Richmond 2 Post Qualifying Fantasy NASCAR Predictions
It’s looking like we might have a new 2017 winner here in Saturday night’s regular season finale at Richmond Raceway! Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be one of the drivers currently on the outside looking in on points. With that being said, nothing is set in stone at this track, and you have to keep in mind that we tend to see at least two drivers lead a good chunk of laps before it’s all said and done. Still, Toyota has won three of the last four races at this track, and definitely have the best chance at winning here on Saturday night as well.
NASCAR did another condensed schedule this weekend, as there were two practice sessions here at Richmond on Friday,following by qualifying later that evening. Matt Kenseth will lead the field to the green on Saturday night–he was also on the pole here back in April–with teammate Denny Hamlin alongside, and the full starting lineup can be found by clicking here. The practice speeds from those two sessions can be found here: Practice #1 — Happy Hour, and, as always, our in-depth practice notes can be found here: Practice #1 — Happy Hour.
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Final Top 25 Ranking For The 2017 Federated Auto Parts 400
1. Matt Kenseth – Starts 1st – DraftKings Price: $9,000 – Yahoo! A Group
**Risk Factor: Low Risk**
Chances are, Matt Kenseth is going to make it into this year’s playoffs on points. So while a win probably isn’t going to be necessary here at Richmond on Saturday night, it would still give the #20 team some much needed playoff points as they try to fight for the 2017 championship. Now the question is: can Kenseth finally get into victory lane this weekend? Matt is a two-time winner here at Richmond Raceway and absolutely dominated this race two years ago, leading 352 of the 400 laps after starting from the pole. The #20 Toyota was strong here earlier this season as well, winning the pole and leading 164 laps before ultimately finishing 23rd after cutting down a tire. This weekend, Kenseth has looked strong since the team unloaded the car, tying for the fastest lap in Practice #1 on Friday while ranking 5th-fastest in Happy Hour. In terms of ten-lap average, he was 17th and 19th in those two sessions, respectively. Those rankings aren’t that great, but don’t overlook the fact that the #20 team made their long run later than other teams in the first session, and they were parked for 30 minutes in Happy Hour. Kenseth has a car capable of winning here on Saturday night, and momentum-wise, he’s on fire right now, with six finishes of 9th or better in the last seven Cup Series races overall. Don’t sleep on the #20 Toyota this weekend.
2. Martin Truex, Jr. – Starts 5th – DraftKings Price: $10,400 – Yahoo! A Group
**Risk Factor: Low Risk**
Believe it or not, Richmond Raceway is not the best track for Martin Truex, Jr. Over the course of 23 career starts here, he has just two top 5 finishes (8.7%) and eight top 10 results (34.8%)–but you shouldn’t let that scare you away. Truex was one of the best in last year’s Federated Auto Parts 400, starting 6th, leading nearly half of the race, and finishing 3rd. As far as this weekend goes, surprise, surprise, the #78 Toyota is one of the fastest in the field, as Truex tied Matt Kenseth for the fastest lap in Practice #1 and then going out and posting the 4th-best lap in Happy Hour. As far as ten-lap average goes, Truex ranked #1 in that in the final practice, and that should worry the rest of the garage. This #78 team has one goal and one goal only this weekend: earn more playoff points, and they should definitely be in contention.
3. Kyle Busch – Starts 7th – DraftKings Price: $10,700 – Yahoo! A Group
**Risk Factor: Low Risk**
To say that Kyle Busch is good here at Richmond Raceway would be an understatement. In 24 career starts at this track, Rowdy has posted 17 total top 10s with all but two of those being top 5 results as well. Overall, Kyle Busch has an average finish of 7.3 here, which is a full two positions better than 2nd-best Denny Hamlin in that category (9.8). When we were here back in April, Busch ended up finishing 16th, but don’t forget that that was back when Joe Gibbs Racing and the Toyotas weren’t quite up to snuff. Now, Rowdy is coming into one of his best tracks with finishes of 1st and 2nd in the last two Cup Series events as well as being a top 5 contender for what seems like the last three months. Speed-wise, the #18 Toyota posted the 3rd-best lap in Practice #1 while ranking 6th in ten-lap average. During Happy Hour, Rowdy was 15th and 2nd on those two charts, respectively. Kyle Busch is one of the safest options in Fantasy NASCAR this weekend and should be top 5 at worst on Saturday night.
