Welcome to Timerssports
Well the off-season was fun while it lasted, but it back to business. I am super excited to be kicking off another Nascar season! I love writing up Fantasy Nascar articles, especially because I am so good with numbers and looking at trends/patterns. I have always been so good at math, growing up you could give a math problem and I could see it breaking down in my head. So obviously looking at data and understanding that said data is something I really enjoy! I know that is not for everybody, but to strive at this game I think it is important to understand what data to look at and how much you need to take inconsideration. With that said, there are so many amazing websites out there whom does such amazing work. Like many of them, I do this because I love the game and I really hope you guys enjoy the stuff I have planned for this season!
Let's get rolling into Today's content!
Sleepers -
Chris Buescher - Buescher was one of my go-to fantasy options in 2020 on the plate tracks. I actually used him in the Driver Group Game (DDG) in all 4 plate races in 2020. And it was huge part of my success, as he finished no worse than 22nd. And in 3 of 4 races, he finished in the top 10. No, that is not a mistake, either. I mean, he is not an alpha or anything on these plate races, but he is really good at avoiding wrecks. Some guys have a knack for staying out of trouble. In 12 career starts at Daytona and Talladega, he has posted a 15th place finish for his career average finish. Including 8 of 12 races ending in the top 20. In 3 other races, he has posted DNFs. So Buescher has been top 20 or complete bust. At Daytona and Talladega, the numbers do lie sometimes. But history is on his side to be a quality fantasy option.
Ryan Newman - Newman had one of the scariest moment in recent Nascar history at last season's Daytona 500, but he has been a machine at both Daytona and Talladega over the last few years! In his last 14 races at Daytona and Talladega, he has posted 11 (!!) Top 14 finishes. On top of that 10 of those 11 finishes were top 10 finishes! Prior to finishing 36th in last August's race at Daytona, he had knocked off 6 straight top 14 finishes. Including 5 in the top 10. If you look at most tracks about Newman, he is simply consistent for his career. That kinda the vibe you get about him for here. He may not always score a top 10 finish, but his floor is pretty high. And that kinda what you want in a fantasy option. You always want the floor to be solid and that is pretty much what Newman is offering here.
Dark Horses -
Aric Almirola - Almirola wasn't great in 2020 at Daytona and Talladega in the finishing department, but was simply awesome between 2017 and 2019. You could make a very strong case that no driver had better numbers in that 11-race span, honestly. In those 11 races, he had impressive 8 Top 11 finishes. Including 5 Top 5 finishes. The #10 car will probably be really strong again this season at both tracks overall, as I think the Fords will once again have a step up on the competition. These Fords race really well and typical have a lot of speed in them. I think the biggest question with Aric is will we see a top 10 finish out of him or can we expect more like a 18th-25th place finish out of him? I think those are the most likely outcomes for him. Overall, I am really high on the Driver of the #10 car and I think he is truly one of the top dark horses to win the Daytona 500 this year! Aric never get credited for his skills in these kind of races, but make no mistake he is a driver to watch out for!
Ryan Blaney - Blaney is just one of those drivers that you never know about when the series comes to Daytona! He clearly has a knack for this kind of racing, but he also find himself in trouble sometimes. Whenever we come to Daytona or Talladega, I think one of the heavy favorites to win are always the Penske cars. For whatever reason, they have won more races here than anybody else over probably the last 5 years. And Blaney, himself have finished 5 of his last 6 races at these two tracks in the top 6. Of course, he has won twice and both were at Talldega. He was pretty good at Daytona in 2020, though. He had finishes of 2nd and 6th. From a career standpoint, it seems like he almost always finish worse than he deserves. Blaney has a lot of Jamie Mac in him. He can almost bet he will probably take the lead at some point, but you just hope to God that something bad doesn't happens before the checkers. He has led in his last 9 races at Daytona and Talladega. He has so much talent and upside, I think he's worth taking a gamble on. Beware, though that there a lot of risk with him. However, if he finishes then I am betting he will finish in the top 5!
**All stats are from DriverAverages.com
Email - Garrybriggs265@gmail.com
Twitter - @Garryy12