Author: Jeff Gutowski

Congratulations once again to Kyle Busch who picked up his third win in the last four races and moved closer to the top thirty in points to qualify for the Chase. Barring any catastrophic events over the next seven races, Kyle should easily move into the top thirty in points and have a chance at winning his first championship.

CROWN ROYAL PRESENTS THE JEFF KYLE 400 AT THE BRICKYARD

This week the series heads to the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is a two-and-a-half mile rectangle which makes it a unique track on the NASCAR circuit. Winning this race is second to only the Daytona 500 on every drivers list and the Hendrick Motorsports teams have dominated here over the twenty-one races that have been run here. They have won nine of those twenty-one races. The most any other team has won is three.

Kyle Busch: When you’re hot you’re hot. I am picking Kyle to win yet again this week. Even though he has yet to win a race at this track, he has shown that his team is at the top of their game right now. He finished second in this race last season and the Joe Gibbs teams have shown a lot of speed the past few races. I think Kyle will run up front most of the day and take the checkered flag as he moves closer to making the Chase.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff leads all drivers with five wins at this track and has finished in the top five an outstanding twelve times in his twenty-one starts. I think Jeff will make the Chase on points if he doesn’t pick up a win in the next seven races but, this is one of his better tracks and he might be able to get that win this weekend.

Jimmie Johnson: I think Jimmie and his team did a lot of testing at Loudon last weekend as they prepare for the Chase. I don’t think you will see them struggle this weekend as there really aren’t any tracks like Indy on the Chase schedule. This week is all about winning this race and moving on. With four wins to his credit at this track he knows how to get the job done here.

Matt Kenseth: Matt is another driver who is looking for his first win at the Brickyard. He has finished in the top five in seven of his fifteen starts here and that shows he knows how to race on this track. With the Joe Gibbs teams looking very strong for the past month, Matt has an excellent chance to pick up that elusive win at this track.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin has one win here and he has been competitive every week this year. I think that he will be fast once again this weekend and will be in contention throughout the race. Kevin would like to pick up another win before the Chase starts and keep his momentum heading in the right direction as he starts to defend his title in the Chase.

Tony Stewart: Tony has two wins at Indianapolis and has finished in the top ten eleven times in his sixteen career starts there. Tony has struggled most of this year and I don’t have a lot of faith in this team right now. If you need to take a chance to move up in your league he might be worth a shot this weekend but, in all likely hood he will not have a car that will contend for a win.

Brad Keselowski: Brad has only run five races at the Brickyard and his best finish is 9th which he has accomplished twice. Brad has lead laps in three of his five starts here but just can’t seem to come away with the type of finish he is capable of having here. I think Brad will be in contention once again this weekend and will lead some laps in this race once again.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale is another driver looking for his first Indy win and has finished in the top ten here in his last three starts. This team has run well most every weekend this season unless they have some mechanical issue that takes them out of a race. I think Dale will run well here once again and should come away with another top ten finish.

Carl Edwards: Carl has three top ten finishes in his ten starts at this track. Carl just doesn’t seem to have any consistency when he races on this track but, he never has a terrible finish either. He is just an average driver when it comes to Indy. I think this team still needs to improve on their adjustments that they make to their car during the race to keep Carl in contention at the end of the race.

Denny Hamlin: Denny always seems to run well on tracks like Indy. He struggled a little bit last week at Loudon and never really got his car to handle the way he wanted it to. That might have been a little testing as they get ready for the Chase but, like all of the other drivers in the field next weekend, Denny will do whatever he can to try and get his first win at this track.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Kyle Busch
• Jeff Gordon

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Tony Stewart
• Jamie McMurray
• Kyle Larson
• AJ Allmendinger

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Justin Allgaier
• Landon Cassell

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY

1. Kyle Busch
2. Jeff Gordon
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Matt Kenseth
5. Kevin Harvick

Dark Horse: Kyle Larson

Stay Away From: Greg Biffle

Last Saturday night’s race marked the halfway point of the season. Congratulations to Kyle Busch on picking up his second win of the season and scoring the maximum points by leading the most laps in the race. There are now only eight races left before the start of the Chase and we have ten drivers locked in.

Kyle still needs to make up 87 points and overtake five other drivers in the standings to move into the top thirty in points and qualify for the Chase. Those drivers are Cole Whitt, David Gilliland, Brett Moffitt, Alex Bowman, and Michael Annett. Barring any total catastrophes on the track, I think Kyle will gain those points over the next eight races and make the Chase.

NEW HAMPSHIRE 301

This week the series heads to Loudon, New Hampshire and the New Hampshire Motor Speedway for the running of the New Hampshire 301. NHMS is a 1.058-mile oval speedway with minimal banking around the track. In other words, this is considered a “flat track” by NASCAR standards. The drivers who are normally good at places like Phoenix and on the road-courses should do fine here.

Jimmie Johnson: I am picking Jimmie to win his fifth race of the season this week in Loudon. Jimmie has won three races here during his career and has finished in the top ten eighteen times in twenty-six starts at this track. He has also finished in the top ten here in thirteen of his last sixteen starts. With stats like that, Jimmie is a driver you definitely want on your roster this weekend.

Kurt Busch: Kurt also has won three races at this track during his career and even though he hasn’t run that well here for the past five seasons, Kurt has been very good on the flatter tracks this season. I think Kurt will come to the track with a car that has the potential to win this race. Once they get their set-up figured out during practice, I think he will qualify well and run up front for most of this race.

Denny Hamlin: Denny has two wins and has finished second here three times in his eighteen starts. He looked very good last week at Kentucky and it seems like this team keeps improving as we get closer to the Chase. I look for Denny to have another good run this weekend and be in contention for the win late in this race. Every win he can pick up before the Chase just gives him that many more bonus points once the Chase begins.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff is still looking for his first win of the season. As of right now he looks like he should make the Chase on points but, if he has a couple of problems in a couple of races and we get a couple of first time winners on the season, he could find himself on the outside looking in during his last season of racing. He has three wins and twenty-two top ten finishes in forty starts at this track.

Brad Keselowski: Brad’s worst finish here in his last seven starts has been eleventh. He also picked up a win during that stretch and had a very good car last weekend. Most of Brad’s problems seem to be mechanical or, mistakes made on pit road. I think he had the best car last week at Kentucky and probably would have won that race if he didn’t lose so many spots on his pit stops. I think these issues will be addressed this week.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin has one win at this track and, like Kurt Busch, he has been very good on the flatter tracks. This team is just looking for a few more wins and trying to become more consistent as we get closer to the Chase. New Hampshire is the location of the second race in the Chase so, all of the drivers who are already locked in are going to be doing some testing to get ready for when this race really means something to them.

Matt Kenseth: Matt also has won a race at NHMS. He has finished in the top ten in half of his thirty starts here and his win came in the fall of 2013. The JGR teams have all found more speed over the past six races and Matt is always calm and relaxed behind the wheel. He knows that if he relays pertinent information to his crew-chief he will get the changes he needs to his car to become more competitive as the race gets closer to the end.

Kyle Busch: Last week’s winner and the driver who really needs to run well every race for the next eight weeks so that he can qualify for the Chase has been on a roll in New Hampshire. Kyle has finished second in three of the past four races here and is on a mission to make the Chase and have a shot at winning his first championship. However, he can’t take a lot of chances and get caught up in wrecks so, where do you draw the line?

Ryan Newman: Ryan has won three races at this track in his career and has finished in the top ten in sixteen of his twenty-six starts here. Seven of those top ten finishes came in his last eleven starts and he really needs to start running better on a consistent basis if he wants to make the Chase once again this season. He made it last year without winning a race and almost won the championship. I don’t think he wants to wait and see if he can make it on points once again this year.

Kyle Larson: Kyle has only run two races at this track but, he finished in the top five in both of them. To finish second and third in your only two races at this track is very impressive and Kyle is my Dark Horse pick this week. I liked him last week at Kentucky and while he didn’t get the finish he was looking for there, he was fastest in both practices before the rains came. I think he will do well once again this weekend.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR NEW HAMPSHIRE MOTOR SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Jimmie Johnson
• Brad Keselowski

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Kurt Busch
• Kyle Larson
• Carl Edwards
• Tony Stewart

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Justin Allgaier
• David Ragan

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT NEW HAMPSHIRE MOTOR SPEEDWAY

1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Brad Keselowski
3. Kurt Busch
4. Kyle Busch
5. Denny Hamlin

Dark Horse: Kyle Larson

Stay Away From: Paul Menard

All I have to say is WOW! I know that NASCAR wants to get the races in on the day they are scheduled but, how many people in the Eastern and Central time zones stayed up for the race and how many people who had tickets to the race stayed to watch it? I bet most left and figured it was going to be run on Monday. How about NBC? I bet they weren’t very happy having to show a race that late at night with less than normal viewers for a holiday weekend race. NASCAR wants to be a family sport. I wonder how many young children got to stay up and watch that race.

QUAKER STATE 400

I’m just glad that Austin Dillon was able to walk away from the wreck he had at the end of the race. I got to see the video on Monday and I still can’t believe that he walked away. That goes to show that the safety initiatives NASCAR has implemented over the years are really paying off. Kudos to NASCAR in that respect and great to see that Austin only suffered a few bruises.

Jimmie Johnson: I am picking Jimmie to pick up his first win at Kentucky this weekend. Jimmie has finished in the top ten in each of the four races he has run at Kentucky and is due to break into the win column here. He has been the best of the best on these tracks all season and I don’t see anything changing this weekend.

Kyle Busch: Kyle has one win here and has also finished in the top ten in all four of his races at this track. Kyle has also lead more laps than any other driver and is really looking to get as many top five and ten finishes as he can get to try and make his way into the top thirty in points and qualify for the Chase.

Matt Kenseth: Matt won this race two years ago and is another of four drivers to finish in the top ten in all four of his starts here. Matt is already qualified for the Chase and now he just needs to get more consistent and win some more races. That will give this whole team confidence heading into the Chase when you really need to come away with all of your finishes in the top ten if you want to win a championship.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff is the last of the active drivers to finish in the top ten in all of his starts at Kentucky. His best finish here is fifth and he would love to get a win at this track in his last season in NASCAR. Jeff is running out of time to guarantee himself a spot in the Chase with a win and waiting to get in on points is very nerve wracking.

Brad Keselowski: Brad has won two of the four races he has run at this track and both of the Penske teams have had a lot of speed this year. Brad has had some problems with mechanical issues during the season which have taken him out of contention in numerous races this year. But, with two wins here, this team will come into the weekend with a lot of confidence that they can get the job done once again.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin’s best finish here is a seventh place finish that he picked up last season. His worst finish here is sixteenth and he has gotten better every time he comes to this track. Kevin has been the person to beat almost every race for a year and a half and this weekend he will once again be stout and have a car capable of winning this race.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale has two top five finishes at this track and has a lot of confidence after his dominating performance at Daytona last weekend. Dale can work on the handling of his car of the mile and a half tracks as they are where the majority of the races during the Chase are run. These are the tracks you need to run consistently well on during the Chase if you want to win the championship.

Martin Truex Jr.: Martin has been very good all season and he has really been good at this type of track. Martin is already qualified for the Chase and can work on the adjustments that they make to the car during the races. This team is capable of running with the top tier teams even though they are a single car team.

Kurt Busch: Kurt has finished in the top ten twice at this track and has had cars that are just as fast as Kevin Harvick has all year. Kurt doesn’t have anything to race for except wins as he has been very good on all types of tracks this season. Kurt has a legitimate shot at winning his second career championship.

Ryan Newman: Ryan has two top five finishes at Kentucky and needs to get a win before the Chase starts. The drivers who don’t have a win and are hoping to get in on points are sitting on the razor’s edge. They can have one or two bad races and get knocked out of Chase on points or when other drivers who don’t have a win get the win they need to get in the Chase. No one wants to go to Richmond hoping to make the Chase on points.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Jimmie Johnson
• Kyle Busch

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Kurt Busch
• Martin Truex Jr.
• Kasey Kahne
• Kyle Larson

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Danica Patrick
• Ryan Blaney

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT KENTUCKY SPEEDWAY

1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Kyle Busch
3. Kevin Harvick
4. Brad Keselowski
5. Matt Kenseth

Dark Horse: Kyle Larson

Stay Away From: Greg Biffle

Congratulations to Kyle Busch, who picked up the win at Sonoma last weekend. I had him as my Stay Away From driver because I wasn’t sure how well he would run on a track that involves a lot of shifting and braking. He showed that he is healthy enough not to let that bother him and now all he has to do is move into the top thirty in points and he will be qualified for the Chase.

COKE ZERO 400

This week the series heads to Daytona International Speedway for the running of the Coke Zero 400. This is the third restrictor plate race on the schedule and I think you will see drivers who are already qualified for the Chase doing some testing and taking a few chances. This is the last time they can do this before the Chase starts and they head to Talladega for the last of these races on the year.

Once again I will caution you not to use the best drivers at this track if you are limited in the number of times you can use them during the season like the Yahoo league. In the A Group you are okay to choose anyone you would like, but be careful in the B and C Groups. There is just too big of a risk of drivers getting caught up in a wreck when they are running three-wide and all within a second or two of each other.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: I will pick Dale to win this week’s race. He always seems to have a car that performs well in the draft and he knows how to handle the draft. He has won three times at Daytona and has six wins at Talladega, including the race there this spring. With twelve top five and eighteen top ten finishes in thirty-one starts, Dale is one of the most consistent drivers at this track.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie is no slouch at the restrictor plate tracks either. He also has three wins at Daytona and two at Talladega where he finished second to Dale this spring. Overall, Jimmie has ten top five and thirteen top ten finishes in twenty-seven starts at Daytona. I think the Hendrick cars will all do well once again this weekend.

Joey Logano: Joey won the Daytona 500 this year but, the car he used in that race is at Daytona U.S.A. and he won’t be able to use it this weekend. I don’t think it should make too much of a difference as the Penske teams always hae good cars that run well in the draft at the restrictor plate tracks. I think one of the biggest things for all drivers in these races is patience. Wait until the end before trying to make too many moves to get to the front.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff has won six races at Daytona and six races at Talladega throughout his career and that leads all active drivers. I think Jeff is starting to feel the pressure as the races wind down heading into the Chase. He wants to get a win and qualify for the Chase in his last full-time season so he can take another shot at a title and try to go out at the top of his game.

Kevin Harvick: This car has been super fast for the past two seasons and Kevin is one of those drivers you might not hear anything about early in the race and then it is like, “Where did he come from?”. He has won two races at Daytona and with the speed this team always carries, he should have no problem drafting with anybody and being able to pull out and pass when he wants to.

Kurt Busch: Kurt has had cars just as fast as Kevin this year and he also knows how to run in the draft. Although he has never won a restrictor plate race, Kurt has had cars that are capable of winning more often than not. He always seems to have a problem in the pits or chooses the wrong strategy which puts him behind too many cars on a late race restart and he either gets caught up in an accident or runs out of time. He is very capable of going to victory lane this weekend.

Matt Kenseth: Matt is another driver with multiple wins at Daytona. This team is qualified for the Chase and knows that this is an opportunity to prepare for the race at Talladega during the Chase. Matt will run at the front, but if he has a problem and gets shuffled to the back he has the patience and understanding to know that he has a lot of time to carefully make his way back to the front of the field. That is what helps you stay in contention and win races at this type of track.

Clint Bowyer: Clint had a great run at Sonoma last weekend and is always pretty good at Daytona. Even though the MWR cars haven’t had the speed they need on the intermediate tracks, I think they have a good draft package and Clint seems to know who his car works the best with. If he can find that driver and stick with them towards the end of the race, this team could pull of a mini upset.

Jamie McMurray: Jamie is another driver who doesn’t have the finishes he could have at the restrictor plate tracks, but they always seem to have a fast car. A mechanical failure or on track incident is what usually knocks him out of contention and if their luck changes they could very well find themselves in victory lane this weekend.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Dale Earnhardt Jr.
• Jimmie Johnson

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Trevor Bayne
• Casey Mears
• Austin Dillon
• Kyle Larson

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Ryan Blaney
• Danica Patrick

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Kevin Harvick
4. Kurt Busch
5. Jeff Gordon

Dark Horse: Ryan Blaney

Stay Away From: Martin Truex Jr.

After a week off the series heads out west to the Sonoma Raceway for the running of the Toyota/Save Mart 350. This is the first of two road-course races that are on the schedule with both of them being run before the Chase starts. As of right now, I only see one “road-course professional” on the entry list, Boris Said. Keep your eye on the entry list as the week progresses to see if drivers like Juan Pablo Montoya (doubtful), Marcos Ambrose, Scott Pruett, or Ron Fellows are hired to drive for someone. These guys might be worth a shot in your league.

TOYOTA/SAVE MART 350

Jeff Gordon: I am picking Jeff to break into the win column for the first time this season and qualify himself for the Chase this weekend. Jeff has won five races at this track and has finished in the top five in fourteen of his twenty-two starts here. He also finished second in the last two races here, in the top ten in the last nine races, and has finished first or second in ten of his starts here.

Clint Bowyer: Clint has won a race at this track, finished in the top five in five of his nine starts, and the top ten in seven of those starts. This team hasn’t been the best of the oval’s this year but, they might be able to do something this weekend. It isn’t so much about speed as it is about handling at this track and I think this team will do a good job of getting the car setup right for Clint.

Kurt Busch: Kurt also has won one race at this track and he just seems to be getting better on the road-courses as his career progresses. He has won two races on oval tracks this year and would love to get back-to-back wins this weekend. As well as this team has run and with the improvements he has made on this type of track, Kurt should be a legitimate contender this weekend.

Greg Biffle: Greg is another driver who hasn’t found the speed he needs on the oval’s this year but, he can drive on a road-course. If he has a chance of making the Chase this season by winning a race, this might be one of his best shots at getting it done. He has finished in the top ten in six of his twelve starts here and will be giving it everything he has this weekend.

Carl Edwards: Carl won this race last season and has been pretty good at this track over his career with five top ten finishes in ten starts. I don’t think being on a new team will affect him too much this weekend because it is more about the driver than the car or strategy. I look for Carl to qualify well and run well during the race.

Tony Stewart: Tony has gotten a little better over the past month or so and this might be one of his better shots to pick up a win and get qualified for the Chase. He has won two races at this track and has always been good on both of the road-courses throughout his career. He also has the attitude to knock guys out of his way if he needs to make a move to get closer to the front and sometimes that is what it takes at this track.

AJ Allmendinger: AJ won the road-course race at Watkins Glen last year so, we know he can get the job done. He didn’t win that race without a lot of great competition pushing him the whole race and he still hung on to grab the checkered flag. I think this team is a little disappointed with the way they have run so far this season but, I think they are looking forward to racing this weekend.

Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie has one win at this track and has finished in the top ten in his last six starts here. He has also finished in the top ten in eight of his thirteen starts at this track and likes to run these races because they remind him a little of the racing he did early in his career on off-road courses. They have nothing to lose and will take all of the chances they think they have to just to win more races before the Chase starts.

Kasey Kahne: Kasey has also won one race at this track and has gotten better on this type of track during his career. He has finished in the top ten in four of his last six starts at Sonoma. He will do anything to pick up win before the Chase starts.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin always seems to have a car capable of winning these races but, something always seems to happen to him either on the track or in the pits. He might have a mechanical problem, run out of gas, or get caught up in an accident on the track that pushes him out of contention. However, with the way he has run every weekend for the past two seasons, you can never count this team out of any race.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR SONOMA RACEWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Jeff Gordon
• Jimmie Johnson

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Clint Bowyer
• Greg Biffle
• AJ Allmendinger
• Tony Stewart

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Boris Said
• David Gilliland

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT INSERT TRACK NAME

1. Jeff Gordon
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Clint Bowyer
4. AJ Allmendinger
5. Greg Biffle

Dark Horse: AJ Allmendinger

Stay Away From: Kyle Busch