2020 Fantasy Nascar Preview (Altanta)

Welcome to Timerssports

Preview -

#1-Kurt Busch: Kurt has been really good here at Atlanta over the past few seasons! In the past 4 seasons here at Atlanta, he has finished 8th or better in every single race. In 5 of his last 6 races here at Atlanta, he has actually finished 8th or better. During that 6-race span, he has only one finish outside of the top 10 and that was 13th in 2014. That was his first seson with SHR and he really struggled to adjust to his new team honestly that whole year. So I will give him a pass in 2014!

#2-Brad Keselowski: Keselowski has been on a roll here at Atlanta over past three races and hasn't finished worse than 2nd in that span! Last season on the high-speed interemediate with tire wear, he only once failed to finish inside the the top 5. The lone exceptation was at Homestead, where he finished 18th. In those 5 races, he compiled 6.4 average finish with 9.9 average running position and 101.4 driver rating. If you take out that Homstead's race, he held 3.5 average finish with 8.1 average running position (3rd-best) and 109.3 driver rating. He was really good at similar tracks in 2019!

#3-Austin Dillon: Dillon hasn't really posted any standout numbers here at Atlanta, as he has posted no finishes inside the top 10 and only posted 2 top 15 finishes in the last 4 races. During those 4 races, he has compiled 19.5 average finish with 16.3 average running position and 71.0 driver rating. Let's take out his bad finish in 2017, where he finished 32nd: He has 15.3 average finish with 17.1 average running position and 68.9 driver rating. Notice how his ARP and DR dropped without the 2017's race? Because he was pretty good in that event. He held 10.2 average running position and 77.1 driver rating. You don't even need to know his APR's for that event to know that he was a pretty good performer as the driver rating should had a good indication. His driver rating's was near 80, despite finishing 6 laps down. If you finish off the lead lap and still post something like that, then you are doing alright.

#4-Kevin Harvick: You could make a very strong case that Harvick's best track is Atlanta. He has been stupid good with the #4 team and that shouldn't change anytime soon, either. In his last 4 races here, he has compiled the best-average finish (5.0) with best-average running position (2.9) and best-driver rating (133.2). Guys, those are some very scary numbers! On the high-speed intermediate tracks with tire wear, he was the best driver in 2019. In 5 races, he compiled 6.0 average finish with 6.3 average running position and 111.9 driver rating. He ranked 1st, 1st and 2nd in those respected categories! Not bad, wouldn't you say?

#9-Chase Elliott: Eliott hasn't been bad at Atlanta over the last few seasons, but he was much better in his first two starts. In his last two races at Atlanta, he has compiled 14.5 average finish with 14.1 average running position and 73.1 driver rating. How does that compare to his first two starts? He posted 6.5 average finish with 7.1 average running position and 105.2 driver rating. He wasn't great on similar tracks in 2019, either. In 2019 on the 5 tracks, he compiled 15.0 average finish with 14.0 average running position and 82.9 driver rating. He didn't post a single top 10 finish in any of those races, if anybody was wondering.

#10-Aric Almirola: Aric started off 2019 pretty strong on the intermeridate tracks but boy did it go downhill after the All-star break! He did not record a single top 10 finish from ASR race through November on any intermeidate track. He had 16.8 average finish for those that keeping track at home. It not the fact, that he had that bad of average finish, but that fact that he barely knew that he was actually in the races. It's one thing to consistently have bad luck and finish poorly, but it's another to simply lack speed in general. He was usually a driver in the teens. I know, he isn't a top driver or anything. But I do expect a little more out of him, considering he drives for Stewart Haas Racing afterall.

#11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin has been kinda up and down over the last 5 Atlanta races, as he has collected just one top 10 finish in those 5 races. While 3 of those 5 races has ended in 16th or worse. In the past two seasons, he has shown more promise in the finish's department and with his on-track performance! In the last two races here, he has compiled 7.5 average finish with 7.9 average running position and 96.9 driver rating. Now those aren't great numbers, but they are easily in the ballpark. How did he do on these worn out intermeidate tracks in 2019? Exellent quesition! He wasn't bad, but I have some left to be desire. He posted 14.1 average finish with 9.6 average running position and 90.5 driver rating. Not horrible, but like I mention I have something left to be desire with him.

#12-Ryan Blaney: Blaney really doesn't have eye popping numbers, if you solely look at his average finish of 17.0 in two starts with the #12 team at Atlanta. But he was really good in last season's event and actually led 41 laps, before finishing 22nd. In those two races combined, he held 10.6 average running position and it should be better than that even. I think he could score his first career top 10 at this track this weekend and it's kinda suprising that he hasn't already. With that said, I think we forget how young he really is still!

#18-Kyle Busch: Kyle Busch wasn't really that great last season at Atlanta. He came from the back (if I remember right) and never really contended for a top 5 finish. He held 10.8 average running position and 94.4 driver rating. Those are very unlike Kyle Busch numbers, in my honest opinion. Over the past two races at Atlanta, he has compiled 6.5 average finish with 7.9 average running position and 102.0 driver rating. He was really good on these worn-out surfaces in 2019 though. He held 6.6 average finish with 7.6 average running position and 115.1 driver rating. He was ranked inside the top 2 in all three categories!

#19-Martin Truex Jr: I don't know why, but Truex Jr always get a bit disrespected compared to guys like Kyle Busch or Kevin Harvick or even Joey Logano. He's fast every single week, but those guys sometimes seems to get a bit more spotlight. I am not saying he is being overlooked but sometimes I feel like he should be given a bit more praise. In his last 4 races at Altanta, he has compiled 5.5 average finish with 5.7 average running position and 112.6 driver rating. When compared to the competition, I would say that he has been the 3rd-best driver behind Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick. Pretty good company to be in!

#20-Erik Jones: Jones is an interesting fantasy option, as he has some good finishes in his first two races with the #20 team at Atlanta. He has finishes of 11th and 7th, but it seems like the JGR cars are lacking speed so far this season compared to last few seasons. I think as the season goes on, they will gain in that department and we will the results become better and better. Over the past two seasons at Atlanta, he has compiled 9.0 average finish with 14.6 average running position in those two races. He also has ran pretty well on these worn out intermeidate tracks in 2019. He's posted 7.4 average finish and held 10.6 average running position with 94.4 driver rating.

#22-Joey Logano: Joey doesn't have eye popping numbers here at Atlanta like some other tracks, but I think he's sneaky underrated. In 3 of his last 5 races, he has finished either 4th or 6th. He finished 12th and 23rd in the two races that he didn't. Last season was his worst result during that 5-race span. But he also performed very well in that event and led 22 laps and finished inside the top 10 in the first two stages. What happened in the third stage? He was leading the race and then had a loose wheel. He gave up the lead and had to pit. Well, you see where this is going. He pitted and pretty much gave away the win to his teammate, Brad Keselowski!

#24-William Byron: The Hendrick cars are off to a faster start in 2020 than they were last year and that will need to be the case for William's sake as he hasn't been great at Atlanta. In two career starts at Atlanta, he has compiled 17.5 average finish with 20.5 average running position and 56.7 driver rating. Simply put that's not very good! He was a bit better on the worn out intermediate tracks in 2019 though, as he compiled 20.0 average finish with 14.0 average running position. I do believe that he will better this weekend than he was in his first two races at Atlanta!

#48-Jimmie Johnson:  Johnson and Hendrick Motorsports are showing more speed this season (so far) than I thought they would heading into the season! So does that change my expecations for him in 2020? A little, if they can keep unloading fast racecars. With that said, I think expecting Johnson to win in 2020 will be a long shot . But I gotta believe that HMS will do everything in their power to give Johnson a great final season. And having faster racecar will be a great start! In the past two seasons at Atlanta, he has compiled 13.0 average finish with 11.1 average running position and 87.9 driver rating. His numbers are about what I expected them to be. I personally think he will be a top 10 guy at Atlanta, so yeah maybe slightly better than he has been over the last few seasons!

#88-Alex Bowman: Like Jimmie Johnson, we have seen more speed out of the No.88 car than we expected to this early in the season. I think we cannot be too suprised by good performances from the 88 car, though. As he started to come on very strong at end of last season on these intermediate tracks. He struggled at start of the season, but he started to roll after winning at Chicago. That happens to be another worn out intermediate track, which should be a great sign for this weekend's race! After the speed that he showed at Vegas, Cali, and Charlotte I am on the Bowman's bandwagon!

***All stats are from Driver Averages and Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet

Twitter - @JeffNathans18

2020 Fantasy Nascar RaceDay Thoughts (Bristol)

Welcome to Timerssports

RaceDay Thoughts -

Jeff Nathans (@JeffNathans18):

- Short track racing leads to so and so fantasy scores! Be prepared

- A mistake on pit road might take your fantasy pick out of it

- There will be a couple suprises near the front probably

- Ricky Stenhouse Jr and Matt D are two guys to watch as underrated short track guys

Garry Briggs (@Garryy12):

- I like the No.21 car as a legit sleeper

- Kyle Busch will bounce back from his rough night at Charlotte on Thursday

- Despite running well for majority of both Charlotte races, Erik Jones proved me right last week with finishes of 11th and 26th. He will have a strong finish today and prove me right again!

- Enjoy the show!

DGG lineup -

Jeff's lineup- 18,12,14,42

Garry's lineup - 18,14,21,42

Dark Horse -

Jeff's pick - Clint Bowyer

Garry's pick - Ryan Blaney

Winner -

Jeff's Pick - Kyle Busch

Garry's Pick - Kyle Busch

2020 Fantasy Nascar Picks (Bristol)

Welcome to Timerssports

Fantasy Nascar Picks:

DGG Picks -

A:

Starter - Kyle Busch

Bench - Chase Elliott

Reasons - I would kinda like to go against Rowdy this weekend at Bristol, but I will go with the grain here and use Kyle Busch. He has amazing record at Bristol and has finished well this season. He does lack speed, but that might help him some at Bristol, though. We aren't depending on pure speed this weekend at Bristol, as it takes some skill to run well here.

B:

Starters - Clint Bowyer and Matt DiBenedetto

Bench - Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch

Reasons - I doubt I will use Bowyer and DiBenedetto much this season, so I will give them a roll here at Bristol. DiBenedetto ran very well in last summer's race and I am banking on him to run just slightly better than he has this season. He has finished between 6th and 15th in every race this season. Including 4 straight finishes between 9th and 13th, which is the range he will likely finish in. All I want is a top 10 finish here from him and I will be happy. As for Bowyer, he has finished 5 of his last 6 races here in the top 8. Including 4 straight top 8 finishes in each of the past two seasons. I am not using any big names for today's race! 

Ryan Blaney would be an awesome pick, as he has been impressive over the last few seasons here. Aric Almirola is a super underrated pick, too. 

C: 

Starter - Matt Kenseth

Bench - Cole Custer 

Reasons - Young drivers are tough to get a read on here at Bristol and none of them have made any cup starts here. So I am going with the vet and personally we don't really need to save any starts in this grouping tier honestly. So Kenseth it is! 

Fantasy Live - 

Kyle Busch, Matt DiBenedetto, Kurt Busch, Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano

Reasons - I am going with drivers who has ran well this season combined with drivers who has ran well in the past. Kyle Busch has a uncomparable track record and has finished in the top 5 several times this season. Matt D is a underrated pick and has ran well this season. Logano has multiple wins this season and the 4th-best average finish over the past 2 seasons at Bristol. Blaney has had speed this season and been stupid good at this track with the #12 team. I will round out by team with another former winner in Kurt Busch. 

Dark Horse - Ryan Blaney

Winner - Kyle Busch

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Final Rankings (Bristol)

Welcome to Timerssports

Final Rankings -

1. Kevin Harvick
2. Kyle Busch
3. Chase Elliott
4. Brad Keselowski
5. Ryan Blaney
6. Martin Truex Jr
7. Joey Logano
8. Denny Hamlin
9. Jimmie Johnson
10. Clint Bowyer
11. Kurt Busch
12. Erik Jones
13. Aric Almirola
14. Ryan Newman
15. Alex Bowman
16. Matt DiBenedetto
17. William Byron
18. Matt Kenseth
19. Ricky Stenhouse Jr
20. Tyler Reddick
21. Austin Dillon
22. Cole Custer
23. Chris Buescher
24. Chrispher Bell
25. Ty Dillon
26. Michael McDowell
27. John Hunter Nemchek
28. Ryan Preece
29. Corey LaJoie
30. Ross Chastain

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Sleepers & Dark Horses (Bristol)

Welcome to Timerssports

Well, I gotta say that Charlotte went pretty good overall. The scores weren't monsters, but I were very pleased for the most part. But now, we are headed to Bristol Motor Speedway. As a fan, I love this place. It is one of my favorite tracks and I would love to go there to see a race! As a fantasy player? I hate this piece so much. Short tracks are rough to figure out sometimes and we have Bristol in today's race and then Martinville a few races from now. I think the challenge here is that a lot of lesser known drivers tend to run well here, which means it is tougher to figure out fantasy picks. It's Bristol, we have always see some mid-level guys finishing in the top 10 or 15.

What also we tend to see at Bristol? Wrecks and mistakes. Accidents are common, so that's unavoidable. It's a half-mile racetrack, it don't ever take that much to see a wreck here. Mistakes will happen at any track, especially on pitroad. And you don't wanna make a mistake here at Bristol, because you are done if it under green. Pit road penalty here? You are easily losing multiple laps! Alright folks, let's get rolling!

Sleepers -

Matt DiBenedetto - I like Matt as a sleeper pick in today's race at Bristol and his numbers are good here overall. I highly doubt that he will repeat last season's performance, where he led 93 laps and finished 2nd place. In 7 of his last 8 races, he has finished in the top 22. Majority of those races were with BK Racing and Go FAS Racing. Not exactly top tier equipment and even last season's equipment wasn't quite as good. It was good, but he has more support being in the No.21 Wood brothers' car! How has he done this season with the #21 car? In his last four races (since Nascar returned), he has a 14.0 average finish with 14.0 average running position and 80.6 driver rating. What stands out more? He finished 15th and 17th at Charlotte. Why does that stand out? From Las Vegas to Darlington, he has finished every single race between 9th and 13th. I have some high hopes for Matt DiBenedetto!

Ty Dillon - Dillon won't challenge for a top 15 finish (most likely), but he will be a under the radar pick overall. He will have what it takes to be a top 20 finisher, though. He had a rough go at Charlotte, where he finished 25th and 27th. I will give him a pass overall at Charlotte, I won't hold that against him. He is one of those drivers that simply performance better on these shorter tracks than the intermeidate tracks. That has always been the case with him, he doesn't have the equipment to consistently run well on these faster tracks, but a place like Bristol? He will have the chance! In his last three races, he has finished in the top 21. I think he can finish around 20th in today's race!

Dark Horses -

Clint Bowyer - I don't trust Clint Bowyer, but I trust him a lot more at places like Bristol and Martinsville than at most places. Big reason why I will likely use him in my lineups today and then again at Martinsville. He has an impressive record here at Bristol and should be a solid dark horse pick for today's race. Since Nascar returned, he has not finished very well. I mentioned the word ''finished'' well because he actually has been competitive a few times. He finished 22nd at the second Darlington race, but led 71 laps early on. He was strong in that race and then things went south fast later in the race. The following race? He was running around 10th or 11th-ish and then wreck. He finished 39th. He followed that up with a 16th place finish at Charlotte. Can he rebound here at Bristol? I certainly think so! His record with the #14 car is pretty damn good at Bristol! In 5 of his 6 races with SHR, he has finished in the top 8. Including in 4 straight races now. He swept the top 8 in both 2019 and 2018. How many other drivers can say that? Just Clint!

Ryan Blaney - I was dead wrong on Ryan Blaney for last Sunday's Coke 600 and went on to sweep the top 5 in both races at Charlotte. Good news? He heads to a great track at Bristol. Since joining the #12 team, he has been extremely competitive! In his first three starts (of his 4 races with the #12 team), he has led at least 100 laps. In his last 5 races, he has posted 5.6 average running position (ranked 1st) and 104.3 driver rating (ranked 3rd in series). In his most recent race, he might had posted his least impressive performance since joining the #12 team. Which is saying something, since he still finished 10th and posted 95.3 driver rating. I really love what Ryan brings to the table this weekend at Bristol!

***All stats are from DriverAverages.com and FRCS.PRO

Email - GarryBriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Preview (Bristol)

Welcome to Timerssports

Fantasy Nascar Preview -

#1-Kurt Busch: Kurt has been great in his career at Bristol and starting to return (somewhat) to form here at this place. In 4 of his last 5 races here, he has finished 9th or better. In his last three races here, he has compiled 4.0 average finish with 8.3 average running position and 101.6 driver rating. The former 6-time winner at Bristol has posted some pretty good numbers over the last few years and he should be due for another top 10 finish, if recent history has anything to say about it. I cannot say that he has been a consistent driver here in the 2020 season, but he is usually a pretty ''safe'' option to go with.

#2-Brad Keselowski: Aside from the 2014 and 2015 seasons, Brad Keselowski isn't usually heavily on my radar. That's not a knock on Brad Keselowski because he's typically has a shot at a top 5 finish and more! Brad is a consistent driver, but he never been one of my ''go to guys'' in fantasy nascar. So if I ever don't sound super high on Brad, then more because personal baised showing than disrespect for him. And 9 times out of time, I will have him at least in my top 10. As for Bristol? Well he hasn't gotten many good finishes lately at this track. For his career, he has average finish of 17.3. In 7 of his last 8 races here, he has finished 16th or worse. No, that's not typo! Were all of those races his fault? Nope! Good news? He was very competitive in last season's races at Bristol. He led laps in both races and held over 100.0 driver rating. In two races in 2019 at Bristol, he compiled 10.5 average finish with 6.2 average running position and 107.2 driver rating. His average running position ranked 2nd in the series and his driver rating ranked 3rd in the series in 2019. It also should be noted that he finished 3rd in his most recent race here, in that event he led 92 laps and held 114.0 driver rating.

#3-Austin Dillon: Austin Dillon hasn't really impressed here in 2020 so far and Bristol isn't a place that will likely change, either. He will be at best a mid-teen guy. History says that this season says that, too. At Bristol, he only has two top 10 finishes and both races he performed really well at Bristol. When his performance hasn't shown top 10 speed, he basically has a zero chance of finishing in the top 10. I highly doutbt that he will show enough to be a top 10 contender here at Bristol. However, in 3 of his last 4 races he has finished 13th-15th place. Not great, but that pretty much his upside here. If you pick him, then expect nothing better than a top 15 finish. Unless, we see a messy race with a lot of wreck races. Even then will he make it through? That's anyone's guess!

#4-Kevin Harvick: Harvick has ran really well during the 2020 season and he has ran well here at Bristol in the past. From 2015 to 2018 (7 races), he finished 7 straight races in the top 10. Then came the 2019 (last season), where he had two rough showings. In the spring's race, he had a rough go and finished 13th. He had to do a lap through penalty, after failing inspection three times. At Bristol, you can lose laps real fast. Luckily he only lost one lap. His problems didn't stop there, as not much later he had to pit for a loose wheel. At one point, Harvick was 4 laps down and somehow managed to finish on the lead lap. In the summer's race, he had a clutch issue and finished 39th place. If things went his way, he probably would had a chance at a top 5. His car in both were bad fast, just like he has been all of this season and pretty much since he stepped inside of the #4 car at SHR!

#9-Chase Elliott: In general, I believe that Elliott is disrespected here at Bristol. If you ask your average fan, who's your pick to win at Bristol (without being baised of course) and I bet none of them would pick Chase Elliott. Simply because he isn't hyped up here at Bristol and one of the reasons because he has no wins here. He does supports a 11.5 career average finish in 8 career starts. He also is riding a 3-race top 11 streak at the track. In his last three races, he has finishes of 5th,11th and 3rd. In last season's event here, he ended up in 5th place. Why are the past three races so important (other than being relvant as the most recent races here)? Well, he has led 30 or more laps in each of those races. He also has posted a driver rating above 120.0 in two of those races. For those at home, a driver rating above 120 is considered elite!

#10-Aric Almirola: Aric is off a quietly real nice start to the 2020 season and not enough people have given him much love. We don't typically hear his name mention during races that much, but for him that's a good thing commonly. Typically, if we hear his name then it's a bad sign! Not that he's always running respectable when he isn't mention, but if he's mentioned then it's probably bad. I don't even want to discuss his Bristol numbers because they has been that bad overall. For his career, his average finish is 24th place. He has put together just one top 20 finish in his last 6 races and just 2 top 20 finishes in his last 8 races and just 7 Top 15 finishes in 21 career starts. And this is coming from a guy that's on the record saying (around 2015-ish I wanna say - I remember Garry quoting it in one of his posts) that's Bristol is his favorite racetrack in the cup series! After his most recent numbers, I wonder if that true holds true for Aric?

#11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin isn't the first driver that you think of when we come to Bristol Motor Speedway, but his numbers overall are pretty underrated here and has ran well over the last few seasons here. In his last 7 races here, he has compiled 7 straight top 14 finishes. With back-to-back top 5 finishes in two races during the 2019 season. In fact 4 of those 7 races has resulted in a top 5 finish. With 3 of his last 5 races here also resulting in a top 5 finish! In last summer's race, he led 79 laps on his way to a win from the pole. Not gonna lie, I actually forgot that he won here last season at Bristol. Not often am I caught off suprise with a driver. During the 2019 season, he compiled 3.0 average finish with 9.8 average running position and 102.0 driver rating.

#12-Ryan Blaney: I think the biggest problem with Ryan Blaney is his inconsistency on a weekly basis. He is very tough to trust, but I feel most comfortable with him at his best tracks and Bristol is exactly that. He is a stud here at Bristol and should be considered a favorite. He not only run well here at Bristol, but he typically will lead some laps at some point! What stands out the most? When he leads lap here, there's in the bunches, too. In 3 of his last 4 races (every race with the #12 team), he has lead 100 or more laps. In fact, last summer's race is the first time that he didn't lead a single lap at Bristol since joining the #12 team. Currently, Ryan is a on 3-race top 10 streak with finishes of 10th, 7th and 5th. If you are looking for a strong dark horse pick, then Blaney might be good as any pick to go with!

#14-Clint Bowyer: Clint is another underrated driver here at Bristol and will be on my radar! He's a machine at this place and he has always ran better these short tracks and shorter flat tracks, honestly. He has never been an intermediate track guy, anyways. In 7 of his last 9 races, he has finished in the top 10. In his last 16 races, he has posted 10 top 10 finishes. And 13 of his last 16 races has ended inside the top 15! In his last 4 races here, he has compiled 7.0 average finish with 8.3 average running position and 101.7 driver rating. Heading into the season, Bristol were one of the tracks that I was planning to use him on. With the new schedule, it's probably more important than before to try to squeeze some value out of him here at Bristol!

#18-Kyle Busch: Kyle Busch to many is considered the master of Bristol. He was unstoppable here for awhile, then he was bad here a few races after the repave prior to the 2013 season and now he back to being one of the best in the series! From 2014 to 2017 (6 races), he had just one finish better than 29th place and that was 8th place finish. But he has returned to form and has looked awesome lately at the track. In his last 5 races here, he has scored 3 wins and additional top 5 finish during that span. I view Kyle as one of the heavy favorites here at Bristol!

#19-Martin Truex Jr: If Truex Jr has a weakness, it would be at places like Bristol. He's obviously a superstar on those intermediate tracks, but he more human at these shorter tracks. And his record at Bristol isn't great, even though it isn't the worst I ever seen. He was competitive in last summer's race and led 52 laps on his way to a 13th place finish. However, that 13th place finish is his best finish in his the last 8 races at the track. In fact, he has just one top 10 finish in his last 15 races here. In those 15 races, he has just 5 top 15 finishes. That's only 30% of the time. In 28 career starts, he has just three top 10 finishes. Folks, it's not luck that he has questionable numbers at Bristol. He just not that good here at Bristol. A few years? Okay that could be luck, but 14 seasons of being just okay is a trend. And trends of that long aren't typically broken overnight. I wouldn't consider him as one of the favorites to win, but you never know with Martin Truex Jr!

#20-Erik Jones: Erik Jones has basically been top 5 or bust here at Bristol, so far in his cup career. In 6 career starts, he has 2 top 5 finishes with 4 finishes of 17th or worse. Even worse? He has 3 finishes outside of the top 20 in those 6 career starts. In 2019, he compiled 23.0 average finish with 15.0 average running position and 77.4 driver rating. Depsite finishing 22nd and 24th in those two races during the 2019 season, he happen to lead in both races. That came a bit of a suprise to me. Even though, his overall performance was pretty meh to me. I am not very high here on Erik Jones and honestly I been kinda low on him a lot so far in the 2020 season.

#22-Joey Logano: Logano is a former multiple time winner here at Bristol and probably one of the safer fantasy options in the field for Sunday's race. In his last 11 races here, he has compiled 8 top 10 finishes overall. In his last 4 races here, he has posted 3 top 9 finishes. During those 4 races, he has compiled 9.5 average finish with 11.2 average running position and 103.8 driver rating. While his numbers aren't overly impressive by any means, he is having a pretty good season in 2020. I think his speed so far in 2020 makes him a solid option in all fantasy formats.

#24-Wiliam Byron: I am a lot higher on Byron on the intermediate tracks than I am on any other kind of tracks. I think he is a working progress here at Bristol and at best will likely be a mid-teen driver. How has he done so far at Bristol in his short cup career? Not pretty so far! In 4 career starts, he has a career-best finish of 16th and no driver rating above 70.0. Folks, if your driver rating is in the 60s and you finished on the lead lap in each race, then you have some problems on your hands. Exactly what Byron has on his hands here at Bristol. In 4 career races, he has compiled 19.5 average finish with 17.7 average running position and 64.8 driver rating. William Byron isn't on my radar this weekend!

#48-Jimmie Johnson: Johnson has been okay lately at Bristol and honestly his best asset lately has been his consistency at the track. In his last 7 races, he has finished 11th or better in six of those races. In fact, he had 6 straight top 11 finishes, prior to finishing 19th in his most recent race here in last summer's race. Believe it or not, he was a pretty solid performer in 2017 and 2018 at Bristol. His numbers are actually pretty good overall. In 4 races (during the 2017 and 2018 seasons), he held a series-leading 6.0 average finish (among drivers that started all 4 races) with 8.1 average running position (2nd to only Joey Logano) and a series-leading 106.0 driver rating. He was not only good in those 4 races, but he might have been the best driver in the series. And the numbers say he was!

#88-Alex Bowman: Bowman was alright in his first full-time season with the #88 team, but he took a step back in year number 2. In 2019, he had finishes of 23rd and 15th. He wasn't great in either race overall. Even though, he was better in the summer race than he was in the spring's race. There isn't a lot to talk about with him here at Bristol, honestly. He has been fast in 2020, but like his teammates I am a lot higher on him on the intermediate tracks. I think Bristol will be a bit of a rougher race for Bristol overall. I wouldn't rule out a top 15 finish (probably the most likely result) for him on Sunday. There will be plenty of other places to use Alex that are much more appealing than at a track like Bristol!

***All stats are from Driver Averages and FCRS.PRO

Twitter - @JeffNathans18

2020 Fantasy Nascar RaceDay Thoughts (Charlotte 1)

Welcome to Timerssports

RaceDay Thoughts -

Jeff Nathans (@JeffNathans18):

- It's gonna be a long freaking race

- The big time drivers will be at the front at some point, bank on it!

- HMS cars has been really good over the past couple seasons here at Charlotte

- Grab some beer and enjoy the show, folks

Garry Briggs (@Garryy12):

- The Chevys were fast in qualifying

- Bold prediction here: William Byron has strong run, comes up short in career win No.1

- I am not high on a few drivers and they include: Ryan Blaney and Erik Jones.

- Have fun for 600 miles

DGG Picks -

Jeff's lineup - 19,1,88,41

Garry's lineup - 19,88,48,41

Dark Horse -

Jeff's Pick - Jimmie Johnson

Garry's Pick - Alex Bowman

Winner -

Jeff's Pick - Martin Truex Jr

Garry's Pick - Martin Truex Jr

2020 Fantasy Nascar Picks (Charlotte)

Welcome to Timerssports

Fantasy Nascar DGG Picks -

A:

Starter - Martin Truex Jr

Bench - Denny Hamlin

Reasons - I think Truex Jr is still the best driver in the field entering tonight's race. Seems like the chevys were faster in qualifying, but I don't think they will all race well. I believe the JGR cars will on the other hand and the No.19 car could be the man to beat (like many times he is.)

B:

Starters - Jimmie Johnson and Alex Bowman

Bench - William Byron and Aric Almirola

Reasons - I lost 10 bonus points when I decided to put the No.24 car in for the No.1 car on Saturday morning. That was a gut wrenching blow, but I will be fine. I like my options in B. I think the 48 is a lock for me and it's close between Bowman/Byron. I went with Bowman based on he has been quicker in 2020 so far.

C:

Starter - Tyler Reddick

Bench - Cole Custer

Reasons - I wanted to go with Custer in tonight's race, but man I don't know anymore. He has lacked speed this season and the SHR cars were pretty slow in qualifying. I am sure that they will go to the front, but Custer will likely be bringing up the rear among those 4 cars.

Slingshot Game - 4,10,21,41 and 21

Reasons - I fully expect the Fords to race better than they qualified, so I am taking advantage of most o them qualifying at the back. Two of them added value by having issues in qualifying. And in the slingshot game, you typically want drivers who start in the back. And personally, I don't think we will see the same drivers dominate up front all night long. I think the chevy will lead early, then I see some of these Fords and Gibbs cars making their way to the lead later on.

Fantasy Live - Jimmie Johnson, Chase Elliott, Martin Truex Jr, Kevin Harvick, Tyler Reddick and Kyle Busch (Garage)

Reasons - I am going to start my lineup with Hendrick power with Johnson and Elliott. Both drivers has been very fast this season and I think they will have speed tonight, too. My third driver will be the best driver in the series here at Charlotte in Martin Truex Jr. He has been very fast often in 2020! Then I will round out my lineup with Tyler Reddick and Kyle Busch.

Dark Horse - Jimmie Johnson

Winner - Martin Truex Jr

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Longshot Picks (Charlotte)

Welcome to Timerssports

I hate late races because I usually wake up pretty early and that makes for a very long day. It also gives me plenty of time to write up articles for the race. Downside? What happens when I get it all down before 8 in the morning? Yeah that sucks! Instead of laying around all day, I am gonna use this time to bring some nmatieral to this website. So I am gonna try out a brand new kind of post. As it is titled, this article will be more focused on those hidden gems deeper in the field. In some games, they will not be effective fantasy options. In other games, they will be very sneaky picks that you probably haven't considered. Below are three longshot picks that I like for tonight's race! Enjoy!

Longspot Picks -

Bubba Wallace Jr - This might be the first time that I have ever wrote about Bubba in one of my posts, honestly. He really only has one bad finish this season and that was 27th at Cali. He finished 15th at Daytona, 6th(!) at Las Vegas, 19th at Phoenix, then he finished 21st and 16th at Darlington. Of all those races, the one that stands out the most is his 6th place run at Las Vegas! It is the only other 1.5 mile track that we went to this season, so far. Let's be clear that he wasn't a top 10 car or close to it. He held 22.2 average running position and 65.0 driver rating. That isn't good, my friends. But a ARP of 22 is probably in the area where he needs to be to score a top 20 finish. Look at most of his finishes in 2020? Majority of them are between 15th and 21st. What does that tell you? That where he would had likely finished, if that late caution didn't come out at Las Vegas.

Ty Dillon - Ty Dillon is a very interesting pick for tonight's race. He had tough races at Daytona (30th) and Cali (26th), but in the other four races he has finished between 10th and 19th. His best finish this season has been at the only other 1.5 mile track of Las Vegas. At Las Vegas, he held 20.1 ARP and 68.7 driver rating. Those are little better than what Bubba Wallace Jr posted, but they are in the same range pretty much for the race. Both took advantage of that final caution to get some track position in the end. Much like Bubba, he also has been a consistent finisher this season. There's a lot to like about Ty Dillon. He never get much attention as his brother does, but Ty is doing dang fine in lesser equipment.

Chris Buescher - Okay, he had a rough two races at Darlington, where he had finishes of 23rd and 32nd. With that said, he started off the season with 4 straight top 17 finishes. And he was a consistently getting better finishes the last few years than his equipment should had. We call that talent in the Nascar world. With that said, he did struggle at Darlington. However, some drivers just aren't very good at Darlington or maybe the team just didn't have the right setups. Regardless of the case, he's better than that. And he will have a chance to prove that in tonight's race. Earlier this season, he was pretty good at the only other 1.5 mile track. At Las Vegas, he was competitive and held 18.9 average running position and 71.7 driver rating. I think he can squeeze a top 20 finish out tonight and be a really effective fantasy option in some formats!

**All stats are from DriverAverages.com and FRCS.PRO

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar False Alarms & Last Calls (Charlotte)

Welcome to Timerssports

It was real nice to get the Nascar season back underway at Darlington last weekend! And I am even more excited about tonight's race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. I am also super excited about this new weekly article I am introducing here at Charlotte. Just before the shutdown, I wrote a small piece called, ''Fantasy Nascar False Alarms'' and it was a pretty big hit. Orginally, I had it called False Alarms and Last Calls. I kinda like the idea of making it a combo article! I think later in the season, I will make these seperate articles, though.

False Alarms is pretty much drivers that I am not very high on, despite them being somewhat a popular fantasy option. As for last calls, it is kinda the opposite. It is drivers who aren't really getting a lot of attention, but could have a chance to make an impact. That's pretty much what this post will consist of for the most part!

False Alarms -

Ryan Blaney - I am not sure why Blaney got some much love last week at Darlington and I am not sure why he is getting so much love here at Charlotte. I am not high on him and that's what my gut says. I highly doubt that I will be saying, ''damn I wish I had Ryan Blaney in my lineup'' during tonight's race. My method with Blaney always has been using him at his best tracks and avoiding him everywhere else. Charlotte isn't one of his best tracks, either. Being honest, he did run well last season at Charlotte. He didn't run great, but he was in it during both races. Ryan's biggest problem? He doesn't know how to finish races and that will make him a liability. He's in my opinion is a young Kasey Kahne. Fan girls love him, he's a hyped up young gun and super inconsistent. Just like Kasey, he shown flashes to be the next big thing and at same time shown us that he can be trusted much as JPM around jet driers! Could he go out there and be a top 5 driver in tonight's race? You bet! Could he go out there and finish dead last? You bet! He is really one of more interesting fantasy options for tonight's race!

Erik Jones - After a tough start to the season, he finally broke through after the break and post a pair of top 10 finishes at Darlington. I think that's great for him, but I am not high on him at Charlotte. He hasn't faired too well since his debut race, when he finished 7th in the #77 car. In his last three races here, he has finished 17th, 19th and 40th. In 2018, he probably had his best race and finished 17th. Not only his best finish, but his in-race performance as well. I have no doubt that Erik Jones can be a top 10 driver in tonight's race, but I also don't have a great feeling about him, either. I think that's the biggest reason for him to land on this list. Sometimes, you just have a bad feeling about a driver and Erik Jones happens to one of those drivers.

Last Calls -

Aric Almirola - If you are looking for a driver under the radar and could score a top 10 finish? Aric Almirola might be your man! Aric has performed really well this season and been a driver that has consistently unloaded fast during the 2020 season. I noticed earlier in the season, when there were practices going on. At Darlington, he posted finishes of 12th and 7th. Overall, he has finished 4 straight races in the top 12. Kinda like start of last season, he started off the year really consistent before falling off in the warmer months. At Charlotte, he has posted finishes of 11th and 13th in his first two starts with the #10 team. Aric just screams 8th-12th place finish for tonight's race. I don't know about you, but I would be very happy with that kinda outcome from him!

William Byron - William Byron is a very interesting fantasy option for tonight's race. He was really fast at Las Vegas, but kinda was meh at Cali. The speed returned in last Sunday's race at Darlington, but was mainly a mid-teen driver at Darlington on Wednesday. Overall, he has been up and down. Because of that, he has fallen off the radar. I don't love him much as I did entering last weekend's race, but he could be a very impactable option in tonight's race. Something that we forget about is that he was a strong driver in last season's race. Not really a contender for the win, but he did lead 31 laps on his way to a 9th place finish. His 101.3 driver rating kinda backs up that 9th place finish as well. At times in 2020, he has shown legit speed from that #24 car. Question is will he have the speed that he shown last Sunday or on Wednesday? If he has the speed that he showed last Sunday, then he might just be a key piece to someone's fantasy lineup!

***All stats from DriverAverages.com

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Sleepers & Dark Horses (Charlotte)

Welcome to Timerssports

I gotta say that it was a rough stay for your buddy, Garry at Darlington overall! I hate that stupid track, as luck never seem to be on my side there. Even though, my picks faired a lot better during Wednesday's race. I am looking forward to some racing outside of the state of South Carolina! And that's exactly what we are doing this Sunday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway. We will see two cup races at Charlotte, one on Sunday and another one on Wednesday. Shall we get started? Let's roll!

Sleepers -

Michael McDowell - I like Michael a lot better than probably most do and I think most people will be shocked at his decent numbers. For his equipment, I am kinda impressed. In 2020, he has not finished worse than 23rd (outside of Las Vegas). At Darlington, he had a pair of finishes of 17th and 23rd. Not great, but not too shabby, either. How has he done at Charlotte recently? Well in his last two races, he has finishes of 22nd and 18th. Again, not great but he will be a nice underrated option if he can repeat these kind of numbers at the 600.

Matt DiBenedetto - The driver of the No.21 car has been pretty impressive early on in the 2020 season and honestly it has gone unnoticed for the most part. In 6 races this season, his worst result has been in the season's opener at Daytona. He finished 19th in that event. Since then? He has no finishes worse than 14th place and has two top 10 finishes in his last five races. I know that we like to look at past season's data a lot, but we cannot ignore what happening this season and DiBenedetto has done a lot good for us! I bet he can score another top 15 finish on Sunday and maybe even a top 10 finish!

Dark Horses -

Alex Bowman - Looking back at other intermeidate tracks, I think a lot about the Hendrick cars and the speed they showed. I thought that they had speed at Darlington, but more so on Sunday than Wednesday. We never saw Johnson or Byron drive into the top 5, I think where they finished were their highest positions of the event on Wednesday. Bowman has been the best HMS as a whole in 2020 though and he's someone who could go to victory lane again and it will likely be on an intermediate track. Charlotte could be a track that happens on, too. He has performed well lately at Charlotte! He has finished 7th and 9th in his only two starts, since joining the 88 team full-time in 2018. I personally think he could make it 3 for 3 on Sunday's night!

Jimmie Johnson - I know it looks like I am favoriting the Hendrick bunch in my posts this season (especially as dark horses), but they just been really good! And when drivers are performing really well, it makes it so much easier to write about them! For example, through 6 races: Jimmie Johnson has the 7th-best driver in the series and Alex Bowman has the 3rd-best driver rating in the series! On top of being strong here in 2020, Jimmie Johnson has been coming on strong at Charlotte, too. In 5 of his last 6 races at Charlotte, he has finished in the top 8. He has clearly fallen off from his prime at Charlotte, but those are some pretty damn good numbers, though. Currently, he's riding a 3-race top 10 streak at the track. Based on his history at the track and current seasonal's data, I think he's good for a top 10 finish with some obvious upside as well.

**All stats from DriverAverages.com

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Rankings (Charlotte 1)

Welcome to Timerssports

Rankings -

1. Martin Truex Jr
2. Kyle Busch
3. Kevin Harvick
4. Joey Logano
5. Chase Elliott
6. Brad Keselowski
7. Denny Hamlin
8. Erik Jones
9. Jimmie Johnson
10. Alex Bowman
11. Kurt Busch
12. William Byron
13. Ryan Blaney
14. Aric Almirola
15. Ryan Newman
16. Clint Bowyer
17. Matt Kenseth
18. Tyler Reddick
19. Matt Dibenedetto
20. Austin Dillon
21. Chris Buescher
22. Chrisopher Bell
23. Cole Custer
24. Ty Dillon
25. Ricky Stenhouse Jr
26. Ryan Preece
27. John Hunter Nemchek
28. Michael McDowell
29. Corey LaJoie
30. Daniel Suarez

Twitter - @MattAleza

2020 Fantasy Nascar Preview (Charlotte)

Welcome to Timerssports

Fantasy Nascar Preview -

#1-Kurt Busch: Kurt Busch has an interesting record of late at Charlotte. In 7 of his last 9 races here, he has finished in the top 11. Including 5 of his last 8 races ending in the top 8. The bad news? 2 of his last three races here has ended in 22nd or worse. In his last 4 races overall, he has compiled 15.8 average finish with 9.9 aveage running position and 89.8 driver rating. He was strong in spring 2017 and spring 2018. He finished 6th and 8th in those races! How did he do in spring 2019? He posted 14.3 average running position and held 69.3 driver rating. Not great numbers, but the fact that he finished 27th and still held 14.3 average running position is very impressive.

#2-Brad Keselowski: Keselowski always will have a chance to be a great option here at Charlotte, but his numbers don't scream consistently when looking at them as a whole, despite an 13.3 career average finish (which isn't too bad.) From 2015 to 2016 (4 race span), he posted 4 straight top 10 finishes. Other than that, only one time in his career has he finished back-to-back races in the top 10 at Charlotte! In his last 4 races here, he has posted finishes of 19th, 4th, 15th and 39th. So yes, he's all over the board with his finishes. Good news? His last finish here was 19th, so he could be due for at least a top 10 finish. More good news? Despite finishing 19th in last spring's race, he led 76 laps and first 1st in both stage 1 and 2! Combine that with the speed of these Penske cars in 2020 and you just might have a really good formula for that #2 car!

#3-Austin Dillon: Many people drag Austin Dillon for winning on fuel milage at the Coke 600 in 2017 and many say it one of the luckiest wins in recent memory. I agree, he didn't have a car that ''should'' had won! With that said, most folks forget that he was competitive in that race (and was competitive often in 2017) and had a legit top 10 car for that event. Hell, he finished 7th in stage 2 and held 10.2 average running position and 103.2 driver rating. Some will say, ''well those numbers are inflated because of fuel milage!'' Yeah, but there 600 miles in that event. And how long did fuel milage come into play? Maybe the last 20 laps or so? You see my point here. He wasn't a top 5 contender, but he wasn't some scrub in that race riding in the mid-teens or 20s. With that said, it's his only good finish in his last 5 races at Charlotte. In his last 5 races here, he has finishes of 34th, 34th, 16th, 1st and 32nd. Based how he has ran in 2020, I say he's at best a mid-teen guy. I don't expect a lot noise from Austin Dillon and I would avoid him here, until at least the second Charlotte race!

#4-Kevin Harvick: I love Kevin Harvick here at Charlotte, even though his last win came in October 2014! With that said, he has finished 10th or worse in 3 of the last 5 races here. With that said, 2 of those 3 races ended with a blown engine and an indicent. The other race? He finished 10th, after being a top 5 contender in the first two stages. That race was the most recent race here. He also was very good in 2017 and led a career-high 149 laps in the fall's race (when there were two races still) and another 25 laps in the spring's race. It also should be noted that he has posted a driver rating above 100 in every single race since joining SHR, minus the two races that he failed to finish. In 2019, he posted his lowest driver rating (when he finished on the lead lap) since joining the #4 team at Charlotte.

#6-Ryan Newman: One of the feel good stories of 2020 is Ryan Newman coming back from that scary wreck back at Daytona! It's simply good to see Ryan back at the racetrack! Just like most places that we go to, Ryan is a consistent driver overall. In 10 of his last 12 races here at Charlotte, he has finished 16th or better. In the two races that he didn't, he failed to finish the race. In more recent history, he has finished 3 of his last 5 races in 16th, 9th and 4th. In his first start with the #6 team, he ended up finishing 16th and posted 69.2 driver rating.

#9-Chase Elliott: Elliott should be considered a real threat here at Charlotte, as he has compiled 3 straight top 11 finishes. Including top 5 finishes in his past two of three races. Back in 2016, he finished 33rd but led over 100 laps in the fall's event. Overall in 6 career starts (since his rookie year, excluding his first start in 2015 - before his rookie year), he has finished 11th or better four times already. In his last three starts, he has compiled 5.7 average finish with 7.6 average running position and 106.6 driver rating. How does he stack up to the competition in those 3 races? He ranked 2nd in average finish, 2nd in average running position and 4th in driver rating in the series overall. Hard to hate those numbers!

#10-Aric Almirola: Aric Almirola has been a hit or miss driver since joining SHR! He always have the chance to run well, but sometimes he just fade and becomes non-competitive. Other times? He's in the top 10 all night long and finishes there. It's tough to get a good read on him, even when he has a fast car. How has he fair at Charlotte? In his career, he has only posted one career top 10 finish and that was in 2015 when he finished 10th. Since joining Stewart Haas (two seasons ago - 2 races at Charlotte), he has posted finishes of 11th and 13th. He was more competitive in the first race than the second race. In those two races, he has compiled 12.0 average finish with 11.3 average running position and 91.2 driver rating. It also should be noted that he held 5.5 average start position in those race, so starting up front has also been a blessing for him, too. Not that it translated to him finishing up front, though. Overall, Aric has been good at Charlotte. Not great, but better than he has most of his career here.

#11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin has has a pretty good career record here at Charlotte! For his career, he has a 11.4 career average finish overall. That's impressive any way you want to slice it, but he has been hit or miss in the finish department over the last few seasons. He finished 17th in last season's race here at Charlotte, but prior to that he has finished 3 straight races in the top 5. Overall in the last 4 races, he has compiled 7.3 average finish with 8.7 average running position and 104.8 driver rating. He ranked 2nd, 2nd and T-3rd in the series among those 4 races in the series. I would say that last season's race was his worst race by far of the four races. If you exclude the 2014 race, it might have been his worst race since the 2010 spring's race here. And he wasn't horrible in 2019's race by any means honestly. He finished 17th, while holding 12.6 average running posiiton and 88.7 driver rating. Not great, but I seen much worse numbers by drivers in similar equipment and it was only one race, too.

#12-Ryan Blaney: We talk about how talented Ryan Blaney is and sometimes we forget just how inconsistent he is. In fact, I mentioned it on a fantasy racing forum earlier this season. Just before the race, someone had a concerned about starting Johnson. And I raised the quesition, what makes Ryan Blaney any less risky? Valid question. Ironically, Johnson ended up in the top 10 in that race and Ryan Blaney had more bad luck. I guess my point is Blaney is just one of those guys that has huge upside but just as much risk. So as usual, it is tough to get a good read on him overall. Charlotte has been no exceptation, either. In his career at Charlotte, he has no finish better than 8th and that's his sole top 10 finish in 8 starts. In fact, he has no finish better than 13th and that 13th place finish came in the most recent race here. He was top 10 good in the first two stages, before finishing a misleading 13th place finish. Two seasons ago, he was top 5 good before having a engine let go. So he has been strong in the past at Charlotte and has had speed on the intermediate tracks in 2020. Really fast overall!

#18-Kyle Busch: Rowdy is one of the best drivers in the series. And that has been the case at Charlotte in the past, too. In 30 career starts, he has compiled 12.9 average finish. In the last 5 races here, he has finished 6th or better in 4 of those races. Over the past two seasons, he has posted finishes of 1st and 3rd. Back in 2018, he led 377 laps from the pole on his way to victory lane. In last season's race, he led 79 laps on his way to a 3rd place finish. In the most recent spring race (prior to those two races), he ended up finishing 2nd place. He has been so-so on the intermediate tracks in 2020. So I do have questions, but he is a super talented driver so I am not too worried about him.

#19-Martin Truex Jr: Truex Jr has had a lot of bad luck this season and some of that has been his pit crew. And others? Well it has happened on the racetrack. The one consistent thing: The #19 car has consistent been the fastest JGR car and a threat for a win. Truex Jr always has seemed like a driver to be that will have some rotten lucks for unfair strenches. He has been very competitive in 2020, but he just hasn't had the results to show for a whole lot, sadly. Charlotte has been a great track for Truex Jr! How great? He has finished in the top 5 in 7 of his last 8 races here. In 6 of those 8 races, he has finished inside the top 3! Even better? He has finished 1st, 2nd, 1st and 3rd in his last three starts at this track overall. He will be tough to beat here at Charlotte!

#20-Erik Jones: Jones hasn't really impressed so far this season overall and I cannot say that I am super high on Jones as of right now. He finished 7th in his first career start at this racetrack, but has finished worse with each passing start. Good news for him at Charlotte? He finished dead last in his most recent start at this track! So that trend will change in 2020. Bad news? He hasn't looked good early in the season and probably been the worst JGR car in terms of speed. I think Jones' most realistic finish range is probably just outside of the top 10, but he does the upside to be a high-single digit finisher.

#22-Joey Logano: Logano has won multiple times in 2020 and he will look to keep things rolling here at Charlotte. A track where he has found success in the past. Problem? He has finished outside of the top 20 in 4 of his last 5 races at Charlotte. Good news? He finished 2nd in last season's race here and has shown speed in pretty much every race here in the 2020 season. I don't have a lot to say about Joey Logano, but at the very least he will have a chance to contend for a top 10 finish.

#24-William Byron: I have been fairly high on the HMS cars since they have unloaded in the second race of the season, so I will keep hyping that train this weekend at Charlotte. I probably like Byron more than most do and a lot of that is because how he has performed on the intermediate tracks in 2020. Especially the Las Vegas' race. I would put the most weight into that race, if I were looking at data! Not the ideal 1.5 mile track to look at, but it's better than nothing. I think he will be a lot stronger on this type of track than those flat tracks!

#48-Jimmie Johnson: Heading into the 2020 season, I was not very high on Jimmie Johnson. He has changed my mind some, but I would be suprised if he ended winning a race in 2020. He's somewhere between elite and just good enough. He won't lead a lot of laps at the front, but probably has a chance to be top 10 good most weekend. Kinda what I am expecting out of him here at Charlotte. And he has been very good at Charlotte in his career and most recently. In 5 of his last 6 races here, he has finished in the top 8. He last won here in 2016 and followed it up with a 17th place finish in 2017 spring's race. Since then? He has finished of 8th, 5th and 7th. On top of that, the HMS cars were really strong at places like Las Vegas and Cali. Again, not the perfect places to look at, but it's something.

#88-Alex Bowman: Like his teammates, I think they will be better than most people will give them credit for. These Hendrick cars has been impressive at times in 2020 and I think they can impress once again here at Charlotte. Bowman was strong at Las Vegas and then out did that by winning at Cali. And he was not just strong, but probably the best driver in the field that day. It went Bowman/Blaney, then a gap to the field. And some could make the case that he would had won the Las Vegas' race, if that race went green to the finish. Keep your eyes on the #88 car this weekend!

**All stats from DriverAverages and FRCS.PRO

Twitter - @JeffNathans18

2020 Fantasy Nascar RaceDay Thoughts (Darlington 1)

Welcome to Timerssports

RaceDay Thoughts -

Jeff Nathans (@JeffNathans18):

- Who the heck knows what will happen

- Erik Jones struggled in the first 4 races, but has a great record at Darlington. I am interested in which side prevails in that. Fantasy players are either gonna be very happy they picked him or very happy that they didn't.

- I am very low on Ryan Blaney

- Kevin Harvick goes 5 for 5 on top 10 finishes in 2020

Matt Aleza (@MattAleza):

- I think HMS will have two drivers or more in the top 10 when the checkers waves. Their speed in 2020 + their performance in last season's race = Good fantasy vibes

- Aric Almirola is someone i have my eyes on. He could be top 10 guy or someone who finishes somewhere in the high teens. That been his kinda of year so far

-Will Truex Jr bad luck follow him to Darlington? Great question, we will find out

- Enjoy some racing today

DGG Picks:

Jeff's lineup - 4,1,48,42

Matt's lineup - 22,1,20,42

Dark Horse:

Jeff's Pick - William Byron

Matt's Pick - Kurt Busch

Winner -

Jeff's Pick - Kevin Harvick

Matt's Pick - Joey Logano

2020 Fantasy Nascar Picks (Darlington 1)

Welcome to Timerssports

Fantasy Nascar Picks -

DGG Picks -

Starter - Martin Truex Jr

Bench - Kevin Harvick

Reasons - I have a strong gut feeling about Martin Truex Jr this weekend. Maybe he's just due for some good luck after the last few Darlington races or after all the rotten luck in the first 4 races? I also factored in all the speed the #19 car had before the break. It doesn't mean it will automatically translate, but I am keeping it in mind. With that said, i love my bench driver in Kevin Harvick. He's probably the safest option to go with, as he just get consistent good finishes overall. Not just good finishes, but typically will find himself in the top 5 at some point. If he's strong in Sunday's race, he will be in my lineup again in a few days!

B:

Starters - Jimmie Johnson, Kurt Busch

Bench - William Byron and Chris Buescher

Reasons - Erik Jones seem to be a popular pick within the fantasy nascar community and why shouldn't he be with his impressive Darlington record? With that said, he didn't performed well before the break. That's the reason I am leaving him off for this race. Runs well on Sunday, then I will plug him in a few days. As for my picks, I am most likely starting Johnson and Kurt Busch. Johnson was strong before the break and ran well at Darlington in last season's race. In fact, the HMS cars were all very good in that race. Yet, none of them came away with a top 10 finish. I will pair him with Kurt Busch. A savy vet with enough ablities to get the job done here at Darlington. He's a very safe pick, in my opinion. If you are looking to go off-sequence with a sleeper, then look no further than Chris Buescher! No seriously! He's really good and looked competitive before the break. He had no finishes worse than 17th through 4 races this season and drove the 37 car over the past few years to some solid finishes. He looks even better at RFR. This guy is talented as heck and I always believed that, too.

C:

Starter - Matt Kenseth

Bench - Tyler Reddick

Reasons - I am not messing around here. Darlington can be a tough track for young drivers, so I am going Kenseth here. He has raced in a few years, but he should have a great chance to least get a teen finish out of the No.42 car. Reddick is a great choice, if you aren't looking to jump on the Kenseth bandwagon.

Fantasy Live -

Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Martin Truex Jr, William Bryon and Kyle Busch (Garage driver)

Reasons - Like everyone else, I have no idea what to expect. So I am kinda going with the flow here and taking a stab at it. I have a good feeling about the Hendrick cars, so I am putting a few in all of my lineups. If I am wrong, well I am wrong. Kevin Harvick is consistently good, so I see no reason not to take a chance on him. It's very low risk, imo. Like I said up above, I have a really good gut feeling on Truex Jr, so I will also put him in there. Keselowski has a great track record here, so I will give him the nod, as well. Then there's Kyle Busch who didn't overly impress in 4 races, then he's too good to not at least have in the garage.

SlingShot Game -

Martin Truex Jr, Chris Buescher, William Byron, Chrisopher Bell and Kurt Busch

Reasons - I am going after position differential points here with drivers starting further back in the field and that's why none of my pick starts better than 15th. I could see 2 or 3 these guys finishing in the top 10 and the other two finishing in the top 15. With that said, all but one driver has had some form success in recent seasons (or this season) that makes them interesting picks. Not all of them has gotten the results that they deserve, though.

Have a question or want to chat?

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Rankings (Darlington)

Welcome to Timerssports

Final Rankings -

1. Kevin Harvick
2. Brad Keselowski
3. Kyle Busch
4. Martin Truex Jr
5. Joey Logano
6. Denny Hamlin
7. Chase Elliott
8. Kurt Busch
9. Erik Jones
10. Jimmie Johnson
11. Ryan Blaney
12. Alex Bowman
13. William Byron
14. Aric Almirola
15. Clint Bowyer
16. Chris Buescher
17. Matt Kenseth
18. Ryan Newman
19. Matt Dibenedetto
20. Tyler Reddick
21. Chrisopher Bell
22. Austin Dillon
23. Cole Custer
24. Ricky Stenhouse Jr
25. Ty Dillon
26. John Hunter Nemchek
27. Michael McDowell
28. Ross Chastain
29. Ryan Preece
30. Corey LaJoie

Have a question or wanna chat?

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Sleepers & Dark Horses (Darlington)

Welcome to Timerssports

I am very glad to have Nascar back this weekend and I am even more happy to be writing Fantasy Nascar again! I am not crazy about Darlington and Charlotte being the first two tracks, as I never have much luck there with my fantasy picks. However, I am pretty excited to have Nascar back, so I guess I will have to just take it and be happy with it. And what better way to start things off, then with my personal favorite article in the Fantasy Nascar Sleepers & Dark Horses!

Let's get rolling!

Sleepers -

Austin Dillon: Picking Dillon is never a great ideal, but you are not trying for excellance with Dillon. You are probably thinking outside of the box anyways. And when you think outside of the box, there will be risks involved. He lacks the upside, but one thing we have learned about Dillon in his cup career: Use him at his best tracks! He may be inconsistent at times, but his is the opposite of that at his top tracks. Darlington is one fo those tracks, too. In his career, he has found some pretty good results. As I mention, he lacks upside and his results at Darlington would agree with that! In 5 of his last 6 races at Darlington, he has posted finishes in the top 16. Also, 3 of his last 4 races here has ended in 12th or better.

Chris Buescher - The driver of the No.17 car is such a underrated driver and doesn't get enough credit for all of his early career success! Chris Buescher ran well just about everywhere in a low-budget car for JTG and Darlington has been one of his best tracks. So far in his career, he has finished worse than 17th place! In the last two races, he has been very competitive (for his ride) overall. In his last two races, he has posted 12.5 average finish and 13.4 (!) average run position. His driver rating has been also pretty good at 80.7. They aren't mind blowing numbers, but many drivers would kill for those kind of in-race performances? Outside of the top teams, probably most (if not all). Chris Buescher will have a chance to do even better, if all the cards line up right! Through 4 races in 2020, he has finishes of 3rd, 14th, 16th and 17th! Yup, his worst finish here in 2020 is 17th place. Combine that at one of his best tracks in his cup career? I love what you get!

Dark Horses -

William Byron - He has dominated races on IRacing, but now it is time to translate that success to the real thing! Can he do it? I don't think so (right now), but he showed some improvements early in year 3 (year 2 with Chad) here in 2020. He had some promising races that just didn't go his way. I think you can say the same thing about his first two races at Darlington. He got two misleading finishes that should had been much better than they were. He wasn't a top 5 contender or anything, but he would had a real shot at a top 10 finishes in both of those races. Another thing to like about Byron? I think he has one of the best crew chiefs in the garage and that will only benefit him with no practice!

Jimmie Johnson - People might have forgotten the JGR cars as a whole were down on speed before the Coronvirus, while the HMS cars shown some noticeable improvements! Will that trend stay the same after? Great question and who knows, but we will be finding out very shortly. When looking at possible dark horses, Jimmie Johnson is someone who came to my mind. Now, I know I said he's toasted and won't win a race here in the 2020 season. I still believe that, but that's also some fan bias as well. I have done some research (in general) and sometimes things just stick in your mind! Two things stuck with me and they are both good things about Jimmie Johnson: 1) Jimmie is looking more compettive (like his teammates are) through 4 races. Could that be because other teams just behind right now? Oh for sure! Could it because the Hendrick bunch really done their homework and headed in a better direction than last year? Almost certainly. Is it a combination of both? You bet your behind it is! 2) He was strong in 2019 at Darlington and just didn't get a good end result. He sadly got caught up a multi-car wreck and he really wasn't competitive after that. Will he bounce back here in 2020 at Darlington? Guess we will find out!

Have a question or wanna chat?

Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com

Twitter - @Garryy12

2020 Fantasy Nascar Preview (Darlington)

Welcome to Timerssports

Well, it has been quite awhile since there has been any positive news for sports fans or anyone really in terms of things turning back to normal. However, Nascar is trying to change that with the sport expected to be return on May 17th! Obviously, there are much bigger things than sports right now! With that said, maybe some Nascar in our lives can help to distract us from the Coronvirus and everything that comes with this crisis. I would personally like to send my thoughts and prayers to anyone affected by this dangerous virus!

With all of that said, we are gonna turn our attention to Darlington for the return of Nascar! I am super excited about this and just getting back into the flow of doing research each week. I know there's a chance that this return may not last, if things don't go as planned. But hopefully everything will go smoothly and we get to see some Nascar through November! Without further delay, let's get rolling into Today's content!

Darlington Preview -

#1-Kurt Busch: Kurt Busch had a rough start to the 2020 season (before the Conronvirus) with finishes of 25th or worse at both Daytona & Las Vegas. However, he rebounded at Cali and Phoenix with a pair of top 10 finishes, though. And Darlington is a pretty good track, too. Over the past two races at Darlington, he has compiled 6.5 average finish with 7.4 average running position and 109.5 driver rating. He ranked 5th , 4th and 4th among those categories. In 4 of his last 5 races at Darlington, he has finished 7th or better and has compiled a driver rating above 102 in all four races.

#2-Brad Keselowski: Keselowski is really good here at Darlington and he has posted 4 top 10 finishes in his last 5 races here. In 3 of those 4 races, he has compiled 3 top 5 finishes. Including back to back top 5 finishes in the past two seasons here. In the past two seasons at Darlington, he has been the best driver in the series overall. In the past two races here, he has compiled a series-leading 3.0 average finish (series-best) with 5.9 average running position (series-best) and 116.9 driver rating (series-best). Interesting note? He was ranked 9th in terms of Average fast laps with just 15.5. In 11 career races, he has posted 10.7 average finish with 7 finishes in the top 12! He has only 4 career top 5 finishes to his name here, but over the past 5 seasons he is trending in the right way. 3 of his 4 top 5 career finishes all came in the past 5 seasons!

#3-Austin Dillon: Dillon is pretty underrated overall at Darlington, as he holds 12.5 average for his career mark in 6 races. Small sample size, but he is a legit sleeper based on past history. However, he has mix results in 2020 so far. He had finishes of 12th at Daytona and 4th at Las Vegas. He had finishes of 24th at Cali and 36th at Phoenix. Let's look a little closer to Las Vegas' race, shall we? At Las Vegas, he held 13.4 average running position and 89.7 driver rating in that event. They ranked 10th and 11th, respectfully. Not too bad! At Darlington, he has been a really good performer overall. In 4 of his 6 career races, he has finished 12th or better. Including 3 of his last 4 races, too. Over his last 4 races here, he has posted finishes of 10th, 16th, 4th and 12th. He was impressive in 2017, to be honest! He was really good that season overall in general and most of his best races came during the 2017 season. So no suprise, his best career performance (so far) was during the 2017 season.

#4-Kevin Harvick: Just like any other track that we go to, Harvick will be one of the drivers to beat. At Darlington, he's among the elite in the sport and this really shouldn't come as a suprise to anyone. He enters Darlington with 7 straight finishes in the top 10 at this track. In 6 of his last 7 races at the track, he has finished in the top 5. In his last two races here, he has finished in the 4th position. During those two races, he has compiled 4.0 average finish with 8.5 average running position and 102.6 driver rating. Over the past two seasons, he's ranked 2nd (in average finish), 5th (Average running position) and 7th (in Driver Rating). So he's not Kevin Harvick (according to our high standards for him), but he has been still pretty damn good! In the first four races this season, he had no finishes worse than 9th and led over 60 laps t both Las Vegas and Phoneix.

#6-Ryan Newman: It has been awhile since I seen a crash like Ryan Newman's at the Daytona 500 and was as worried as I was at that moment. I legit had doubt that we would see Ryan behind the wheel. But he only has recovered from his injuries, but will be back behind the wheel of a Cup car here at Darlington. I wouldn't call this his best track, but he's a savy vet. However, he owns a 12.7 averae finish in 21 career races at Darlington. Newman and consistency goes hand-in-hand. He has been considered a stable option for years in the Fantasy Nascar community and we welcome him back with open arms. From 2013 to 2017 (5 races span), he posted 4 top 10 finishes with no finishes outside of 8th-10th place. The past few seasons has been more of a struggle, though. As he has posted finishes of 23rd and 19th over his past two races at Darlington!

#9-Chase Elliott: I have shit on the Hendrick cars a lot over the past few seasons (Elliott has been the only one I really been high on), but I think HMS gonna be really good in 2020 and Darlington is one of those places they all could do well at. They ran well in 2019 at Darlington, but none of them really got the finish that they deserved in the end. Still 19th isn't what he should had got. He was never a contender for a top 5 finish, but I say latter part of the top 10 or just outside of that at worst.

#10-Aric Almirola: So far in 2020, I have some questions about Aric Almirola. He has mix results for the most part. He had impressive speed in practice almost in all of the races, but it hasn't always translated to results. At least not the results that practice indicated and that's the biggest thing with this race package. Practice means a lot less than it use to and we kinda gotta trust the race data we got these drivers. At the same time, we all have a habit of taking the on-track data very seriously. As we learn more about this race package, we will undoubtly find a better balance. Aric did finish well at both Cali and Phoenix. Both races ending in top 10 finishes, if that makes anyone feel better about him? How has Aric faired at Darlington in his career? Well, he hasn't posted a top 10 finish in 8 career starts. Not ideal, but he has a career-best finish of 11th, though. In his last two races here, he has finishes of 14th and 17th. In 2019, he really struggled and finished 17th. He held 59.0 driver rating for that event, which is second-worst mark of his cup career at Darlington.

#11-Denny Hamlin: Hamlin is a stud at Darlington and his 2019 results is not what he should had gotten. In stage 3, he got in a big wreck and finished 29th. He swept the top 5 in both stage 1 and stage 2. From 2010 to 2017 (I will exclude 2014 - year of his crash at Cali; off-year for him after that), he posted 7 straight top 6 finishes. Including 5 top 3 finishes, with his last coming in 2017. Hamlin is just simply good at this track and I really cannot find a reason to hate anything about him at Darlington. Hamlin started off the season with a win at the Daytona 500, then had pair of average results with 17th at Las Vegas and 20th at Phoenix. He also posted 6th place finish at Cali, though. See a trend? Great finish, bad finish, great finish, followed by bad finish. If that holds true, then he's due for a strong race a Darlington!

#12-Ryan Blaney: My biggest question heading into the season was weather or not Ryan Blaney could put together any kind of good consistency!? The answer so far is no, but he has a lot of speed in his car through 4 races. In 2018, he had a similar issue in the #12 car. He also started 2018 off with impressive amount of speed, but he couldn't put together consistent results. There has never been question about his talent, but becoming a consistent finisher/contender is what stopping him from being a top notch fantasy option! Darlington isn't a great track for him, though. In 5 career races at Darlington, he has no finishes better than 13th and no better driver rating better than 76.9. Guys, that's his best driver's rating and that's not good. In his last two races at Darlington, he has compiled 14.0 average finish with 76.4 driver rating and 16.4 average running position.

#14-Clint Bowyer: I have some serious doubt about Clint Bowyer, like I do with every Stewart Haas driver, not named Kevin Harvick. Clint is a lot like Ryan Blaney, but with less upside. Very inconsistent, but he is capable of knocking out a top 5 or top 10 finish. However, it seems like it comes out of nowhere with him. Look at his finishes in 2020: 6th,12th, 23rd and 5th. The man is all over the board! Darlington is a so-so track for him, too. He finished 6th in 2019 here, which marks his career-best finish at this racetrack. It also marked his first top 10 finish at Darlington, since 2007. In 2007, he scored his first top 10 finish in 9th place. From 2012 to 2014, he had three straight finishes of 11th or 12th. So he is capable of being a servicable fatnasy option at Darlington. But history says he won't repeat last season's result, though. Prior to finishing 6th in last season's race, he had 4 straight finishes of 17th or worse. I am not very high on Clint Bowyer for many reasons!

#18-Kyle Busch: Rowdy is probably the best driver here at Darlington and not enough people talk about that. In his last 10 races here, he hasn't finished worse than 11th. And he led 118 laps on his way to 3rd place finish in last season's event here. In 2 of his last three races here, he has finished in the top 3. Kyle is so damn good at pretty much everywhere and he should be considered one of the heavy favorites to win. Fun fact about Kyle Busch? He has never won at Darlington, despite holding a career average finish of 11.1. I will be honest, I would had never guessed that with all of the success that he had has here! Kyle Busch is my early pick to win at Darlington!

#19-Martin Truex Jr: Truex Jr is good as pick in the field, even though he doesn't get enough respect here at Darlington. He's better than his numbers indicate here at this track. He has had issues which led to misleading finishes. In his last three races, he still compiled 11.3 average finish with 9.6 average running position and 108.9 driver rating. His driver rating ranked 4th in the series in those 4 races. 3rd, if you only count drivers whom started all 4 races. Regardless, he's very good here at Darlington. Back in 2016, he actually went to victory lane in the #78 car. I will have my eyes on the #19 car, when the green flag does indeed waves.

#20-Erik Jones: Erik Jones wasn't a great fantasy option through 4 races in 2020, as he only has one top 10 finish and that was literally a 10th place finish at Cali. Otherwise? 18th at Daytona, 23rd at Las Vegas and 28th at Phoenix. He was someone before the season that I thought would be really good in 2020 or not so good. So far, it seems to be on the bad side. Erik Jones is a talented dude, but seems like sometimes he fail to live up to his teammates, though. I mean, look who his teammates are? Kyle Busch, 2-time Cup Champ. Martin Truex Jr, former Cup champ. Denny Hamlin, the most successful non-chamapion in the sport. That's some high standards to live up to. At Darlington, he has been great, though. In 3 career starts, he has finishes 1st, 8th and 5th. He went to victroy lane in last season's race here. In those 3 races, he has compiled 4.7 average finish with 7.6 average running position and 110.8 driver rating. How does that stack up to the competition? He ranked 1st, 5th and 2nd to other drivers in the series.

#22-Joey Logano: I am high on Joey Logano here at Darlington and not sure if he will be on everyone's radar for Darlington. Since joining Penske (5 races), he has posted 3 top 5 finishes and 2 finishes outside of the top 10. Logano probably isn't the flashy fantasy option at Darlington, but he is just one of those guy who will challenge for the win regardless the track. He doesn't have the recent success of his teammate (Brad Keselowski), but I have a feeling he gonna be an underrated fantasy option.

#24-William Byron: I been higher on the HMS group in 2020 more than I expected them to and I think Byron is the most underrated driver of the four. He's a lot better at Darlington than his first two races indicates. He was a top 10 contender in both races so far in his career, but resulted in misleading finishes. He has had some stout showings in 2020, too. Byron never get credit he deserves on most weekends, but I think he's one of those guys with sneaky good upside. He has some questions like any young driver, but I am probably bigger on him than most are entering the Darlington. If he runs well on Sunday, I say play him in the second Darlington's race!

#48-Jimmie Johnson: I have been very rough on Johnson over the past couple seasons overall, but he is starting to come back around to me, though. He was running well in last season's race here at Darlington, but got into a wreck. Before that, you could easily say that he was a contender for a top 5 finish. He actually won the first stage of that event and probably was on his way to at least a top 10 finish. I don't fully trust him, but he has ran well on other intermediae tracks in 2020. Not saying much since they aren't real similar in any form, but I take that over nothing. With that said, I am using his performance last season more than 2020 data, though.

#88-Alex Bowman: Bowman has been a strong performancer on the intermediate tracks in 2020. Darlington isn't comparable to any other track, but these chevys seem to be better than they were in 2019 to start off the season. So far in his career, he has not finished in the top 15 at Darlington. Good news? His finish and driver rating has improved in every single race! In his last race, he finished 18th and posted 79.6 driver rating. He has a real chance to improved upon both of those numbers this weekend at Darlington! I say his highest upside is somewhere in the top 10, but realistically I say he finish somwhere 8th and 14th.

***All stats are rom DriverAverages.com and FRCS.PRO

Twitter - @JeffNathans18