Halfway to the Chase and there are still nine spots filled after Jimmie Johnson won the race at Dover this past weekend. That means there are seven spots open that will be filled in the next thirteen races. Personally, I don’t think we will get seven new winners during that stretch so, we will have a few drivers make the Chase on points. However, all of the drivers want to win and not have to wait and see if they can hold on in points for a shot at a championship.
AXALTA WE PAINT WINNERS 400
This week the series heads to Pocono Raceway for the first of two races at this track. Pocono is a two and a half mile track that is shaped like a triangle. Each of the three turns has a different configuration and this causes problems setting up the cars so they are fast in all of these corners. The drivers and crew chiefs really need to be on the same page and understand the information that is relayed between them so they can keep up with changing track conditions and improve their speed in one corner while maintaining the speed they already have in the other two corners.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale won both of the races at Pocono last season and there is no reason why he shouldn’t have a car that is fast enough to keep that streak alive. He also finished in the top five in both of the races run here two years ago so, that tells me he has something figured out with this track and we know how good Dale can be when he figures out a track. He is almost impossible to beat. Put him on your roster this week.
Jeff Gordon: Jeff has won six races at this track during his career and two of those wins have come in a nine race stretch where he has finished in the top ten in seven of those races. Jeff has always been good at Pocono and would love to get another win here to qualify for the Chase and not have to wait any longer to qualify in his last full-time season.
Kurt Busch: Kurt has had a very good season so far and is already qualified for the Chase. He has also been very good at Pocono throughout his career in which he has won two races here and finished in the top five in eleven of his twenty-seven starts at this track. He has really been good on the flatter tracks and Pocono should fit right into his style. I look for Kurt to have another good run this weekend.
Denny Hamlin: Denny has four wins and nine top ten finishes in his eighteen starts at this track. He has also been very fast over the last few weeks and should have a car that will be a contender once again this weekend. Denny already has a win this year but, he would love to pick up a few more wins and not give up many bonus points to Jimmie once the Chase starts.
Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie leads the series with four wins this year and he has won three times at Pocono during his career. He won this race two years ago and has been consistently good at Pocono through his career. He has seventeen top ten finishes in twenty-six starts here and is on a roll once again this year. This is one of the tracks with two races where neither of them is during the Chase. Nothing to test here, just go for the win.
Ryan Newman: Ryan has one win at Pocono and always seems to run well here. He has finished in the top ten in seven of his last eight starts here and would love to get a win and qualify for the Chase that way this year instead of getting in on points like he did last season. I think he has a legitimate shot at pulling off an upset this weekend.
Clint Bowyer: Clint is another driver that really excels on the flatter tracks. However, I haven’t seen the speed he will need on the long straightaways at Pocono for any of the MWR cars this year. You almost have to put them in the same category as the Roush/Fenway teams right now. Both of these businesses need to do some work on their engine packages to compete on a weekly basis.
Brad Keselowski: Brad has one win here and finished second in this race last season. Brad has shown speed this year on a consistent basis and is another driver who loves the flat tracks. If this team can figure out all three turns early in the race they will be there at the end with a chance to win this race. Mechanical problems have been there biggest nemesis this year.
Kevin Harvick: Pocono is one of the few tracks that Kevin is still looking for his first win at. However, he did finish second in the race here last fall and we have seen how fast he is week in and week out on all types of tracks. This week should be no different and this team just needs to make the correct adjustments as the race progresses and they will have a shot at picking up another win on the season.
Kasey Kahne: Kasey picked up his second career win at Pocono during the fall race of 2013. Kasey has been less than consistent during his career with Hendrick Motorsports and it is hard to predict how well he will run on any given week at any given track. It seems like driver and crew-chief aren’t on the same page with their adjustments and they have to keep fighting to maintain their position on the track instead of getting faster as races progress.
YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR POCONO RACEWAY
Yahoo Driver Group A
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Denny Hamlin
Yahoo Driver Group B
- Kurt Busch
- Clint Bowyer
- Greg Biffle
- Paul Menard
Yahoo Driver Group C
- Justin Allgaier
- Danica Patrick
MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT POCONO RACEWAY
- Dale Earnhardt Jr.
- Denny Hamlin
- Jeff Gordon
- Kurt Busch
- Jimmie Johnson
Dark Horse: Ryan Newman
Stay Away From: Carl Edwards