Martinsville STP 500 Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

Jamie McMurray – Jaime McMurray is a solid sleeper fantasy NASCAR pick at Martinsville. Its home to his best top ten finish percentage (54%), and second best top twenty finish percentage (73%). The only downside regarding him here is that he’s only finished in the top five twice in his twenty-six races. Last fall he had one of his top five results and finished runner-up. It should be noted he wasn’t quite as good as his result and was aided by attrition. In addition to finishing 2nd McMurray also earned the 3rd best driver rating and had a 6th place average running position. Last spring McMurray ran well throughout the event. He finished 10th, had a 10th place average running position and earned the 8th best driver rating. Performance wise he was slightly better than his result. In 2014 at Martinsville he ran well in both races but didn’t finish good in either one. In fall 2014 he started on the pole, earned the 6th best driver rating, had a 7th place average running position, finished 16th and led 84 laps. His downfall in that race was inferior pit strategy twice over the final 200 laps. In spring 2014 he was set to have a good finish but Dale Earnhardt Jr. spun him into the wall while he was running inside the top ten. In 2013 he had a great season at Martinsville. In the combined races he had an 8.5 average result and was one of five drivers who finished in the top ten both races. (Yahoo B Driver, DraftKings $8,600)

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Ryan Newman – Ryan Newman is a former winner at Martinsville but he’s far from a safe pick. Since his victory his fantasy value has been volatile. In the 7 races since he has 3 top eleven results, and the rest of his finishes are 20th or worse. Last fall Newman had a solid afternoon and ran well throughout the event. He started 7th, finished 7th and earned the 11th best driver rating. In spring 2015 he was very uncompetitive. He started in 2nd but when the green flag waved he plummeted in the running order like a rock. When the race reached its conclusion he finished 27th. If anything I would say he was probably worse than his result. In fall 2014 Newman had about an 8th place car but at the end he maneuvered it home to a 3rd place finish. In the event Newman started in 9th and through the first 190 laps until he got a speeding penalty I would estimate his average running position was around 11th. When he got his speeding penalty he was running in 10th and it dropped him to 31st. That didn’t prove to be a major issue because through pit strategy he was running in the top 13 about 30 laps later. With 14 laps to go before the final caution came out Newman was running in 7th but he was strong at the end and drove up to 3rd. Prior to the fall 2014 race Newman went through a tough stretch of Martinsville races. In spring 2014 he ran well for the majority of the race but dropped off at the end. From the start to lap 350 he typically ran between 8th and 13th. Over the remainder of the laps he just didn’t run as well. When the checkered flag waved he finished 20th and earned the 19th best driver rating. In spring 2012 Newman was able to capitalize on Clint Bowyer’s failed “Hail Mary” and that propelled him to victory lane. (Yahoo B Driver, DraftKings $7,300)

Further Recommended Reading : Martinsville Top Tier Elite Picks, Front Runner Rankings, Mid Pack Predictions, Yahoo C List Preview, Martinsville Scouting Report, Martinsville PROS Rankings, Martinsville Asterisk Mark Report, DraftKings Points Fall 2015

AJ Allmendinger – Martinsville is a good track for AJ Allmendinger and he has sleeper value entering the event. Martinsville belongs in the conversation of being his best oval. The only track where he has a higher top 15 finish percentage is Watkins Glen. In his last 9 Martinsville races he has seven finishes of 14th or better. Since fall 2010 minus spring 2015 Allmendinger has a 12.3 average finish and a 13.5 average running position. Last fall he had a solid race. He finished 11th, had a 12th place average running position, earned the 12th best driver rating and led 19 laps. Those laps led came late in the event when he used pit strategy and elected not to pit. Last spring he ran well and had top ten potential but was sidelined early with engine problems. Prior to him having his issues he was running in 7th. To give you a better idea about his level of competitiveness here’s a link to his Yahoo Race Chart. In fall 2014 he had a solid afternoon. He started in 15th, had a 14th place average running position, earned the 11th best driver rating and finished 9th. Over the final laps of the afternoon he was at his best and I would argue he finished slightly worse than he ran because his final pit stop cost him a few positions. In spring 2014 he also ran well. In that event he started in 15th, had a 13th place average running position, earned the 12th best driver rating and finished 11th. His best segment was between lap 125 and lap 240. In that portion of the race he looked like a top five driver. Unfortunately he didn’t close out the race as strong and from lap 325 to the end he typically ran between 10th and 15th. (Yahoo B Driver, DraftKings $6,400)

Make sure you read the full spectrum of our 2016 Martinsville STP 500 Fantasy NASCAR Rankings

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