Author: Jeff Gutowski

Congratulations to Martin Truex Jr. for winning the race at Pocono this past weekend. The win qualifies Martin for the Chase and he deserves it the way he has driven the past month of the season. We now have ten drivers locked into the Chase and six spots left to fill over the next twelve races.

QUICKEN LOANS 400

This week the series heads to Michigan for the first of two races at Michigan International Speedway. MIS is a two-mile moderately-banked D-shaped speedway just outside of Brooklyn, Michigan. This track is similar in configuration to California Speedway and is quite wide, which leads to three wide racing in the corners at times.

Kevin Harvick: I am picking Kevin to win this week’s race as he has finished second here in his last four starts. I think he will move up one more spot and visit victory lane once again. He always seems to have one of the fastest cars every week, and with the long straightaways here he should be able to pull away from everyone else. If he can stay out of trouble on the track he will be the driver to beat this weekend.

Paul Menard: Paul has finished fourth in his last three starts here and has been having a pretty good year. This team had some trouble with their tachometer at Pocono last week that cost them a few laps. That problem should be resolved and Paul should have a good car once again. He is my sleeper pick this week.

Joey Logano: Joey has one win at this track and has finished in the top ten in his last four starts here. This team still needs to figure out how to keep up with the track when making their adjustments during the race. They always seem to qualify well and start out the race with a great car but, they seem to lose a little bit on every stop they make.

Clint Bowyer: Clint has yet to win a race at Michigan although he has finished in the top ten in his last eight starts here. This team hasn’t run up to their expectations this season and they need to figure out how to get some more speed out of their car. If they can get the speed they could win a race and qualify for the Chase but, if they don’t find speed they will have to wait until next year.

Greg Biffle: Greg has four wins during his career at this track but, he is another driver that hasn’t been able to find the speed he needs to be competitive. The speed issue might be coming to an end though. Greg was fast at Kansas a month ago and then he finished second at Charlotte in the Coca-Cola 600. If he has that same speed this week he could pull off the upset.

Carl Edwards: Carl has two career wins and is already qualified for the Chase by virtue of his win in the Coca-Cola 600. This is another team that couldn’t find the speed it needed early in the season but, they seem to be getting a little faster every week. In fact, all of the Joe Gibbs drivers seem to be faster over the past month. Now that he has that win, this team can concentrate on communicating better and getting to know one another better.

Matt Kenseth: Matt has two wins at Michigan during his career and has also finished in the top ten in eighteen of his thirty-one starts. Matt is already qualified for the Chase and this is one of his favorite tracks to run at. I look for Matt to run well throughout the race and finish in the top ten once again.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff has three career wins at Michigan and would love to get number six to qualify himself for the Chase. He also won the fall race here last year and should have a lot of confidence heading into this weekend. If he doesn’t get the win this week watch for him to go all out at Sonoma the following week on the road course.
Tony Stewart: Although Tony hasn’t run anywhere near the way he would like, he has always been very good at Michigan. He has only one win here but, he has finished in the top ten in twenty of the thirty races he has started here. One of these weeks the old Tony Stewart is going to be back on the track and he always seems to start out slow during the year and gets better and better as the season progresses.

Martin Truex Jr.: Martin has never won a race at Michigan but, the way he has run the last month and with the confidence he has after his win last week at Pocono, this could be the week that he wins back to back races. This team has a lot of speed in their car right now and they are making all of the right calls on their adjustments as the races progresses. If they can keep this up they will be a serious contender to win a championship this year.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Kevin Harvick
• Matt Kenseth

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Carl Edwards
• Paul Menard
• Clint Bowyer
• Greg Biffle

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Justin Allgaier
• Danica Patrick

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

1. Kevin Harvick
2. Carl Edwards
3. Matt Kenseth
4. Jeff Gordon
5. Joey Logano

Dark Horse: Paul Menard

Stay Away From: Kyle Busch

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

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Denny Hamlin
3. Jeff Gordon
4. Kurt Busch
5. Jimmie Johnson

Dark Horse: Ryan Newman

Stay Away From: Carl Edwards

A 600-mile race won on gas mileage. Great work by the crew-chiefs and a gutsy call, but I’m not a fan of watching races like this. Not much anyone can do about it other than throwing a late race caution for debris or something which wouldn’t be right either. Anyway, congratulations to Carl Edwards on picking up his first win of the season and first with Joe Gibbs Racing. Carl is now qualified for the Chase and he can relax a little bit although this team still needs to become more consistent before the Chase starts.

FEDEX 400 BENEFITING AUTISM SPEAKS

This week the series heads to Dover International Speedway which is one of my favorite tracks on the circuit. Known as ‘The Monster Mile’ DIS is a one-mile high banked oval track that often allows for some exciting racing. Drivers have more than one groove to work at this track and can pass on either the inside or outside with a lot of room to spare.

Jimmie Johnson: Once again I will pick Jimmie to win the race this week at Dover. With nine career wins in twenty-six starts at this track, it is hard to pick anyone else. How can you lose with a guy who wins one out of every three times he comes to the track? He has also finished in the top ten in nineteen of those twenty-six starts. Even if they have more wins than any other driver at this point of the season, this team would like to just keep adding to that total.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff is no slouch at this track either. With five wins and eighteen top five finishes in forty-four starts, Jeff is another driver that gets the job done here consistently. One of his five wins came here last September and he has finished in the top five in four of his last five starts. If you want to take anyone other than Jimmie, take Jeff.

Matt Kenseth: Matt has won two races at this track in his career and has finished in the top five in fifteen of his thirty-two starts at Dover. Those are more impressive numbers and with Matt sitting on the pole last week at Charlotte and all of the Gibbs teams showing a lot of speed and power, this might be the week Matt picks up his second win of the season.

Brad Keselowski: Brad has one win at this track and finished second in both races here last year. That tells me that he has a great handle on the track and none of the Penske teams had any mechanical issues last week at Charlotte in a long race, which is something they can’t say every week this year. Brad should have a fast car and has finished in the top five here in four of his last five starts.

Kyle Busch: Kyle came back for his first points race since breaking a leg and ankle at Daytona the very first week of the season and completed the 600-mile race and had a car that was in contention at the end of the race. He also said he felt very good so, I think it is safe to say he can finish a 400-mile race without any problems. Kyle has two wins at Dover and has finished in the top five in nine of his twenty starts at this track.

Joey Logano: Joey is looking for his first career win at this track but, he has finished in the top ten in eight of his twelve starts and always has a fast car. Once again last week they had a car that was fast in practice and qualifying, but they couldn’t keep up with the changing track conditions and faded as the race progressed last week. I think they need to take a few chances as they anticipate the track changing and not wait until their cars handling goes away.

Ryan Newman: Ryan has won three races at this track and has finished in the top ten in thirteen of his twenty-six starts here. Ryan needs to pick up a win to get qualified for the Chase, so he doesn’t have to worry about getting in based on points. I think we are going to have a few more winners who get qualified and no one wants to hope they can make it based on points.

Carl Edwards: Carl has one win at Dover and ran very well here on a consistent basis early in his career. Lately he hasn’t had the results he wants, as he has only one top ten finish in his last six starts here, but he is on a new team this season and has momentum from the win he picked up last week at Charlotte. I think this team will continue to improve as the year progresses.

Clint Bowyer: Clint is still looking for his first win at Dover, but he has finished in the top ten here in his last eight starts. This is the track that Clint could get his first win of the year at and it would propel him into the Chase. They haven’t been good on a consistent basis this season and unless they improve dramatically in the next month, they will need a win to qualify for the Chase.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Dale picked up his lone win here back in the 2001 season. However, he has run much better here recently and has finished in the top ten in four of his last six starts at Dover. Actually, this team has performed consistently for most of the season and have a contending car every week they haven’t had mechanical issues. Look for Dale to come away with another top ten finish this weekend.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR DOVER INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Jimmie Johnson
• Jeff Gordon

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Clint Bowyer
• Greg Biffle
• Carl Edwards
• Tony Stewart

Yahoo Driver Group C

• David Gilliland
• Brett Moffitt

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT INSERT TRACK NAME

1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Jeff Gordon
3. Matt Kenseth
4. Brad Keselowski
5. Kyle Busch

Dark Horse: Paul Menard

Stay Away From: Kasey Kahne

Congratulations to Dale Earnhardt Jr. who picked up his first win of the season at Talladega on Sunday afternoon and qualified his team for the Chase. Half of the Chase spots are now filled with sixteen more races left before it starts. Now we just have to wait and see who will fill those other eight spots. Let’s see what happens in this Saturday night race.

SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS 400

This week the series heads to Kansas Speedway for the running of the SpongeBob SquarePants 400. Kansas Speedway is another of the mile and a half intermediate tracks on the circuit. This will be the last race before the series takes a week off for the All-Star race weekend in Charlotte. This will be a welcome break for most of the teams. Most of them will be able to take some time with their families as many of the teams are located in the Charlotte area.

Jimmie Johnson: I have to pick Jimmie to win this week’s intermediate track race once again. Jimmie has two career wins at Kansas, has finished in the top ten in fourteen of his seventeen starts there, and he has won two of the three races run at similar tracks this season. Those are the reasons I believe this team will garner their third win of the season on Saturday night.

Kevin Harvick: Kevin has sat on the pole for the last three Kansas races in which he won one of those races and finished second in another. He is also the driver that won the mile and a half race at Las Vegas, which is the race Jimmie didn’t win. I look for Kevin to qualify well here once again and be in contention for the win at the end of the night.

Jeff Gordon: Jeff won this race last season and leads all drivers with three career wins at Kansas. This team is still looking for their first win of the season and wants to get qualified for the Chase as soon as possible. He has finished in the top five in ten of his eighteen starts here and that is an impressive stat for any driver. Look for him to be in contention at the end of this race.

Matt Kenseth: Matt has two career wins at Kansas and he can relax and just try to win races now that he is qualified for the Chase. He has also finished in the top ten in ten of his eighteen starts at this track. The Joe Gibbs teams seem to be getting a little faster every week, thus closing the gap with the Hendrick and Penske teams. I like Matt during night races, as he seems to run even better than normal during these races.

Carl Edwards: Carl is looking for his first win of the season and his first win at Kansas. Even though he doesn’t have a win, he has finished in the top ten in eleven of his fifteen starts here. This team just keeps getting better every week and they will break into the win column very soon and qualify for the Chase.

Joey Logano: Joey won the race here last fall during the Chase and has finished in the top four in his last three starts here. This team will be happy to get back to an intermediate track after being involved in some wrecks the past couple of races. They have been very disappointed in those races as they felt they has a chance to win those races. Now they should be back to contending.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Now that Dale has a win this season and is qualified for the Chase he can relax a little bit. Not that drivers who are qualified for the Chase really relax, but they don’t have the pressure of trying to win races to make the Chase. Dale will be looking for his first win at this track and with momentum on his side he just might get that win.

Kasey Kahne: Kasey is another driver without a win this season or at Kansas. Although he has finished in the top ten in seven of his fifteen starts here. This team is also going to be glad to get back to an intermediate track after being involved in on track incidents the past few races. With the equipment they have, I think they will win at least one race before the start of the Chase.

Tony Stewart: Tony has won two races at Kansas and this team has looked better and better every week. They seem to be faster and just need to make the correct adjustment as the track changes and a night race might make that a little easier for them. I think Tony is going to keep improving as the season progresses and it won’t surprise me to see him in victory lane before the Chase starts.

Brad Keselowski: Brad has won a race at Kansas in his career and he should have a fast car once again this weekend. I think this team has been very disappointed in their performance the past couple of races and are looking to get back to where they are contending in races. Look for Brad’s car to get faster as the race progresses and be in contention for the win at the end.

YAHOO! FANTASY NASCAR PICKS FOR KANSAS SPEEDWAY

Yahoo Driver Group A

• Jimmie Johnson
• Kevin Harvick

Yahoo Driver Group B

• Carl Edwards
• Tony Stewart
• Martin Truex Jr.
• Paul Menard

Yahoo Driver Group C

• Eric Jones
• Danica Patrick

MY TOP-5 OVERALL AT KANSAS SPEEDWAY

1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Kevin Harvick
3. Jeff Gordon
4. Matt Kenseth
5. Carl Edwards

Dark Horse: Paul Menard

Stay Away From: Kurt Busch