The MENCS returns to the Talladega for the second race in the Round of 12 of the playoffs. The drivers are all scared of this track because they know they have little control over their fate at Talladega. Some drivers are better than others at avoiding the wrecks but even the best drivers have a 50/50 chance of getting caught up in the “Big One” this week. That means we will need a lot of luck with our Fantasy NASCAR lineups as well. It should be exciting. The 1000Bulbs.com 500 can be seen Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on NBC.
NASCAR will have two practices Friday. The first practice is at 12:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and final practice is at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Qualifying for the 1000Bulbs.com 500 is Saturday at 4:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
* I will not be posting Garage Talk Notes this week since practice is almost meaningless at Talladega. Even the less funded cars can run up front at this track. Most teams do not talk about their downforce on the radio so little information is released.
The cars will have the 550 HP engines with the 2” splitter, 8” spoiler and aero ducts this week. It is the same package used earlier this season at Talladega and both races at Daytona. The cars were slower but the racing was about the same as what we have seen in the past at the track.
My early week pick for the pole is Austin Dillon. Teams can almost choose their starting position at Talladega. Teams can take out downforce from their car to add speed and start up front or keep the downforce in the car and allow it to move easily around the track once the green flag is waived. Richard Childress Racing has given up drivability this season so they can start up front. I expect that trend to continue this week.
This race is impossible to predict. The Driver Rankings this week are based on each driver’s ability to avoid wrecks, average finishing position at Talladega, average finishing position on the Superspeedways and momentum in the playoffs.
Here are the early week driver rankings for Talladega…
|
Driver |
| 1. Joey Logano |
| 2. Chase Elliott |
| 3. Brad Keselowski |
| 4. Kurt Busch |
| 5. Alex Bowman |
| 6. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
| 7. Aric Almirola |
| 8. Jimmie Johnson |
| 9. William Byron |
| 10. Martin Truex Jr. |
| 11. Kevin Harvick |
| 12. Paul Menard |
| 13. Denny Hamlin |
| 14. Kyle Busch |
| 15. Kyle Larson |
| 16. Daniel Hemric |
| 17. Ryan Newman |
| 18. Ryan Preece |
| 19. Daniel Suarez |
| 20. Austin Dillon |
| 21. Ty Dillon |
| 22. Ryan Blaney |
| 23. Clint Bowyer |
| 24. David Ragan |
| 25. Erik Jones |
| 26. Matt DiBenedetto |
| 27. Chris Buescher |
| 28. Michael McDowell |
| 29. Darrell Wallace Jr. |
| 30. Brendan Gaughan |
| 31. Corey Lajoie |
| 32. Matt Tifft |
| 33. Landon Cassill |
| 34. Ross Chastian |
| 35. B.J. McLeod |
| 36. Reed Sorenson |
| 37. J.J. Yeley |
| 38. Garrett Smithley |
* I will post my final driver rankings Saturday night.
**Stats from Driveraverages.com and NASCAR Media. Career stats from Racing-Reference.Info…
*** Photos from NASCAR Media
If you need any further advice with your team, look for me on Twitter @MrFantasyNASCAR
If you like Fantasy NASCAR, LIKE my Fantasy NASCAR Tips Page on Facebook