

One of the more popular ways that some people play fantasy racing is by entering a NASCAR Pick’ems Contest. Players select one driver for each race, but you can only select a driver one or two times during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. I will be providing my picks each week to help out members who play these types of games.
Pick Drive 1 Time |
Pick Driver 2 Times | |||||
Race | Driver | Finish | Race | Driver |
Finish |
|
Daytona |
Jamie McMurray | 28th | Daytona | Jamie McMurray | 28th | |
Atlanta | Chase Elliott | 5th | Atlanta | Chase Elliott |
5th |
|
Las Vegas |
Kasey Kahne | 12th | Las Vegas | Brad Keselowski | 5th | |
Phoenix | Ryan Blaney | 23rd | Phoenix | Joey Logano |
31st |
|
Auto Club |
Kyle Larson | 1st | Auto Club | Kyle Larson |
1st |
|
Martinsville | Ryan Newman | 8th | Martinsville | Denny Hamlin |
30th |
|
Texas |
Clint Bowyer | 11th | Texas | Brad Keselowski | 6th | |
Bristol | Erik Jones | 17th | Bristol | Kyle Busch |
35th |
|
Richmond |
Kyle Busch | 16th | Richmond | Clint Bowyer | 15th | |
Talladega | Aric Almirola | 4th | Talladega | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
1st |
|
Kansas |
Joey Logano | 37th | Kansas | Ryan Blaney | 4th | |
Charlotte | Martin Truex Jr. | 3rd | Charlotte | Martin Truex Jr. |
3rd |
|
Dover |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 39th | Dover | Matt Kenseth | 13th | |
Pocono | Kurt Busch | 4th | Pocono | Kurt Busch |
4th |
|
Michigan |
Denny Hamlin | 4th | Michigan | Denny Hamlin | 4th | |
Sonoma | Chris Buescher | 19th | Sonoma | AJ Allmendinger |
35th |
|
Daytona |
Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 32nd | Daytona | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 32nd | |
Kentucky | Brad Keselowski | 39th | Kentucky | Kyle Busch |
5th |
|
Loudon |
Matt Kenseth | 4th | Loudon | Matt Kenseth | 4th | |
Indianapolis | Paul Menard | 16th | Indianapolis | Kevin Harvick |
6th |
|
Pocono |
Danica Patrick | 15th | Pocono | Ryan Blaney | 30th | |
Watkins Glen | AJ Allmendinger | 9th | Watkins Glen | AJ Allmendinger |
9th |
|
Michigan |
Daniel Suarez | 37th | Michigan | Chase Elliott | 8th | |
Bristol | Matt Dibenedetto | 26th | Bristol | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. |
14th |
|
Darlington |
Trevor Bayne | 35th | Darlington | Matt Kenseth | 6th | |
Richmond | David Ragan | 27th | Richmond | Kurt Busch |
3rd |
|
Chicago |
Michael McDowell | 30th | Chicago | Austin Dillon | 16th | |
Loudon | Landon Cassill | 25th | Loudon | Jamie McMurray |
16th |
|
Dover |
Ty Dillon | 22nd | Dover | Jimmie Johnson | 3rd | |
Charlotte | Austin Dillon | 16th | Charlotte | Clint Bowyer |
27th |
|
Talladega |
Brendan Gaughan | ? | Talladega | Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
? |
I am quickly running out of drivers for the 1 and Done game. The Drivers I have left include: Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Cole Whitt, Corey LaJoie, Reed Sorenson, Jeffrey Earnhardt, Gray Gaulding, Derrike Cope and B.J. McLeod. That does not leave me a lot to work with. This is my first year playing this game. I have plans for Johnson (Martinsville) and Harvick (Phoenix), but the rest of the races may be ugly.
Brendan Gaughan is an experienced driver who usually performs well on the restrictor-plate tracks. He finished 11th in the Daytona 500 and 7th in the Coke Zero 400. He also finished 26th at Talladega in May. That is an average finishing position of 14.6 on the plate tracks this year. I think you have to give him a chance this week.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be my pick in the games you can select a driver twice. He has the most wins, most laps led and most top-10 finishes at this track. It is no secret that he wants to win this race before he retires. I expect the No. 88 team to put a lot of work into this car this week.
Good luck this week!
Follow me on Twitter @MrFantasyNASCAR