2016 Richmond International Raceway, Toyota Owners 400

Congratulation to Carl Edwards, who picked up his first win of the season and is now qualified for the Chase and is now only one point behind Kevin Harvick in the standings. However, if the Chase were to start right now, Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch would be the top two drivers due to the fact that they have each won two races so far this year.

TOYOTA OWNERS 400

This week the series heads to Richmond International Raceway for the running of the Toyota Owners 400. Once again this is a short track. RIR is a 3/4-mile, D-shaped, low-banked, asphalt race track that holds two races each season. The spring race and the final race before the start of the Chase. Teams that might not win a race before the Chase really need to learn what it takes to get around this track. It might come down to having to win the next race at Richmond to make the Chase.

Kyle Busch: Kyle is the class of the field at Richmond. With four wins and fourteen top five finishes in twenty-one starts he is a must have for your roster this weekend. After a disappointing finish at Bristol last weekend, this team is going to be looking to get back on track and I think they have a great shot at picking up their third win of the season.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin has three wins here himself and has finished in the top ten in eighteen of his thirty starts here. He always seems to qualify well here too and we know how quickly a driver can find themselves a lap down on these short tracks. I think Kevin will be a contender once again this week as he has been almost every week the last three years.

Denny Hamlin: Denny has two wins, ten top ten finishes, and has lead more laps than any other active driver at Richmond in his nineteen starts here. After winning the Daytona 500 to start off the season this team has struggled to come away with the finishes they think they should be getting. That could change this weekend as Denny runs very well on the flat tracks.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale also has two wins at this track and just seems to find a way to fight back from adversity this year. Last week he had a battery problem on the first lap of the race and found himself two laps down, but he fought his way back onto the lead lap and then worked his way into a runner-up finish. This team will win a race before the Chase starts.

Joey Logano: Joey has one win at this track and has finished in the top six here in his last four starts. This is a team that has started out well most every week and then had some type of penalty in the pits which virtually takes them out of contention in races. They need to find a way to finish races and that means no mistakes in the pits and keeping up on their adjustments as the track changes during a race.

Matt Kenseth: Matt has two wins here which includes the race last fall just before the start of the Chase. This team has struggled with their finishes this season also. They are cutting tires or getting caught up in wrecks. I think they will figure out the tire issue which is probably camber and once that is settled they can get back to concentrating on winning races again. Matt has finished in the top ten in six of his last seven starts here.

Brad Keselowski: Brad won the race here back in the fall of 2014 and has finished in the top ten in three of his last four starts at Richmond. They are already qualified for the Chase and have shown that they are willing to take big chances to win more races once they are qualified. This team figures second place or fortieth place is no different once you have the first win of the season under your belt.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie has won three times at this track and has also finished in the top ten in his last three starts here. With two wins on the season, this team can take chances at the end like Brad will do. You get bonus points for wins when the Chase starts, not for runner-up finishes. I think this team needs to work a little bit on their short track runs. They seem to have the intermediate tracks figured out pretty well.

Carl Edwards: Last week’s winner, Edwards will look to put a string of his own together this weekend at Richmond. Carl has one win at this track and last week’s win should give this team a lot of confidence heading into the race this weekend. With the pressure to make the Chase off, I think this team will continue to run well all year and have a good shot at winning a title once the Chase starts.

Ryan Newman: Ryan won his only race here way back in the 2003 season. However, he always seems to run pretty well here and could be a sleeper this weekend. This team would love to make the Chase by winning a race and not have to worry about getting in on points. This is one of the tracks where he can get back to victory lane after a long dry spell.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Kyle Busch
• Denny Hamlin

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Carl Edwards
• Ryan Newman
• Jamie McMurray
• Kyle Larson

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Ryan Blaney
• Chase Elliott

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

1. Kyle Busch
2. Denny Hamlin
3. Joey Logano
4. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
5. Kevin Harvick

Dark Horse: Ryan Newman

Stay Away From: Austin Dillon

Big 18: Kyle Busch