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Fantasy Nascar Preview -
1-Jmac: The driver of the #1 car is off to a very good start to the season, despite finishing 15th at Phoenix. It was disappointing, considering that he was a top 5 to top 7 driver for first half of the race at Phoenix. That's okay though. He will try to rebound at Cali. He's finished top 10 back at Atlanta. And been decent at this place recently. In his past three races here, he's compiled 12.3 average finish with 17.3 average running position and 77.3 driver rating. If you take out of the 2015 event here, he has posted 8.0 average finish with 14.0 average running position and 84.4 driver rating. At Atlanta, he had 11.0 average running position and 84.2 driver rating. I expect JMac to finish in the 8th-14th place range, most likely!
2-Brad Keselowski: Brad Keselowski is someone that I really love this weekend at Cali. This use to be one of his worst tracks, but that isn't true anymore though. Something happen over the past few seasons that has turned him into a absolute star at this place. He has been pretty good overall. In his past three races here, he has compiled 12.0 average finish with 10.0 average running position and 99.9 driver rating. In his past two races, he has posted finishes of 1st and 9th. What makes me really love Keselowski? What he did back at Atlanta. Cali and Atlanta both have worn out surfaces, so that is a characteristic that they definitely sure. We also see significant fall-off at both tracks. Not something that is noticeable at Vegas. On top of that, Keselowski is off to a great start this season. Finished 1st at Atlanta, 5th at Vegas and 5th at Phoenix. That's three straight top 5 finishes. It is hard to overlook how been momentum, he has at the moment. Keselowski is a great play this week, in my opinion.
3-Austin Dillon: I am not sure why Dillon has struggled so much this season, but definitely has had a rough start. He had battery issues at Atlanta, struggled at Vegas and finished 25th and finished a season-high 18th at Phoenix. It is hard to get behind a driver that has 4 bad finishes after 4 races. Not only bad finishes, but lackluster performances, too. However, he did run well at Atlanta, so that's a plus. However, I wouldn't hold my breathe. As he has just a okay track record at Cali, so far in his cup career. With that said, he's ran very well here last season. He was running top 10 in last season's event, but the pitgun broke on the final stop. So he's finished 25th. In three career starts at Cali, he has finishes of 11th, 16th and 25th. If it means anything at all, Dillon started on the pole for last season's race. I think Dillon will have another average weekend in the teens mainly. At the moment, he haven't shown us enough to say that we can trust him.
4-Kevin Harvick: The question all of last weekend was: What's wrong with Kevin Harvick? Well, he's struggled for about 75% of the race, but the #4 team fixed him up when it counted the most. And he's eventually finished respectably in 6th place (exactly where Timerssports writer Garry Briggs ranked him on Saturday) at Phoenix. It wasn't a great race by any means for Kevin, but he accomplished what he was suppose and that was a quality finish. He will now try to rebound at Cali. He's been so good here the past few seasons, too. In his past two races here, he has compiled 2.0 average finish with 3.0 average running position and 136.7 driver rating. He's so good here overall. In his past 8 races, he has had 6 Top 7 finishes. While finishing 4 of the past 6 races in 4th or better. Then remember, that he's dominated the Atlanta race, too. Last season, he's dominant both Atlanta and Cali. He's dominated Atlanta just a few weeks ago. The stars are aligning for it to happen again, if you ask me.
5-Kasey Kahne: Kahne is coming off yet another quality finish at Phoenix and will look to keep the good start to the season going to 2017. However, I don't really have super high hopes for him at Cali though. In his past three races, he has posted finishes of 28th, 17th and 41st. Not good finishes at all. Even though, he had solid runs in 2012 and 2013. He's finished 14th and 9th in those races. I do think it is hard to overlook his good finish over the past few weeks. Because, yes he has a good start to the season. However, none of those races, was he a top 10 driver. None of them, his performance been in the low to mid teens. I don't hate Kahne, but I will tell you right now that I am not getting on the Kahne train yet. He's run well and finish well this weekend, then I will have him on my roster for Texas in April.
11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin scored a top 10 finish last weekend at Phoenix, but he's passed so many cars it wasn't even funny. He will try to rebound at one of his better tracks on the schedule. In his past 5 at Cali, no driver in the series has a better average start. In that span, he has started 3rd or better four times. However, the results haven't been there for Denny though. He did finish 3rd in last season's race, after also starting 3rd for the event. Hamlin have led in 7 of the past 8 races at Cali, and in the past 5 races, too. Problem is? He's finished 25th or worse in 5 of his past 8 races at Cali. I don't like that at all. With that said, he is coming off a top 10 finish at Phoenix, so hopefully that gives him some momentum entering the weekend. I think Hamlin will be a top 10 driver this week, but I am worried about his track record. That's a scary track record. And not in a good way!
18-Kyle Busch: Kyle Busch would had won at Phoenix, if Joey Logano didn't nail the wall with under 10 laps to go. Then on the pit stop, the 42 crew got Larson out in front of him. Then Busch just couldn't to the lead, after having to restart 5th. If it was a clean restart between Stenhouse Jr and Larson, then I think Busch would had a shot at that point. He will have another shot to win this weekend though. In his past 4 races here (minus 25th place finish last season - hit the wall), he's finished 3rd or better four times. In his past 14 races overall, he's finished in the top 10 nine times. Rowdy has won in back-to-back races in 2013 and 2014. Before having to miss in 2015 though. I really love Kyle Busch this weekend. He will likely have a top 5 finish potential this weekend. I expect the No.18 car to be one of the cars to beat this weekend at Cali!
19-Daniel Suarez: Suarez is having a tough start to his rookie season, but may had gotten his season on track with a top 10 finish at Phoenix. That was his first career top 10 finish of his career. While, I am thrilled that he got a top 10 finish, I don't really love him though. He's struggled through four races this season and mainly ran in the low-20s last weekend at Phoenix. On top of that, I don't really think that Suarez has had enough time in the Cup series to be a legit threat. I think he will run in the 18th-25th place range mainly. I know many people might jump on the Suarez train this week, but I am waiting to jump on that bandwagon though. He haven't proven anything to me yet. When he can run top 15 for entire race, I will consider him more.
20-Matt Kenseth: Kenseth is coming off a tough race at Phoenix, where he nailed the wall hard, after his tire went down. Not a good way to end a race at all. The No.20 team will try to rebound at Cali though. He was very strong in this race two seasons ago and led 43 laps. He was also pretty good in last season race, while leading 2 laps. However, he has finishes of 19th and 31st in those two races. In his first two races with JGR here, he had finishes of 7th and 4th. Kenseth is a great driver here at Cali, as he has the 5th-best average finish among all active drivers in the series currently. Kenseth did finish 3rd back at Atlanta, after struggling for majority of the event. He was impressive in that final couple runs. Going from about 15th or 16th to top 3 in less than 50 laps. The 20 car was on rails in those two runs of the race. He will try to repeat success this weekend at this track. I really like him ovreall honestly. He could be an excellent off-sequence play, if you are looking to go out of the box.
21-Ryan Blaney: I was disappointed with Blaney finish as he's finished 23rd at Phoenix. Despite running top 12 for over 3/4 of the race. However that one speeding penalty costed him the race and was never able to recover. That how it goes sometimes, one mistake and you are basically done. At a place like Phoenix, it is almost impossible to recover without a very fast car. Blaney was top 10 good on speed, but like most drivers struggle to pass. That was expected! He will now try to find some success at Cali. A lot of people are still high on the No.21 team, but I am jumping off the Blaney bandwagon. I feel like this a place where he could struggle. He's finished 35th in his lone career start at Cali. Last season, he's proved time and time again that he struggles on this type of track. More specifically track that see noticeable tire fall-off. On the long run here, we definitely see that here. Blaney kinda showed that again at Atlanta. Even though, speeding penalties kinda helped him along with that. I think Blaney will be a low to middle teen driver this weekend, but I am not buying that he is a top 10 or top 12 driver though.
22-Joey Logano: Joey Logano had tough race at Phoenix. He's looked great out front, but the No.22 car just wasn't very good on the long run. After awhile, he's used up his brakes and then his car would really fall-off. I think Logano knew something would happen and it did with just about 5 laps to go. I think most of us knew that it would happen. You could tell by the way he was driving that, he was just uncomfortable with how he was driving. He will try to put it behind him at Cali though. In his past three races (minus 2014 race - the tire obstacle race), he has compiled 4.7 average finish with 5.0 average running position and 114.0 driver rating. He's leads the series with that 4.7 average finish. Also, he has the best-average running position as well. I really like the 22 car this week, their strength is the intermediate tracks. He's ran top 5 at both Atlanta and Las Vegas. So hopefully, he can keep up the trends of finishing inside the top 5.
24-Chase Elliott: Chase Elliott is having a great season and was very strong last weekend at Phoenix. I thought Elliott was going to win there for awhile, but he's faded after losing the lead to Kyle Busch. Elliott would eventually finish 12th place, after leading a lot of laps in middle of the race. He will try to keep the strong performance going at Cali. He's finished 8th in his lone career start at Cali. In that event, he had 8.0 average running position and 105.4 driver rating. Elliott was pretty good in that race, but I think he is way better than he was then right now. The 24 car was very stout back at Atlanta and had the 3rd-best car for the entire event to only Keselowski and Harvick. The No.24 car also was top 5 good at Vegas as well. Tire management is always key at a place like Cali. Elliott is great at saving his stuff and still going fast. This kid is so impressive overall. I think he will have a shot at the top 5 once again!
31-Ryan Newman: Newman has shown a lot of speed this season out of the No.31 car and is coming off his first win with RCR at Phoenix. However, he didn't run quite that good. Still, it was impressive to see that the No.31 car could stay in front of the 42 and 18. Of course, I think the Stenhouse Jr and Larson incident really helped him though. Newman scored RCR's first win since 2013, when Kevin Harvick was still driving the #29 car for the team. Newman now will turn his attention to Cali. This is one of his better tracks overall. Cali has always been a pretty good place for Newman. In his past two races here, he has compiled 9.5 average finish with 12.0 average running position and 88.5 driver rating. In his past 7 races at Cali, he has finished inside the top 10 five times. Overall, he has finished 14th or better in 6 of those 7 races. His only finish in those 7 races outside of the top 15 is a 20th place finish back in March 2014. That was of course that messy tire race back in 2014, so I will give him a break for that. I think Newman will be top 10 good. Remember the 31 car was impressive back at Altanta and ran top 5. He was top 10 at Vegas, before issues at the end. He had rotten luck in both races on the intermediate tracks in 2017 so far. He will try to turn it around this weekend, and I think he does exactly that!
41-Kurt Busch: Kurt Busch is having a tough start to the season, after winning the Daytona 500. He's finished well at Atlanta, but has had issues the past two races at both Vegas and Phoenix. However, he has a chance to put it all behind him this weekend at Cali. This is one of his best tracks on the schedule. In his past three races here (minus his 30th place last season), he has compiled 3.7 average finish with 10.0 average running position and 111.8 driver rating. Over his past 10 races at Cali, he has finished inside the top 10 seven times. More recently, he has 4 Top 7 finishes over his past 5 races at this track. I really do like him overall this weekend. He has a solid track record at this track, as it is his best racetrack in terms of average finish. He ran top 10 back at Atlanta as well. My only concern is his issues in his past two races this season. I don't think he will have problems in three straight races, but you never know. Based on what we know, I say that Kurt Busch will be at least a top 10 driver with some upside of course.
42-Kyle Larson: Kyle Larason is off to a great start this season! He finished 12th in the Daytona 500, but is now burning on all cylinders. As he has posted 3 straight 2nd place finishes in the past three races. He has been so ever close to winning his 2nd career race and I think he will have another great shot this weekend at Cali. In his rookie season, he's finished 2nd, after running top 10 at this track. The past two seasons been a little down for him overall, but I am not worried at all though. He has this package figured out and the Chip Ganassi guys have nailed it this season. Right now, it is hard to overlook Kyle Larson. He is the real deal and is going to win a lot this season. Once the 42 car get into victory lane, I expect the wins to come quickly. It is only matter of time now.
48-Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie Johnson is off a slow start to the season, but did record his first top 10 finish of the 2017 season at Phoenix though. Now, Johnson goes to one of his best tracks on the schedule. This is such amazing track for Johnson. From career point of view, there is no driver better than Jimmie Johnson here. In his past 14 races, he has posted 9(!) Top 3 finishes. Including 5 wins. Since the 2007 season, Johnson have won more than 40% of the race here. He's won here in last season's race as well. The big difference from last season and this season? Johnson already had 2 wins entering this race last year. He has just one top 10 finish this season. Also, feel like Johnson and HMS are still trying to figure things out this season. Johnson was running top 10 at both Atlanta and Vegas before speeding penalties derailed his efforts.
77-Erik Jones: Erik Jones is a impressive young man with all of the talent in the world. I said in the offseason that he will be something special this season and have a chance at making the chase. I may had oversold him in the off-season in my preview, but I still believe in everything I said about him. He is so talented and proved that the past couple races. Jones should be a strong driver this weekend at Cali. I think this is his best kind of track. The 77 car will be strongest on the intermediate tracks. If his pit crew can consistently make good pit stops, then the sky is the limit for him. I personally think he will have a chance to have his best race yet.
78-Martin Truex Jr: Truex Jr is having a good season overall, but had a off-race last weekend at Phoenix. He had his moments, but was never more a 8th place driver. I wasn't shocked by that, because the 78 team usually runs just top 10 or maybe outside of that on these shorter flats. Not really that same dominating-performance like at the intermediate. He was very strong back on the two intermediate tracks we been at this season. He was top 10 strong easily at Atlanta and was a top 2 driver at Las Vegas. He's finished 8th here two seasons ago. He was strong in last season's race and posted 98.2 driver rating. However, he did finish off the lead lap in 32nd place though. While, the 78 car has a lot of speed on this type of track over the past few seasons. Truex Jr only has two top 10 finishes over his past 11 races at this track. With a high of 8th place (twice) over his past 5 races. I am interested in how he does this weekend at this place.
88-Dale Jr: Dale Jr is having a rough season so far. Through 4 races, the 88 car have not finished inside the top 10 yet. Last weekend at Phoenix, I thought the 88 car was going to contend for at least a top 10 finish. It was a great track for him and he had speed all weekend. Come raceday, the 88 car dropped through the field like a rock. He has been pretty good at Cali recently. In his past three races here, he has compiled 9.7 average finish with 15.0 average running position and 87.8 driver rating. In his past 6 races at Cali overall, he has posted 6 straight top 12 finishes. He's struggled in last season race here and posted a career-low 75.2 driver rating, since October 2010. My biggest concern is that he hasn't posted a top 10 finish yet this season. Good news? He finished 37th at Daytona, 30th at Atlanta, 16th at Vegas and 14th at Phoenix. His finishing are trending in the right direction right now, so if that holds true then a top 10 is coming.
***All stats are from DriverAverages.com and FantasyRacingCheatSheet.com
Twitter - @JeffNathans18
Fantasy Nascar Preview -
1-Jmac: The driver of the #1 car is off to a very good start to the season, despite finishing 15th at Phoenix. It was disappointing, considering that he was a top 5 to top 7 driver for first half of the race at Phoenix. That's okay though. He will try to rebound at Cali. He's finished top 10 back at Atlanta. And been decent at this place recently. In his past three races here, he's compiled 12.3 average finish with 17.3 average running position and 77.3 driver rating. If you take out of the 2015 event here, he has posted 8.0 average finish with 14.0 average running position and 84.4 driver rating. At Atlanta, he had 11.0 average running position and 84.2 driver rating. I expect JMac to finish in the 8th-14th place range, most likely!
2-Brad Keselowski: Brad Keselowski is someone that I really love this weekend at Cali. This use to be one of his worst tracks, but that isn't true anymore though. Something happen over the past few seasons that has turned him into a absolute star at this place. He has been pretty good overall. In his past three races here, he has compiled 12.0 average finish with 10.0 average running position and 99.9 driver rating. In his past two races, he has posted finishes of 1st and 9th. What makes me really love Keselowski? What he did back at Atlanta. Cali and Atlanta both have worn out surfaces, so that is a characteristic that they definitely sure. We also see significant fall-off at both tracks. Not something that is noticeable at Vegas. On top of that, Keselowski is off to a great start this season. Finished 1st at Atlanta, 5th at Vegas and 5th at Phoenix. That's three straight top 5 finishes. It is hard to overlook how been momentum, he has at the moment. Keselowski is a great play this week, in my opinion.
3-Austin Dillon: I am not sure why Dillon has struggled so much this season, but definitely has had a rough start. He had battery issues at Atlanta, struggled at Vegas and finished 25th and finished a season-high 18th at Phoenix. It is hard to get behind a driver that has 4 bad finishes after 4 races. Not only bad finishes, but lackluster performances, too. However, he did run well at Atlanta, so that's a plus. However, I wouldn't hold my breathe. As he has just a okay track record at Cali, so far in his cup career. With that said, he's ran very well here last season. He was running top 10 in last season's event, but the pitgun broke on the final stop. So he's finished 25th. In three career starts at Cali, he has finishes of 11th, 16th and 25th. If it means anything at all, Dillon started on the pole for last season's race. I think Dillon will have another average weekend in the teens mainly. At the moment, he haven't shown us enough to say that we can trust him.
4-Kevin Harvick: The question all of last weekend was: What's wrong with Kevin Harvick? Well, he's struggled for about 75% of the race, but the #4 team fixed him up when it counted the most. And he's eventually finished respectably in 6th place (exactly where Timerssports writer Garry Briggs ranked him on Saturday) at Phoenix. It wasn't a great race by any means for Kevin, but he accomplished what he was suppose and that was a quality finish. He will now try to rebound at Cali. He's been so good here the past few seasons, too. In his past two races here, he has compiled 2.0 average finish with 3.0 average running position and 136.7 driver rating. He's so good here overall. In his past 8 races, he has had 6 Top 7 finishes. While finishing 4 of the past 6 races in 4th or better. Then remember, that he's dominated the Atlanta race, too. Last season, he's dominant both Atlanta and Cali. He's dominated Atlanta just a few weeks ago. The stars are aligning for it to happen again, if you ask me.
5-Kasey Kahne: Kahne is coming off yet another quality finish at Phoenix and will look to keep the good start to the season going to 2017. However, I don't really have super high hopes for him at Cali though. In his past three races, he has posted finishes of 28th, 17th and 41st. Not good finishes at all. Even though, he had solid runs in 2012 and 2013. He's finished 14th and 9th in those races. I do think it is hard to overlook his good finish over the past few weeks. Because, yes he has a good start to the season. However, none of those races, was he a top 10 driver. None of them, his performance been in the low to mid teens. I don't hate Kahne, but I will tell you right now that I am not getting on the Kahne train yet. He's run well and finish well this weekend, then I will have him on my roster for Texas in April.
11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin scored a top 10 finish last weekend at Phoenix, but he's passed so many cars it wasn't even funny. He will try to rebound at one of his better tracks on the schedule. In his past 5 at Cali, no driver in the series has a better average start. In that span, he has started 3rd or better four times. However, the results haven't been there for Denny though. He did finish 3rd in last season's race, after also starting 3rd for the event. Hamlin have led in 7 of the past 8 races at Cali, and in the past 5 races, too. Problem is? He's finished 25th or worse in 5 of his past 8 races at Cali. I don't like that at all. With that said, he is coming off a top 10 finish at Phoenix, so hopefully that gives him some momentum entering the weekend. I think Hamlin will be a top 10 driver this week, but I am worried about his track record. That's a scary track record. And not in a good way!
18-Kyle Busch: Kyle Busch would had won at Phoenix, if Joey Logano didn't nail the wall with under 10 laps to go. Then on the pit stop, the 42 crew got Larson out in front of him. Then Busch just couldn't to the lead, after having to restart 5th. If it was a clean restart between Stenhouse Jr and Larson, then I think Busch would had a shot at that point. He will have another shot to win this weekend though. In his past 4 races here (minus 25th place finish last season - hit the wall), he's finished 3rd or better four times. In his past 14 races overall, he's finished in the top 10 nine times. Rowdy has won in back-to-back races in 2013 and 2014. Before having to miss in 2015 though. I really love Kyle Busch this weekend. He will likely have a top 5 finish potential this weekend. I expect the No.18 car to be one of the cars to beat this weekend at Cali!
19-Daniel Suarez: Suarez is having a tough start to his rookie season, but may had gotten his season on track with a top 10 finish at Phoenix. That was his first career top 10 finish of his career. While, I am thrilled that he got a top 10 finish, I don't really love him though. He's struggled through four races this season and mainly ran in the low-20s last weekend at Phoenix. On top of that, I don't really think that Suarez has had enough time in the Cup series to be a legit threat. I think he will run in the 18th-25th place range mainly. I know many people might jump on the Suarez train this week, but I am waiting to jump on that bandwagon though. He haven't proven anything to me yet. When he can run top 15 for entire race, I will consider him more.
20-Matt Kenseth: Kenseth is coming off a tough race at Phoenix, where he nailed the wall hard, after his tire went down. Not a good way to end a race at all. The No.20 team will try to rebound at Cali though. He was very strong in this race two seasons ago and led 43 laps. He was also pretty good in last season race, while leading 2 laps. However, he has finishes of 19th and 31st in those two races. In his first two races with JGR here, he had finishes of 7th and 4th. Kenseth is a great driver here at Cali, as he has the 5th-best average finish among all active drivers in the series currently. Kenseth did finish 3rd back at Atlanta, after struggling for majority of the event. He was impressive in that final couple runs. Going from about 15th or 16th to top 3 in less than 50 laps. The 20 car was on rails in those two runs of the race. He will try to repeat success this weekend at this track. I really like him ovreall honestly. He could be an excellent off-sequence play, if you are looking to go out of the box.
21-Ryan Blaney: I was disappointed with Blaney finish as he's finished 23rd at Phoenix. Despite running top 12 for over 3/4 of the race. However that one speeding penalty costed him the race and was never able to recover. That how it goes sometimes, one mistake and you are basically done. At a place like Phoenix, it is almost impossible to recover without a very fast car. Blaney was top 10 good on speed, but like most drivers struggle to pass. That was expected! He will now try to find some success at Cali. A lot of people are still high on the No.21 team, but I am jumping off the Blaney bandwagon. I feel like this a place where he could struggle. He's finished 35th in his lone career start at Cali. Last season, he's proved time and time again that he struggles on this type of track. More specifically track that see noticeable tire fall-off. On the long run here, we definitely see that here. Blaney kinda showed that again at Atlanta. Even though, speeding penalties kinda helped him along with that. I think Blaney will be a low to middle teen driver this weekend, but I am not buying that he is a top 10 or top 12 driver though.
22-Joey Logano: Joey Logano had tough race at Phoenix. He's looked great out front, but the No.22 car just wasn't very good on the long run. After awhile, he's used up his brakes and then his car would really fall-off. I think Logano knew something would happen and it did with just about 5 laps to go. I think most of us knew that it would happen. You could tell by the way he was driving that, he was just uncomfortable with how he was driving. He will try to put it behind him at Cali though. In his past three races (minus 2014 race - the tire obstacle race), he has compiled 4.7 average finish with 5.0 average running position and 114.0 driver rating. He's leads the series with that 4.7 average finish. Also, he has the best-average running position as well. I really like the 22 car this week, their strength is the intermediate tracks. He's ran top 5 at both Atlanta and Las Vegas. So hopefully, he can keep up the trends of finishing inside the top 5.
24-Chase Elliott: Chase Elliott is having a great season and was very strong last weekend at Phoenix. I thought Elliott was going to win there for awhile, but he's faded after losing the lead to Kyle Busch. Elliott would eventually finish 12th place, after leading a lot of laps in middle of the race. He will try to keep the strong performance going at Cali. He's finished 8th in his lone career start at Cali. In that event, he had 8.0 average running position and 105.4 driver rating. Elliott was pretty good in that race, but I think he is way better than he was then right now. The 24 car was very stout back at Atlanta and had the 3rd-best car for the entire event to only Keselowski and Harvick. The No.24 car also was top 5 good at Vegas as well. Tire management is always key at a place like Cali. Elliott is great at saving his stuff and still going fast. This kid is so impressive overall. I think he will have a shot at the top 5 once again!
31-Ryan Newman: Newman has shown a lot of speed this season out of the No.31 car and is coming off his first win with RCR at Phoenix. However, he didn't run quite that good. Still, it was impressive to see that the No.31 car could stay in front of the 42 and 18. Of course, I think the Stenhouse Jr and Larson incident really helped him though. Newman scored RCR's first win since 2013, when Kevin Harvick was still driving the #29 car for the team. Newman now will turn his attention to Cali. This is one of his better tracks overall. Cali has always been a pretty good place for Newman. In his past two races here, he has compiled 9.5 average finish with 12.0 average running position and 88.5 driver rating. In his past 7 races at Cali, he has finished inside the top 10 five times. Overall, he has finished 14th or better in 6 of those 7 races. His only finish in those 7 races outside of the top 15 is a 20th place finish back in March 2014. That was of course that messy tire race back in 2014, so I will give him a break for that. I think Newman will be top 10 good. Remember the 31 car was impressive back at Altanta and ran top 5. He was top 10 at Vegas, before issues at the end. He had rotten luck in both races on the intermediate tracks in 2017 so far. He will try to turn it around this weekend, and I think he does exactly that!
41-Kurt Busch: Kurt Busch is having a tough start to the season, after winning the Daytona 500. He's finished well at Atlanta, but has had issues the past two races at both Vegas and Phoenix. However, he has a chance to put it all behind him this weekend at Cali. This is one of his best tracks on the schedule. In his past three races here (minus his 30th place last season), he has compiled 3.7 average finish with 10.0 average running position and 111.8 driver rating. Over his past 10 races at Cali, he has finished inside the top 10 seven times. More recently, he has 4 Top 7 finishes over his past 5 races at this track. I really do like him overall this weekend. He has a solid track record at this track, as it is his best racetrack in terms of average finish. He ran top 10 back at Atlanta as well. My only concern is his issues in his past two races this season. I don't think he will have problems in three straight races, but you never know. Based on what we know, I say that Kurt Busch will be at least a top 10 driver with some upside of course.
42-Kyle Larson: Kyle Larason is off to a great start this season! He finished 12th in the Daytona 500, but is now burning on all cylinders. As he has posted 3 straight 2nd place finishes in the past three races. He has been so ever close to winning his 2nd career race and I think he will have another great shot this weekend at Cali. In his rookie season, he's finished 2nd, after running top 10 at this track. The past two seasons been a little down for him overall, but I am not worried at all though. He has this package figured out and the Chip Ganassi guys have nailed it this season. Right now, it is hard to overlook Kyle Larson. He is the real deal and is going to win a lot this season. Once the 42 car get into victory lane, I expect the wins to come quickly. It is only matter of time now.
48-Jimmie Johnson: Jimmie Johnson is off a slow start to the season, but did record his first top 10 finish of the 2017 season at Phoenix though. Now, Johnson goes to one of his best tracks on the schedule. This is such amazing track for Johnson. From career point of view, there is no driver better than Jimmie Johnson here. In his past 14 races, he has posted 9(!) Top 3 finishes. Including 5 wins. Since the 2007 season, Johnson have won more than 40% of the race here. He's won here in last season's race as well. The big difference from last season and this season? Johnson already had 2 wins entering this race last year. He has just one top 10 finish this season. Also, feel like Johnson and HMS are still trying to figure things out this season. Johnson was running top 10 at both Atlanta and Vegas before speeding penalties derailed his efforts.
77-Erik Jones: Erik Jones is a impressive young man with all of the talent in the world. I said in the offseason that he will be something special this season and have a chance at making the chase. I may had oversold him in the off-season in my preview, but I still believe in everything I said about him. He is so talented and proved that the past couple races. Jones should be a strong driver this weekend at Cali. I think this is his best kind of track. The 77 car will be strongest on the intermediate tracks. If his pit crew can consistently make good pit stops, then the sky is the limit for him. I personally think he will have a chance to have his best race yet.
78-Martin Truex Jr: Truex Jr is having a good season overall, but had a off-race last weekend at Phoenix. He had his moments, but was never more a 8th place driver. I wasn't shocked by that, because the 78 team usually runs just top 10 or maybe outside of that on these shorter flats. Not really that same dominating-performance like at the intermediate. He was very strong back on the two intermediate tracks we been at this season. He was top 10 strong easily at Atlanta and was a top 2 driver at Las Vegas. He's finished 8th here two seasons ago. He was strong in last season's race and posted 98.2 driver rating. However, he did finish off the lead lap in 32nd place though. While, the 78 car has a lot of speed on this type of track over the past few seasons. Truex Jr only has two top 10 finishes over his past 11 races at this track. With a high of 8th place (twice) over his past 5 races. I am interested in how he does this weekend at this place.
88-Dale Jr: Dale Jr is having a rough season so far. Through 4 races, the 88 car have not finished inside the top 10 yet. Last weekend at Phoenix, I thought the 88 car was going to contend for at least a top 10 finish. It was a great track for him and he had speed all weekend. Come raceday, the 88 car dropped through the field like a rock. He has been pretty good at Cali recently. In his past three races here, he has compiled 9.7 average finish with 15.0 average running position and 87.8 driver rating. In his past 6 races at Cali overall, he has posted 6 straight top 12 finishes. He's struggled in last season race here and posted a career-low 75.2 driver rating, since October 2010. My biggest concern is that he hasn't posted a top 10 finish yet this season. Good news? He finished 37th at Daytona, 30th at Atlanta, 16th at Vegas and 14th at Phoenix. His finishing are trending in the right direction right now, so if that holds true then a top 10 is coming.
***All stats are from DriverAverages.com and FantasyRacingCheatSheet.com
Twitter - @JeffNathans18