Another tough race to watch this past weekend with a wreck taking out almost half of the field and then rain shortening the race and the win going to Justin Haley in only his third start at this level. The win doesn’t do anything for the playoffs as Justin isn’t entered for points in this series. Just a bit of money for his team and a nice trophy and something to tell his grandchildren someday.
QUAKER STATE 400
This week the drivers head to the Kentucky Speedway for another Saturday night tilt. This is another of the mile and a half tracks on the circuit that the Gibbs and Penske drivers have had a lot of success on this year. I don’t see much changing in that regard this weekend either.
Martin Truex Jr.: Martin has pretty much swept everything here the last two years winning both races and all four stages, plus sitting on the front row in both of those races too. I think we are going to want to keep him on our roster this weekend once again and I predict he will once again win this race.
Kyle Busch: Kyle’s worst finish here in his eight starts in a twelfth place finish back in the 2016 season. He has six top five finishes here in those eight races and will be the main threat to Martin this weekend. I think these two guys will put on a pretty good show for us this weekend.
Brad Keselowski: Brad leads all drivers with three wins here in his eight starts and will be another of the contenders this weekend. There have only been two races in which he didn’t lead any laps at this track and we have seen that the Penske teams have shown a lot of speed this year. I might also mention that he and teammate, Joey Logano, run very well here in the Xfinity series too.
Joey Logano: Joey is still looking for his first Cup win here, but has finished in the top ten in five of his last six starts including a runner up finish in 2015. They might come out with a car that is just as fast as the one they had in Michigan a few weeks ago. Keep your eye on him this weekend.
Erik Jones: Erik has finished sixth and seventh in his only two starts at this track and this is the type of track where he really excels. Plus he really seems to run better in night races than he does in day races. The track should be a little cooler at night and will have more grip and that might give him the confidence to push a little harder in night races.
Kevin Harvick: Kevin is also looking for his first win at Kentucky, but he has never finished worse than sixteenth here and is on a streak of six straight top ten finishes. His pit crew still seems to be the major concern for this team as they make too many mistakes during the race and cost Kevin a lot of track position which is really important with how hard it is to pass this year with the new aero package.
Ryan Blaney: Ryan finished second in this race last season and is another driver from the Penske stable. This team can get the job done on this type of track and should have a lot of speed all weekend. If he can turn his luck around a little bit he can find himself in victory lane this weekend.
Kyle Larson: Kyle finished second here two years ago and he is having more bad luck this year than Ryan Blaney. This team seems to have a good car at the beginning of the race, but then something happens to them on the track or in the pits to take them out of contention and they end up fighting al race long to gain track position. One of these weeks things will come together for this team.
Kurt Busch: Kurt has five top ten finishes in his eight starts at this track and has been running very well all season. They have run towards the front of the pack in a lot of races this season and should only get better as the season progresses. I look him to have a fast car once again this weekend and to run in the top ten for much of the race.
Denny Hamlin: Denny has three top five finishes in his eight starts at Kentucky, but has been either on or off in most of his races here. You might see this team having a different strategy this weekend to try and gain track position and do whatever it takes to pull out another victory and gain some much needed playoff points.
DRIVER GROUP GAME FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY
Driver Group Game Group A
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Kyle Busch
Driver Group Game Group B
- Erik Jones
- Ryan Blaney
- Kurt Busch
- Alex Bowman
Driver Group Game Group C
- Chris Buescher
- Matt DiBenedetto
MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY
- Martin Truex Jr.
- Kyle Busch
- Brad Keselowski
- Joey Logano
- Kevin Harvick
Dark Horse: Erik Jones
Stay Away From: Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Big 18: Erik Jones
35 replies on “2019 Kentucky Speedway, Quaker State 400 Presented by Walmart”
what are thoughts on Ryan Preece and William Byron for this race?
Preece hasn’t really done anything all year, so I stay away from him. On the other hand Byron has been running pretty well lately and might be able to do something here.
I have four more starts for the 18 that I have to use before the playoffs start. I was going to use him ay Watkins Glenn, Bristol, and the Brickyard but I can’t decided between Kentucky and Pocono. What would you suggest?
Use Busch this week and use Truex at Pocono.
14 or 24 for best shot at a top 10 finish?
14
Who gets the most points 48,42or 14?
14
19-18-4-2-22-12-1-11-42-9-20 my pick need stages points thanks jeff
#14,#88,or #24
14
Byron or Suarez this week?
I like the #24 Byron
24
I’m using 2 4 18 19 22… cant decide on the 9 or 11 in the garage… all have 5 uses left!
#9 in the garage, the #11 has fallen off a bit in the summer months, but always go with your gut feeling.
11 will step it up in the playoffs. Use the 9 now.
Who do you like #48 or #10? Thanks
Still don’t trust the 48 on the intermediate tracks.
Good Evening Jeff. I am having a hard time deciding between the 4(6) and 19(7). Starts aren’t an issue. And I was 99.9 set on using the 19. But Truex hated his car all day. He pounded the shifter in Happy Hour. I am sure they will make some adjustments and be pretty good. But maybe not since its impound. With all this said, who would you go with? 19 or 4?
I picked Truex to win and am sticking with him.
Hemric v. DiBennedetto?
Hemric has been running pretty well lately. I go with him.
Last week killed me. Every driver in my lineup wrecked! my highest placing driver finished 29th.
I really need to have a big week, but I’m completely torn on who to start today. I’d really appreciate your input/opinion..
#18 or #2
#24 – #88 – #12 – #1 ***which 2 of these 4 drivers would you start in a must-win type of situation???
Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge!
Restrictor plate races can kill anybody and you’re not alone. I’m going to say the 18, 12, and 1.
12 or 88
37 or 8
12 and 37
Jones or Blaney? Starts left are the same.
I dont see a 10 lap average for Blaney.
I still like Blaney. His teammates practiced pretty well and they would share some information.
should I be concerned about Truex? His lap times look bad and he never had any 5,10 or 15 lap runs.
I’m sticking with him. He has been poor in practice most of the year, but has come on as the race progressed. All of the practices were run during the day and the race is at night. That should play right into their hands.
Harvick 5. Blaney 5. Byron 6. Buescher 4
Bench
Truex 6. Bowman 6. Jones 5. Ragan 7
2nd place in my league 30 points out.
Would you change anything Jeff?
I still like Truex over Harvick with Harvick having so many pit errors. Race is at night and practice was during the day so those times don’t mean a lot to me.
41, 20, 17, or 6?
Thanks!
I know this is for Jeff, but I have to give you my $0.02 worth.
Go with the 41 and 20. Although, the 20 has bit me a couple of times he is one of my picks tonight. Your only other option is the 17, but just a gut feeling keep him on the bench with the 6.
Best of luck.