Month: May 2018

Another boring race dominated by Kyle Busch. Congratulations to him for both winning his fourth race of the season and winning in a points race at every track on the NASCAR circuit. Both are great feats to accomplish for any driver. Kyle was never seriously challenged at any point of the race and won by almost four seconds over second place Martin Truex Jr., but that was only because he was coasting and just trying to stay out of trouble. When the race ended there were only nine cars on the lead lap.

POCONO 400

This week the drivers head to the Pocono Raceway for the running of the Pocono 400. To me this is usually a boring race, but we will have to wait and see. Pocono creates a challenge for all drivers and crew chiefs alike because of its three turns that are all configured differently. It isn’t nicknamed the tricky triangle for nothing. The team that can setup their car with the right balance to make it through all three turns the best will come out on top here. One other thing to note. This race is in the Pocono Mountains and it has been known to rain here quite often. That can cancel qualifying and practice sessions and delay the race. I really wish they only ran here once during the year.

Brad Keselowski: I think we might see a different winner once again this weekend other than those two drivers that have been dominating the season and that driver is Brad Keselowski. Brad has finished in the top five here in eight of his sixteen starts. Those are Mark Martin types on numbers with the only difference being Brad has a win here, something Mark never accomplished although he finished second way too many times to count. Brad comes away with his second victory at this track this weekend.

Kurt Busch: I think this is the type of track Kurt will really run well on and could pick up his first victory of the season if he can beat out Brad. Kurt has always run well on these flatter tracks during his career. He has three wins and fourteen top five finishes in thirty-three starts at Pocono and will be a serious threat to Brad this weekend.

Kevin Harvick: We all know what Kevin has done this year and he will be looking to come back from a blown tire that took him out of the race last week at Charlotte. At the time he blew his tire he was in fourth place coming from the back of the pack where he had to start because he failed inspection and didn’t get to qualify. Kevin is looking for his first win at this track and has finished in the top five here in three of his last four starts. The way he has been running all season he will be a serious contender once again this weekend.

Denny Hamlin: Denny leads all active drivers with four wins at Pocono. He has also finished in the top five ten times and the top ten fifteen times in his twenty-four starts there. This team has been pretty good so far this season, but isn’t quite to the level of teammate, Kyle Busch, at this point of the season. This is more of the track type where Denny excels and I look for him to do well this weekend.

Kyle Busch: Kyle sat on the pole for both of the Pocono races last year and picked up his first win at this track in the July race last season. He and Harvick have been the class of the field each and every week this year and I look for that trend to continue where they will both be in contention late in the race with a few of the other drivers already mentioned above.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie has been improving every week and one of these week’s they will find themselves back in victory lane. He has won three times at Pocono and has finished in the top five eleven times and the top ten nineteen times in his thirty-two starts. One thing to consider here is Jimmie’s last two season’s here where he has finished thirty-fifth or worse in three of those four starts.

Ryan Blaney: Ryan won this race last year for his first Cup victory and has looked even faster this year after moving to Penske from the Wood Brothers. He only has four starts at this track in the Cup series with three of those finishes being eleventh or better. Even in the July race last year where he finished thirtieth he qualified fifth. That tells me he had a fast car that weekend also.

Chase Elliott: Chase is another driver with only three starts at Pocono in the Cup series and he has come away with three top ten finishes in those races. This team was the best of all the Hendrick cars early this season, but they seem to have dropped off a bit lately. Now that Jimmie Johnson is running better the whole organization should benefit and be able to use data from both teams to make them all faster.

Erik Jones: In his only two starts at this track, both coming last season, Erik has two top ten finishes with a third and an eighth. He also led laps in both of those races last year. He had a fast car at Charlotte last week, but the team took themselves out of contention with some pit road miscues. This team is on the verge of getting their first Cup win and it could come this weekend.

Kyle Larson: Kyle has run pretty well here during his short career. In his eight starts here he has finished in the top ten four times and has led laps in races five times. This is a dirt track racers type of track where they can let the back end hang out a little bit and that comes in handy on at least one of the three turns a drivers car isn’t quite setup for. Kyle could be a sleeper this weekend.

DRIVER GROUP GAME FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR POCONO RACEWAY

Driver Group Game Group A

• Brad Keselowski
• Kyle Busch

Driver Group Game Group B

• Kurt Busch
• Erik Jones
• Ryan Blaney
• Chase Elliott

Driver Group Game Group C

• Chris Buescher
• Michael McDowell

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT POCONO RACEWAY

1. Brad Keselowski
2. Kurt Busch
3. Kyle Busch
4. Kevin Harvick
5. Denny Hamlin

Dark Horse: Daniel Suarez

Stay Away From: Aric Almirola

Big 18: Kurt Busch

The All-Star race is in the books and now we can get back to points racing and our fantasy leagues. We didn’t learn anything from the All-Star race seeing they won’t be using the restrictor plates or the bigger spoilers this week, but we did see that Kevin Harvick is still winning. If this trend keeps up, NASCAR will try to implement some rules to even up the field and make the races a little more exciting.

COCA-COLA 600

Anyway, the series stays at the Charlotte Motor Speedway for the running of the longest race of the season, the Coca-Cola 600. Once again we are on an intermediate track that has been dominated by a few drivers this year, but none more than Kevin Harvick. The biggest challenge for all of the teams this weekend will be the changing track conditions during this long race that starts out during the afternoon and concludes well after dark. That means the track is going to go through some major changes from the start to the finish of the race and you will see a lot of comers and goers throughout the race.

Kevin Harvick: You almost have to have him on your roster once again this weekend. This team has shown that they can be fast in qualifying, at the beginning of a race, and at the end of a race all season long. They also seem to make their car faster and faster as the day goes on and Kevin has shown he can also overcome adversity and still make runs at the end of the race to take a late lead and hold on for the win. Look for him to be fast all day long.

Martin Truex Jr.: Let’s not forget what Martin has done here the last three seasons. In that time he has finished in the top five five times in six races, won two of those races, led 847 laps, and dominated the 600 in 2016 when he led all but eight laps in that race. This is the driver and team that has the best chance to break the winning streak of Kevin Harvick this weekend and gain himself some valuable playoff points.

Denny Hamlin: Denny has finished in the top five in four of his last five starts at this track. He still scares me because of all the pit road speeding penalties he gets, which puts him in a position where he is constantly fighting to get a lap back. There is absolutely no reason for him to continually make the same mistake which costs his team time and time again. So put him on your roster at your own risk.

Kurt Busch: Kurt has five top ten finishes in his last six starts at this track and has shown that he has the same speed as his teammate, Kevin Harvick, this year. Kurt should do well once again this weekend, but I am going to save his starts for the short tracks and possibly the road course races. No matter which way you go, you will use up all of Kurt’s starts by the end of the season.

Ryan Newman: Ryan is my dark horse this week. He has finished in the top ten in four of his last five starts in the Coca-Cola 600. Those are very impressive numbers for a driver you don’t hear a lot about on a weekly basis. I think this team thrives during this long race and makes the right decisions throughout the race to gain track position and make the right adjustments to their car to keep up with the changing track conditions.

Erik Jones: Erik has only run two races at this track in the Cup series and finished seventh in this race last year. This is the type of track where young Erik has thrived in his short career and I think he will do well once again this weekend. I think the main thing the younger drivers need to understand is that this is a long race and it doesn’t pay to take chances early in this race or worry too much about how fast your car is early on. I think Erik has the patience it takes to do well in this race.

Kyle Busch: Kyle finished second in this race last year and is one of the only other drivers who has shown he has anything for Harvick so far this season. Sometimes Kyle gets frustrated early on in races if his car isn’t handling as good as he wants it to and he needs to realize there will be plenty of time for his crew to make adjustments to the car and have him in a position where he can compete for the win late in the race.

Daniel Suarez: Daniel ran his only two races here last year and seems to like this track. He finished eleventh and sixth in those races last year and then followed it up by almost winning the All-Star race this past weekend. Granted that was a whole different type of race then we are going to see this weekend, but it seems like no matter what kind of setup he has, he likes to race on this track and knows how to get towards the front of the field.

Joey Logano: Joey has one win at this track and although that came in a shorter fall race, this team has shown that they have the speed that it takes to win races this season and Joey has run much better than he did last year. The Ford drivers have all shown a lot of speed for the most part this year and I think if his crew chief can keep up with the changing track conditions, Joey can stay in contention for the win once again this weekend.

Brad Keselowski: Let’s talk about Joey’s teammate and another driver who has won a fall race here. I think that Brad and his team have the patience and aren’t afraid to try different things early in this race to see what might work for them at the end of the race. They won’t be terribly concerned with an ill handling car early in the race and will be willing to take chances to go outside the box to gain track position or see if two tires might work late in the race. It is this type of strategy that could get him a win this weekend.

DRIVER GROUP GAME FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY

Driver Group Game Group A

• Kevin Harvick
• Martin Truex Jr.

Driver Group Game Group B

• Daniel Suarez
• Erik Jones
• Austin Dillon
• Ryan Newman

Driver Group Game Group C

• Darrell Wallace Jr.
• Chris Buescher

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY

1. Kevin Harvick
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Kurt Busch
5. Brad Keselowski

Dark Horse: Ryan Newman

Stay Away From: Ryan Blaney

Big 18: Martin Truex Jr.

Congratulations to Kevin Harvick who won his fourth race of the season at Dover this past Sunday when he took the lead from Clint Bowyer for good after a red flag for rain. Once again Kevin pretty much dominated this race and all of the Ford’s looked impressive. Kyle Larson failed pre-race inspection and had to start at the rear of the field and he never recovered from that penalty, while Kyle Busch had a vibration through the whole race which eventually led to him breaking his drive shaft even though he had a fast car until the mechanical failure.

KC MASTERPIECE 400

This week the series heads to the Kansas Speedway for another Saturday night race before taking a week off from points racing for the running of the All-Star race at Charlotte. Kansas Speedway is another of the mile-an-a-half tri-ovals that make up most of the Cup series. So far this season there are three drivers who have been consistently fast on this type of track and those are the ones we want on our roster this weekend. Those three drivers have also won the last four races here.

Kevin Harvick: With four wins under his belt already this season and having won here in the fall of 2016, Kevin is my pick to visit victory lane once again. Besides winning the race last weekend, Kevin also won both stages and picked up another seven playoff points. These proved to be invaluable to Martin Truex last season as he won his first championship. Kevin has finished in the top three at Kansas in six of his last nine starts. Put him on your roster again.

Martin Truex Jr.: Martin swept the races here last season and has sat on the pole twice and started in the top ten in each of his last six starts here. He has also led around 460 laps during those six races, so we know that he knows how to get around this track. Look for him to battle with Harvick all night long for his second win of the season.

Kyle Busch: Not to be outdone by the first two drivers I have mentioned, Kyle has three wins on the season and won the spring race here in 2016. He also has finished in the top five in five of his last six starts here. I think the driver shaft issue they had at Dover was an anomaly and this team will be there to compete for the win with Kevin and Martin at the end of the race this weekend. One of these three drivers will win this race.

Ryan Blaney: In only six starts at this track, Ryan has three top five and four top ten finishes. He also sat on the pole for this race last season and led laps in both of the races here last year. We have seen how fast the Ford’s have been all season and it looks like Ryan should be even better this year than he was in previous seasons because he is on a more well funded team than he was in the past. Look for another top five finish for Ryan.

Kurt Busch: Kurt has been fast all year, he just hasn’t come away with the finishes he thinks he should have. That is because of how dominant some of the other drivers have been all season so far. Kurt has finished in the top ten in four of his last six races at Kansas including a second and a third place finish here. One of these races everything is going to fall into place for this team and they will be visiting victory lane.

Matt Kenseth: Matt is back to run some races in the #6 car for Roush/Fenway Racing for the rest of the season, splitting time with Trevor Bayne. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has been fast all season, so the #6 should be fast too. I think Matt will be a good option right away this weekend in the B group. In his last five races here, Matt has started in the top three three times and has led 272 laps during those races. I think he makes improvements to this car right away.

Brad Keselowski: Brad finished second in this race last season and has shown speed all year so far. This team has come close to winning a few times already this year and should break into the win column pretty soon. Brad has finished in the top ten in four of his last six starts here and is one of the drivers who never gives up no matter how poorly his car is handling early in the race. I look for him to come away with another top ten finish this week.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie has been improving every week and it won’t be long before this team figures out what they need to do to get the Camaro into victory lane. Jimmie leads all active drivers with three wins and has seventeen top ten finishes in twenty-four starts at Kansas. We might want to wait a little longer before we start using him on our roster, but I think we will be using him before too long.

Clint Bowyer: Clint has been getting better and better every week too. I still think we want to save his starts for places like Martinsville, Richmond, and Loudon on the short flat tracks where he really excels. However, he is a driver you want to keep your eye on this weekend to see how much he is improving on the intermediate tracks and if it is going to be feasible to use him on this type of track later in the season.

Chase Elliott: Chase was the best of the Chevrolet drivers earlier this season, but he seems to have taken a small step backwards lately. Not that he has been bad, it’s just that he hasn’t made the gains we would like to see. Where Jimmie has been getting better, Chase has either stayed about the same or slowed down a little bit lately. This is the type of track where I would expect him to flourish and he still might as the season progresses, but we might want to wait to use his starts up until he starts to show a little more consistency.

DRIVER GROUP GAME FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR KANSAS SPEEDWAY

Driver Group Game Group A

• Kevin Harvick
• Martin Truex Jr.

Driver Group Game Group B

• Matt Kenseth
• Ryan Blaney
• Erik Jones
• Aric Almirola

Driver Group Game Group C

• William Byron
• Alex Bowman

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT KANSAS SPEEDWAY

1. Kevin Harvick
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Kyle Busch
4. Ryan Blaney
5. Brad Keselowski

Dark Horse: Ryan Blaney

Stay Away From: Joey Logano

Big 18: Ryan Blaney