Martin Truex Jr. 2013 Fantasy NASCAR Preview
2012 Stats: Points Finish 11th, 0 Wins, 7 Top Fives, 19 Top Tens, Average Running Position 12.0, Average Finish 12.1, Laps Led 434, Driver Rating 95.6
Strengths – Martin Truex Jr. is at his best on intermediate tracks. He had a career year on them last season and ranked as one of the best in the series. He’s also pretty good at road courses.
Weaknesses – Truex Jr. wasn’t “inconsistent” last season but that phrase can sum up his career. Just look back at his other points finishes. That makes it hard to pick him confidently.
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Intermediate Track Grade- B+, Martin Truex Jr. excelled at intermediate tracks last year. He was one point shy of tying Jimmie Johnson for the most points accumulated on this track type. Last season he had thirteen top tens (tied for the most) and finished in the top twenty every race. The only other driver who matched his consistency in that regard was Kevin Harvick. Truex Jr. came close to victory lane twice last season at intermediate tracks but came up short both times (Atlanta & Kansas). There’s no question he was a fantasy stud on this track type last season but can he duplicate that feat in 2013? I’m guessing he won’t be able to. MWR and this team will not benefit from the introduction of the Gen 6 car.
Flat Track Grade- B, For the most part Martin Treux Jr. was pretty good at flat tracks last season. In the races he didn’t have problems his average finish was 9.2. The races he had problems were the second race at Phoenix (early engine failure) and the first race at Pocono (involved in an early accident). At Phoenix, Pocono and New Hampshire Treux Jr. isn’t a sure thing but he has sleeper potential. At Indy last season he finished 8th but I won’t declare that he has sleeper potential there. That was his first top ten in eight races.
Short Track Grade- B, Treux started off the season strong with two top fives at these tracks but it didn’t get better after that. In three of the final four short track races he finished between 21st and 25th. The one race where he bucked that trend was the night race at Bristol. In that race he finished 11th and led 44 laps. From a fantasy NASCAR prospective I like him the most at Bristol on this track type. It fits his driving style and he excels at tracks where the high line comes into play. Truex hasn’t been bad at Martinsville recently. His average finish there is 21.5 but he’s finished in the top ten in two out of the last three races. Richmond has been a struggle for him. In the last eight Richmond races he has one top ten finish which also happens to be his only result in the top twenty in this stretch.
Restrictor Plate Track Grade- B-, Plate racing hasn’t been a strength of Truex Jr’s. In fifteen races at Daytona he’s only finished in the top ten once. His average finish there is 21.2. It should be noted that he’s led laps in the last four races and in the Daytona 500 he’s lead at the half way point the last two seasons. At Talladega he has a few more top tens (3) but his average finish is slightly worse (22.9). Last season at plate tracks he had a 17.5 average finish and had results of 12th (Daytona), 28th (Talladega), 17th (Daytona) and 13th (Talladega).
Road Course Track Grade- A-, Martin Truex Jr. is an underrated road course driver. Last season he performed well at both road courses. At Watkins Glen he finished 10th and at Infineon he finished 22nd. That 22nd deserves an asterisks mark because he performed much better than that. His team didn’t execute a proper fuel mileage strategy and on the final lap he was running in 8th until he was turned. In 2011 he finished 8th there. Watkins Glen has historically been a good track for Truex. In the last six races there he’s finished in the top ten 66% percent of the time.
How to use Martin Truex Jr. from a Fantasy NASCAR Perspective in 2013? In 2013 I would recommend you focus on using him at intermediate tracks and road courses. He’s also worth a look at smaller flat tracks.
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