

Download a printer-friendly version here.

• 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.

Leave your comments below!

1. Tony Stewart… Strong qualifier: best average starting position (16.0) over the last five years. Eight top-10 finishes in 11 races since ‘04, including two wins. Led laps in those eight top-10s. Y! B-1
2. Kyle Busch… Finished fourth or better in four of the last six races, including a win last year. Y! A-1
3. Matt Kenseth… Won this year’s Daytona 500 but historically better in the July race: ‘08- third, ‘07- eighth, ‘06- fifth, ‘05- ninth, ‘03- sixth. Y! A-2
4. Kurt Busch… 17 career starts: eight top-fives. Top-10 finishes in five of the last six races. Y! B-2
5. Mark Martin… Good qualifier. 48 career starts, zero wins. Started second at this year’s Daytona 500 (finished 16th) and last year’s Coke Zero 400 (finished 10th). Y! A-3
6. Jimmie Johnson… Won in ‘06, only one top-10 in the six races since. Had finished eighth or better in six of seven previous races (’02-’05). Y! A-4
7. Jeff Gordon… Wins in ‘04 and ‘05 but only three top-10 finishes in the eight races since.
8. Clint Bowyer… Seven career starts: five top-10 finishes. Career-best fourth-place finish at Daytona.
9. Kasey Kahne… ‘07, ‘08: streak four top-10 finishes, finished 29th at this year’s Daytona 500. Y! B-3
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr…. Finished ninth and eighth last year, leading laps in both. Finished 27th at this year’s Daytona 500. 19 career starts: led laps 13 times. Runner-up at Talladega. Y! B-4
11. Ryan Newman… 14 career starts: won 2/08, only two other top-10 finishes. Third at Talladega. Y! B-5
12. Brian Vickers… Finished 12th and 11th last year. Finished 39th (accident) at this year’s Daytona 500. Y! B-6
13. Kevin Harvick… Last six races at Daytona: win, runner-up, five finishes of 14th or better.
14. Carl Edwards… Only two top-10 finishes but each came in the last two July races (fourth 7/07, second 7/08).
15. Denny Hamlin… Seven career starts: zero top-10 finishes. Career-best 17th (2/08, 7/06) Y! B-7
16. Greg Biffle… 13 career starts: only three top-10 finishes. Third at Talladega.
17. Jeff Burton… One top-10 finish since ‘04.
18. David Reutimann… Career-best 12th-place finish at Daytona. Y! B-8
19. Marcos Ambrose… Finished 17th at this year’s Daytona 500, first career start. Fourth at Talladega. Y! C-1
20. Elliott Sadler… Strong value play. Last seven races: five finishes of sixth or better
21. AJ Allmendinger… Finished third in second career start at Daytona this year. Y! C-2
22. Brad Keselowski… Long shot value play. No Cup starts at Daytona. Nationwide Series: ‘08- 16th, fifth (led 28 laps). ‘09- 2nd (led six laps). Won at Talladega. Y! C-3
23. Joey Logano… DNF in first career start at Daytona this year. Finished 20th in the Nationwide Series.
24. Martin Truex Jr…. Weak value play. No top-10s but four straight finishes of 20th or better.
25. Juan Pablo Montoya… Career-high 14th-place finish at this year’s Daytona 500. 32nd or worse in three of five career starts.
26. Jamie McMurray… Finished 26th or worse in four of the last five at Daytona, a win in ‘07.
27. Bobby Labonte… Finished 11th and 13th last year. Finished 22nd at this year’s Daytona 500. Y! C-4
28. Robby Gordon… Daytona 500: 34th. ‘08: eighth, sixth. Streak of six top-15 finishes from ‘06-’08.
29. Sam Hornish Jr…. Declining over three career starts: 15th, 29th, 32nd.
30. David Ragan… Lone top-10 of the season came at Daytona.
31. Casey Mears… 15th or worse in five straight races at Daytona.
32. Joe Nemechek… Good qualifier: 7/08- fourth, 7/06- fifth, 7/05- fifth.
33. Michael Waltrip… Daytona 500: seventh. First top-10 since winning in ‘03.
34. Reed Sorenson… Last three Daytona 500’s: 13th, fifth, ninth. Last three July races: 34th, 42nd, 22nd.
35. David Stremme… ‘07: 11th, 22nd. Daytona 500: 33nd
36. Scott Speed… Daytona 500: 35th. Fifth at Talladega.
37. Paul Menard… Finished a career-best 15th last year.
38. Patrick Carpentier… ‘08: started 10th, finished 14th.
39. John Andretti… Three top-20 finishes since ‘00.
40. David Gilliland… ‘07: eighth, 11th. ‘08: 28th, 40th.
41. Regan Smith… ‘08: 37th, 24th. Daytona 500: 21st
42. Dave Blaney…’08: 38th, 19th.
43. Max Papis… No Cup or Nationwide starts at Daytona.
44. Tony Raines… ‘07: 39th.

NASCAR Power Rankings: Michigan

Pocono

Who's Up	Who's Down
Biggest Gain This Week: Carl Edwards: 10th to 6th	Biggest Drop This Week: Kyle Busch: 4th to 7th
New This Week: David Reutimann	Dropped Out This Week:

Rank: 1st Tony Stewart #14 Last Week: 2 Change: +1 Driver Page | Articles

Tony Stewart- Pole Victory (sort of) Tony Stewart started from the pole at Pocono (before one to go) in his backup car and went on to become the first owner driver to win a race since Ricky Rudd won at Martinsville in 1998. The win also propelled Stewart to #1 in the Power Rankings.

Rank: 2nd Mark Martin #5 Last Week: 1 Change: -1 Driver Page | Articles

Mark Martin- 4 wins at Michigan On Sunday Mark Martin will be competing in his 47th race at Michigan. Over 46 races Martin has an average finish of 13.1, 4 wins, and 28 top tens. What will happen in race 47 at Michigan for Martin? My guess is a solid top ten.

Rank: 3rd Jimmie Johnson #48 Last Week: 3 Change: 0 Driver Page | Articles

Jimmie Johnson- Ran out of gas at the end Johnson had a winning car at Pocono but a penalty for pitting under caution hurt the 48 team. Johnson was able to move up to the front of the pack again but his Impala SS didn't have enough gas. In 14 races at Michigan Johnson only has 2 top fives.

Rank: 4th Ryan Newman #39 Last Week: 6 Change: +2 Driver Page | Articles

Ryan Newman- Recovered from early Pocono problems Ryan Newman was very successful at Michigan early in his career. In fact the first top 5 of Newman's career happened at Michigan in the June race during his pre-rookie 2001 season. Newman has 2 career wins at Michigan.

Rank: 5th Jeff Gordon #24 Last Week: 5 Change: 0 Driver Page | Articles

Jeff Gordon- 899 laps led at Michigan Gordon has been very successful at Michigan over the course of his career. In 32 races Gordon has 2 wins, 15 top fives, 20 top tens and 5 poles. The bad news is that in 2008 Gordon's best finish was 18th.

Rank: 6th Carl Edwards #99 Last Week: 10 Change: +4 Driver Page | Articles

Carl Edwards- Getting closer to a victory The 99 team is starting to get hot and at Michigan they will be entering the weekend as the car to beat. In 9 career Michigan races Edwards has an average finish of 6.6, 2 wins, 5 top fives, and 8 top tens.

Rank: 7th Kyle Busch #18 Last Week: 4 Change: -3 Driver Page | Articles

Kyle Busch- Finished 2nd at Michigan last year NASCAR rockstar wannabe Kyle Busch had a 15th place car at best at Pocono. With his 22nd place finish Kyle fell 3 spots in the points standings down to 9th. Over the last 4 races Kyle's average finish is 21.5.

Rank: 8th Greg Biffle #16 Last Week: 8 Change: 0 Driver Page | Articles

Greg Biffle- Successful at Michigan in the past Michigan is a Roush Fenway track and Ford is getting closer to victory lane all the time. If the weather in Michigan (changes every 5 minutes) warms up and the track gets slick Greg Biffle might just be the car to beat.

Rank: 9th Matt Kenseth #17 Last Week: 9 Change: 0 Driver Page | Articles

Matt Kenseth- 9.1 finish average at Michigan In February Kenseth won at Michigan's sister track California. What will this early season win translate into Sunday? Kenseth will be a contender for the checkered flag and anything less then a top 5 will be a disappointment.

Rank: 10th Kurt Busch #2 Last Week: 7 Change: -3 Driver Page | Articles

Kurt Busch- When will the Blue Deuce get win #2? The keys to victory at Michigan are 1) Horsepower 2) Fuel Mileage. Kurt's Dodge has the horsepower to win but Dodges for whatever reason never have the fuel mileage edge in NASCAR. Kurt does have 2 career wins at Michigan so expect a rebound Sunday.

Rank: 11th Kasey Kahne #9 Last Week: 11 Change: 0 Driver Page | Articles

Kasey Kahne- Fast but not enough gas At Pocono the 9 car was fast, but they didn't have enough gas. At Michigan the 9 car will be fast again (thanks to R6 engine) and Kahne will continue his charge for a Chase appearance. Kahne has 1 career victory at MIS.

Rank: 12th David Reutimann #00 Last Week: NR Change: N/A Driver Page | Articles

David Reutimann- 3rd place finish at Pocono Fuel mileage races always are full of surprises at the end. The surprise finish of the race for me was Reutimann's 3rd place finish. While other drivers were idling the 00 had plenty of fuel for the race to the finish line.

Congratulations to the One and Done Spring Thing Winner!

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.

NASCAR Fantasy Experts Picks: Coca Cola 600 at Lowes Motorspeedway

Expert	Website	Pick to Win	Finish	Experts Avg
James Jones	On Pit Row	Jimmie Johnson	13	7.9
Mike Harmon	FOX Sports	Tony Stewart	19	8.9
Bob Ellis	NASCAR Ranting and Raving	Tony Stewart	19	10.2
Ryan Rantz	On Pit Row	Mark Martin	17	10.4
Yahoo Users	Yahoo! Sports	Jimmie Johnson	13	11.4
Darren Fauth	Fantasy NASCAR Names	Jeff Gordon	14	11.5
Cheryl Lauer	Speed Couch	Jeff Gordon	14	11.5
Eric Brewer		Jimmie Johnson	13	11.8
Gerrit Ritt	FOX Sports	Jimmie Johnson	13	12.3
Charlie Turner	On Pit Row	Tony Stewart	19	13.6
Dennis Michelsen	RaceTalkRadio.com	Ryan Newman	2	13.7
Lou Lauer	USAR Fans	Jimmie Johnson	13	14.4
Jon Rodgers	Gillette Young Guns Challenge Winner	Brian Vickers	5	16.8
Roger Rotter	FOX Sports	Jeff Burton	25	17.5
P J Walsh	FantasyNASCARPreview.com	Jeff Gordon	14	17.8
Eric McGuire	FFToolbox	Tony Stewart	19	19.2
Eric McClung	KFFL Fantasy NASCAR Blog	Mark Martin	17	19.6

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