Talladega Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is a really good restrictor plate driver who shouldn’t be overlooked. Out of the 23 tracks on the schedule Talladega ranks as his second best (11.7 average finish). Over his 7 races at Talladega he’s only once finished lower than 16th and that was a misleading result. Last fall Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ran really well. When the checkered flag waved he finished 5th and earned the 7th best driver rating. Last spring he was caught up in the carnage but escaped with a 16th place finish. From that race it should be noted his driver rating ranked as the 14th best. In 3 of the 4 Talladega races prior to that he finished in the top ten. In fall 2015 he had a quality performance, but he did benefit from the mass carnage a little bit. When the race reached its conclusion he finished 9th. In spring 2015 he spent much of the race running in the back, but near the end he advanced in the running order. On the final lap he was on pace to finish 13th but he was caught up in the last lap carnage and finished 26th as a result. In the three Talladega races prior to that he had results of 3rd, 10th and 13th.(Yahoo B Driver)

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Martin Truex Jr. – Martin Truex Jr. should have a strong showing at Talladega. In 6 of the last 9 races he’s finished in the top 13. Last fall he had a very fast car that easily looked top ten good but he finished dead last because of an early engine failure. In the three Talladega races prior to that he had the 3rd best average finish (8.3). Last spring he ran well and was one of the consistent front runners. When the race reached its conclusion he earned the 9th best driver rating, had a 10th place average running position and finished 13th. It should be noted he was better than his result but was caught up in a wreck on the final lap. In 2015 he had a great year and was 1 of just 3 drivers who finished in the top ten both races. In fall 2015 Truex started dead last because of a qualifying infraction but finished 7th. It wasn’t an easy 7th though. At one point poor pit strategy caused him to fall a lap down. In spring 2015 he started deep in the field in 36th but that wasn’t an issue for him. When the checkered flag waved he finished 5th and earned the 6th best driver rating. In this years Daytona 500 Truex Jr. had a strong car and finished 13th. (Yahoo A Driver)

Trevor Bayne – If you’re looking for a Talladega sleeper pick don’t overlook Trevor Bayne. His Talladega track record is horrific which should keep many away. His average finish is 26.0 and in 77% percent of his starts he’s finished outside the top 20. In recent plate races Bayne hasn’t been a bad performer. Over the last five combined races on this track type he has 3 top tens and the 8th best average finish (13.6). As you read earlier Talladega really hasn’t been a great place for Bayne, that said he’s been running better recently. Last fall there was nothing special about Bayne’s performance. He finished 17th and had a 21st place average running position. Compared to many of his other recent Talladega races that was a really good day for him. In spring 2016 he ran really well and looked like a factor late. When the checkered flag waved he finished 10th, had a 9th place average running position and earned the 8th best driver rating. In fall 2015 he was mid-teens good but Kevin Harvick wrecked him at the end. In spring 2015 he ran fairly well but on lap 47 while he was running in 8th he caused the “Big One” and as a result he finished 41st. In this years Daytona 500 Bayne finished 10th. (Yahoo B Driver)

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