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Aric Almirola will driver the #10 car in 2018 for Stewart-Haas Racing, after previously driving for Richard Petty Motorsports over the past 5 seasons. Many would argue that Aric won't have much more success with the #10 team than he did with the #43. I do see their point as Aric isn't a monster talent behind the wheel. I do, however have to disagree with that. I think to a certain extent that Aric will have more success with SHR. In my opinion, Aric did an amazing job with the 43 team. Considering Petty never exactly delivered him top 10 capable cars. Nobody could expect him to go out there and contend for good finishes, because he never had the equipment. He has a better ride now, one that is capable of running closer to the top 10. Obviously getting the #10 car means he will be at end the bottom of the food chain. But I think Aric is capable of doing some really good things in 2018. That if he can live up to his full potential with his new team.
Intermediate tracks never has been a strength for Aric Almirola in his career, but he is also in new equipment than he was in recent years. I don't think it will make a world difference, as Aric will probably get a lot of the leftovers stuff. But I think Aric can surprise us with some solid finishes here and there. With that said, I think there will be inconsistency. I think this can be said about every driver, aside from the top 4 or 5 drivers in the sport. What are his best intermediate tracks? I personally would have to say Texas and Michigan when looking at his career numbers. Of course that all was with Richard Petty Motorsports, too.
At Texas, he has been very good recently. Overall, he has been consistent in the top 20. In his last 8 races at Texas, he has compiled 5 finishes of 19th or better. Including 4 finishes of 19th or better in his last 6 races at this track. In 2017, he posted finishes of 15th and 18th. He wasn't nothing special during the events though. But he still found a way to get respectable finishes in the top 20. It's hard to complain about that! At Michigan, Aric has found success throughout his career. In 11 career starts, he has compiled 7 finishes in the top 20. In 4 of his last 6 races at Michigan, he has finished 22nd or better. Including finishes of 12th, 14th and 20th. What do those three finishes have in common? All three finishes has came in the last three August's races at Michigan.
Shorter flats has been where Aric has had his best results and performances. In general. this has been the type of track that he been the most reliable on. By far, he has been the strongest at Phoenix and Richmond. In 26 career starts at both tracks (combined), he has compiled 20 career top 20 finishes. That's insane consistency right there and it is exactly what has given him fantasy value over the last couple seasons. I would say that Richmond is his slight better track though, but it could either way really. At Richmond, his record of late is impressive! In his rookie's season, he had a pair of 26th place finishes. Since? In 10 starts, he haven't finished worse than 21st. That 21st place finish was back in April 2014. In 4 of his last 5 races at Richmond, he has finished 17th or better. These finishes includes 17th, 9th, 17th and 4th. More impressive? 3 top 10 finishes in his last 7 races at Richmond. Statistically speaking, it is one of better tracks on the schedule. And I don't think many people even know it!
At Phoenix, he is also very good on. In his first two starts in 2007 (Dale Inc) and 2010 (the first go around with Richard Petty in the #9 car), he had finishes of 27th and 26th. In his 12 starts since then? No finishes worse than 22nd place. In 11 of those 12 races, he has finished in the top 20. In 4 of his last 5 races at Phoenix, he has finished 17th or better. Including 3 of his last 5 races ending in 13th or better. In his last race here (November 2017), he finished 9th for that event. Then there is New Hampshire, the worst of the three shorter flats. In his last 5 races at New Hampshire, he has compiled 3 finishes of 24th or worse. Including finishes of 26th, 24th and 43rd. In his last 9 races overall, he has finished 23rd or worse five (5) times. In 4 of his last 7 races, he does have finishes in the top 20 though. As you can tell, Aric is really good at two of the three tracks. Then the three one, he is a bit more iffy on.
The larger flats has been a pretty interesting place for Aric to say the least. Indy haven't been a good track for him, but it haven't been bad, either. When looking at his record, it is basically middle of the road for Aric. In 6 career starts at Indy, Aric has compiled 4 finishes of 13th-21st. He had best career finish in 2017, where he finished 13th. From a performance stand-point, he was his best in his firs two career starts. In his last three starts at the track, he haven's started any better than 22nd. i think that in itself puts him at an disadvantage. Especially since Indy is a very difficult place to make passes on. If things can improve with the #10 car with Aric behind the wheel, I think Indy is a good place for him to be a solid sleeper.
The other larger flat is Pocono. And man is his track record is ugly! In his first 5 career starts, he posted 4 finishes between 18th-22nd. I can live with that from Aric, can't you? Since August 2014? He has made 6 starts and has finished 35th or worse in 4 of those 6 races. His last 6 finishes at Pocono: 38th, 39th, 20th, 18th, 43rd and 35th. If you are looking for an example of a ''terrible'' track record, then you found it. You could say it is bad luck and I would agree. However, when you get these sort of finishes in such a span. You also have to face the facts that it is a pattern. Even if he has stupid bad luck here lately. Nothings points to him having better luck and the only thing that will do that is good results. I would avoid him at Pocono going forward, until he proves himself.
Bristol and Martinsville are among two of his favorite tracks on the schedule! Martinsville is a very good track for him and not even people even realize it! Over his last 6 races here at Martinsville, he has posted 5 finishes of 18th or better. In his last 8 races, he has compiled 6 finishes in the top 18. In his last three races he has finishes of 18th, 18th and 15th. If you exclude his 40th place finish (engine) in 2016, he haven't finished worse than 21st place. Since hopping in the #43 car, he haven't finished worse than 21st in a race, other than that lone DNF in 2016. He also has compiled 9 top 20 finishes during that 12-race span. At Bristol, he isn't quite as good. But he has been on the record of saying that he loves Bristol Motor Speedway! He have some bad finishes of late, but still it a very good track for him overall. In his last 9 races here, he has compiled 5 finishes in the top 17. Overall, he has finished 6 of his last 9 races in the top 22 at Bristol. If you exclude last season's results of 22nd and 37th, he has finished 5 of his last 7 races in the top 17. He's pretty damn good here!
Road courses haven't exactly been a strong suit for Aric and I doubt it will change that much with the #10 team! At Sonoma, he haven't found much success at all! In his career so far, he only has one finish better than 20th. He finished 14th back in 2015. In 6 career starts, he has only two top 20 finishes overall. His other four finishes consist of 27th, 27th, 28th and 23rd. He haven't ever started better than 25th at this place, either. He's a lot better at Watkins, which isn't exactly much of an accomplishment. But still, he isn't terrible at Watkins Glen. Over his last 6 races at Watkins Glen, he has compiled 4 finishes between 16th-21st. In other two finishes outside of that range? 27th in 2016 and 37th in 2014. Not bad. He had an accident in 2014 race and I believe he had a tire down that caused him to nail the tire barriers. I would trust him a lot more at Watkins Glen than Sonoma.
The plate tracks will be a very strong area for Aric Almirola! He is one of the most underrated plate racers in the series. Over the past two seasons, he has under a 12.0 average finish at this type of track. Over his last 6 Daytona races, he has finished 5 of 6 races in the top 15. His last 6 finishes at Daytona: 4th, 15th, 12th, 34th, 15th and 1st. Doesn't that look really good? He has been on fire since winning at Daytona. He's pretty good at Talladega, too. In his last 6 races at Talladega, he has compiled 5 finishes of 16th or better. His last three finishes consists of 5th, 4th and 8th. Over his last 8 races at Talladega, he has finished 16th or better in 6 of 8 races.
I don't think Aric will go to contending for wins in 2018 or anything close to that, but I think he will be better than he was in recent seasons. That might be difficult though, since he had a pretty impressive run in 2015. But I still stand by that, I do believe he can accomplish some things with his new team. He is not super talent, so don't expect the world. Personally, I would focus on targeting him at his strongest tracks. And they would be places such as Martinsville, Richmond, Phoenix, Talladega and Daytona. Off top of my head those are always the tracks that stick out to me. If he can post solid numbers in the #43 car, then there's no reason why he cannot keep having solid runs there. Those are the tracks that he will most likely have success on. Of course this is Nascar, so who knows what gonna happen. Personally, I am gonna be keeping an eye on Aric Almirola through the first 4 or 5 races. I think that gonna tell a lot in terms of what sort of season he could have.
***All stats are from DriverAvearges.com
Twitter - @JeffNathans18
Aric Almirola will driver the #10 car in 2018 for Stewart-Haas Racing, after previously driving for Richard Petty Motorsports over the past 5 seasons. Many would argue that Aric won't have much more success with the #10 team than he did with the #43. I do see their point as Aric isn't a monster talent behind the wheel. I do, however have to disagree with that. I think to a certain extent that Aric will have more success with SHR. In my opinion, Aric did an amazing job with the 43 team. Considering Petty never exactly delivered him top 10 capable cars. Nobody could expect him to go out there and contend for good finishes, because he never had the equipment. He has a better ride now, one that is capable of running closer to the top 10. Obviously getting the #10 car means he will be at end the bottom of the food chain. But I think Aric is capable of doing some really good things in 2018. That if he can live up to his full potential with his new team.
Intermediate tracks never has been a strength for Aric Almirola in his career, but he is also in new equipment than he was in recent years. I don't think it will make a world difference, as Aric will probably get a lot of the leftovers stuff. But I think Aric can surprise us with some solid finishes here and there. With that said, I think there will be inconsistency. I think this can be said about every driver, aside from the top 4 or 5 drivers in the sport. What are his best intermediate tracks? I personally would have to say Texas and Michigan when looking at his career numbers. Of course that all was with Richard Petty Motorsports, too.
At Texas, he has been very good recently. Overall, he has been consistent in the top 20. In his last 8 races at Texas, he has compiled 5 finishes of 19th or better. Including 4 finishes of 19th or better in his last 6 races at this track. In 2017, he posted finishes of 15th and 18th. He wasn't nothing special during the events though. But he still found a way to get respectable finishes in the top 20. It's hard to complain about that! At Michigan, Aric has found success throughout his career. In 11 career starts, he has compiled 7 finishes in the top 20. In 4 of his last 6 races at Michigan, he has finished 22nd or better. Including finishes of 12th, 14th and 20th. What do those three finishes have in common? All three finishes has came in the last three August's races at Michigan.
Shorter flats has been where Aric has had his best results and performances. In general. this has been the type of track that he been the most reliable on. By far, he has been the strongest at Phoenix and Richmond. In 26 career starts at both tracks (combined), he has compiled 20 career top 20 finishes. That's insane consistency right there and it is exactly what has given him fantasy value over the last couple seasons. I would say that Richmond is his slight better track though, but it could either way really. At Richmond, his record of late is impressive! In his rookie's season, he had a pair of 26th place finishes. Since? In 10 starts, he haven't finished worse than 21st. That 21st place finish was back in April 2014. In 4 of his last 5 races at Richmond, he has finished 17th or better. These finishes includes 17th, 9th, 17th and 4th. More impressive? 3 top 10 finishes in his last 7 races at Richmond. Statistically speaking, it is one of better tracks on the schedule. And I don't think many people even know it!
At Phoenix, he is also very good on. In his first two starts in 2007 (Dale Inc) and 2010 (the first go around with Richard Petty in the #9 car), he had finishes of 27th and 26th. In his 12 starts since then? No finishes worse than 22nd place. In 11 of those 12 races, he has finished in the top 20. In 4 of his last 5 races at Phoenix, he has finished 17th or better. Including 3 of his last 5 races ending in 13th or better. In his last race here (November 2017), he finished 9th for that event. Then there is New Hampshire, the worst of the three shorter flats. In his last 5 races at New Hampshire, he has compiled 3 finishes of 24th or worse. Including finishes of 26th, 24th and 43rd. In his last 9 races overall, he has finished 23rd or worse five (5) times. In 4 of his last 7 races, he does have finishes in the top 20 though. As you can tell, Aric is really good at two of the three tracks. Then the three one, he is a bit more iffy on.
The larger flats has been a pretty interesting place for Aric to say the least. Indy haven't been a good track for him, but it haven't been bad, either. When looking at his record, it is basically middle of the road for Aric. In 6 career starts at Indy, Aric has compiled 4 finishes of 13th-21st. He had best career finish in 2017, where he finished 13th. From a performance stand-point, he was his best in his firs two career starts. In his last three starts at the track, he haven's started any better than 22nd. i think that in itself puts him at an disadvantage. Especially since Indy is a very difficult place to make passes on. If things can improve with the #10 car with Aric behind the wheel, I think Indy is a good place for him to be a solid sleeper.
The other larger flat is Pocono. And man is his track record is ugly! In his first 5 career starts, he posted 4 finishes between 18th-22nd. I can live with that from Aric, can't you? Since August 2014? He has made 6 starts and has finished 35th or worse in 4 of those 6 races. His last 6 finishes at Pocono: 38th, 39th, 20th, 18th, 43rd and 35th. If you are looking for an example of a ''terrible'' track record, then you found it. You could say it is bad luck and I would agree. However, when you get these sort of finishes in such a span. You also have to face the facts that it is a pattern. Even if he has stupid bad luck here lately. Nothings points to him having better luck and the only thing that will do that is good results. I would avoid him at Pocono going forward, until he proves himself.
Bristol and Martinsville are among two of his favorite tracks on the schedule! Martinsville is a very good track for him and not even people even realize it! Over his last 6 races here at Martinsville, he has posted 5 finishes of 18th or better. In his last 8 races, he has compiled 6 finishes in the top 18. In his last three races he has finishes of 18th, 18th and 15th. If you exclude his 40th place finish (engine) in 2016, he haven't finished worse than 21st place. Since hopping in the #43 car, he haven't finished worse than 21st in a race, other than that lone DNF in 2016. He also has compiled 9 top 20 finishes during that 12-race span. At Bristol, he isn't quite as good. But he has been on the record of saying that he loves Bristol Motor Speedway! He have some bad finishes of late, but still it a very good track for him overall. In his last 9 races here, he has compiled 5 finishes in the top 17. Overall, he has finished 6 of his last 9 races in the top 22 at Bristol. If you exclude last season's results of 22nd and 37th, he has finished 5 of his last 7 races in the top 17. He's pretty damn good here!
Road courses haven't exactly been a strong suit for Aric and I doubt it will change that much with the #10 team! At Sonoma, he haven't found much success at all! In his career so far, he only has one finish better than 20th. He finished 14th back in 2015. In 6 career starts, he has only two top 20 finishes overall. His other four finishes consist of 27th, 27th, 28th and 23rd. He haven't ever started better than 25th at this place, either. He's a lot better at Watkins, which isn't exactly much of an accomplishment. But still, he isn't terrible at Watkins Glen. Over his last 6 races at Watkins Glen, he has compiled 4 finishes between 16th-21st. In other two finishes outside of that range? 27th in 2016 and 37th in 2014. Not bad. He had an accident in 2014 race and I believe he had a tire down that caused him to nail the tire barriers. I would trust him a lot more at Watkins Glen than Sonoma.
The plate tracks will be a very strong area for Aric Almirola! He is one of the most underrated plate racers in the series. Over the past two seasons, he has under a 12.0 average finish at this type of track. Over his last 6 Daytona races, he has finished 5 of 6 races in the top 15. His last 6 finishes at Daytona: 4th, 15th, 12th, 34th, 15th and 1st. Doesn't that look really good? He has been on fire since winning at Daytona. He's pretty good at Talladega, too. In his last 6 races at Talladega, he has compiled 5 finishes of 16th or better. His last three finishes consists of 5th, 4th and 8th. Over his last 8 races at Talladega, he has finished 16th or better in 6 of 8 races.
I don't think Aric will go to contending for wins in 2018 or anything close to that, but I think he will be better than he was in recent seasons. That might be difficult though, since he had a pretty impressive run in 2015. But I still stand by that, I do believe he can accomplish some things with his new team. He is not super talent, so don't expect the world. Personally, I would focus on targeting him at his strongest tracks. And they would be places such as Martinsville, Richmond, Phoenix, Talladega and Daytona. Off top of my head those are always the tracks that stick out to me. If he can post solid numbers in the #43 car, then there's no reason why he cannot keep having solid runs there. Those are the tracks that he will most likely have success on. Of course this is Nascar, so who knows what gonna happen. Personally, I am gonna be keeping an eye on Aric Almirola through the first 4 or 5 races. I think that gonna tell a lot in terms of what sort of season he could have.
***All stats are from DriverAvearges.com
Twitter - @JeffNathans18