Michigan Post Practice Fantasy NASCAR Predictions – FireKeepers Casino 400

The races at Michigan are usually pretty straightforward. Typically we see a lot of the same faces finishing up front, and those who qualify well at this 2-mile race track tend to end up there at the checkered flag, too. This race last year was a little crazy due to on-and-off rain throughout the day, but seven of the drivers starting in the top 10 in last year’s fall race also finished there, and that same thing happened in the 2014 races as well (six and seven drivers in those). With that being said, NASCAR is trying a new aero package with the FireKeepers Casino 400 this weekend sponsored by online casino website Schmitts Casino and they hope that that will make passing a little easier.

Joey Logano won the pole for Sunday’s race but that’s really the only normal result that happened on Friday. There’s a lot of good race cars starting mid-pack or worse this weekend, and the full starting lineup can be found by clicking here. We then had two practice sessions on Saturday, and those speeds can be found here: Practice #2 — Happy Hour. Don’t forget to check out our in-depth notes for those as well: Practice #2 — Happy Hour.

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Final Top 15 Ranking For Michigan

1. Joey Logano – Starts 1st – DraftKings Price: $9,800 – Yahoo! A Group
**Risk Factor: Low Risk**

It took a move to Penske Racing, but once that happened Joey Logano has established himself as probably the most reliable Fantasy NASCAR driver here at Michigan International Speedway. In his first eight Sprint Cup starts at this track–all with Joe Gibbs Racing–Joey posted just three top 10 finishes with a best result of 7th. In the six races since joining Penske in 2013, Logano has yet to finish worse than 9th at Michigan and he even went to victory lane here in his first season with the new team. So now the question becomes whether or not JoLo can continue his success at this track on Sunday, and the answer is simple: yes. Logano may be struggling more than usual this season, but from what we have seen through the first 14 races, he’s going to finish where he should at the tracks he likes. The #22 Ford is probably good enough to go out there and dominate the FireKeepers Casino 400 on Sunday, and Logano is going to be a contender. You can enjoy playing online casino games. If this whole new package, for some reason, doesn’t make it easier to make passes, Logano is in prime position to lead a bunch of laps considering he’s on the pole and there aren’t many actual contenders starting in the top 10. In Practice #2 on Saturday morning, the #22 Ford was 3rd on the speed chart and in Happy Hour it ranked 9th-fastest with the 12th-best ten-lap average (although it should be noted that that long run was made late in the session, which is impressive). Joey grabbed his fourth top 5 finish of the season at Pocono last weekend and should contend for his fifth here at Michigan this weekend. He should lead a bunch of laps on Sunday and don’t forget that three of the last five races at this track have been won from the pole, including Logano’s win here in 2013.

2. Jimmie Johnson – Starts 16th – DraftKings Price: $10,000 – Yahoo! A Group
**Risk Factor: Medium Risk**

“Six Time”–like many others–is going to have some work to do to get to the front on Sunday, but the #48 Chevrolet looks to have good speed on the long run so that should help. The biggest concern I have about Johnson this weekend is that his record here at Michigan isn’t very good, and he’s actually been struggling quite a bit as of late. After hitting the wall and finishing 35th at Pocono, that makes it five finishes outside of the top 15 in the last seven Sprint Cup races for Jimmie. He started this 2016 season on fire but suddenly Johnson isn’t quite the fantasy ace many people have kept him as this year. With that being said, we all know that this #48 team could break out and get a win at pretty much any race track, and that’s certainly possible here on Sunday at Michigan International Speedway. Johnson won this exact race two years ago and has led in thirteen of the last eighteen races in the Irish Hills. In Practice #2 on Saturday morning, the #48 Chevrolet had the best ten-lap average and ranked 8th on the overall speed chart, and in Happy Hour Johnson was 3rd and 5th, respectively. Right now I’m leaning toward fading Johnson this weekend (meaning not picking him while many others will) but a big part of me says I’m going to regret that once it’s all said and done on Sunday.

3. Carl Edwards – Starts 11th – DraftKings Price: $9,500 – Yahoo! B Group
**Risk Factor: Medium Risk**

Statistically, Carl Edwards is the best driver here at Michigan International Speedway, leading the way with a 9.7 career average finish over twenty-three career starts. Now, most of this was done while he was still with Roush-Fenway Racing (and back when RFR was good) but the point still remains: Cousin Carl is a solid fantasy pick at MIS. In this race one year ago, Edwards had one of the best cars in the field and led almost one-third of the race, but bad timing with the rain relegated him to a 12th-place result. He rebounded with a 6th-place run here in the fall. Looking back at Fontana–the other 2-mile track–Carl ran a pretty good race and ended up with a solid 7th-place finish, and I’m expecting much of the same here this weekend in the FireKeepers Casino 400. This #19 team ended their little skid at Pocono with their first top 10 finish since Richmond in April and I expect them to continue building that momentum here at Michigan. The #19 Toyota was fastest in Practice #2 and the driver seemed very happy with what he had. Edwards even ran ten consecutive laps in that session (ranking 6th) which often indicates he has a car with top 5 potential. In Happy Hour, he was 17th and 4th on those two charts, respectively. Carl has finished inside the top ten in sixteen of his twenty-three starts at this race track, which computes to nearly 70% of the time.