Matt DiBenedetto 2020 Fantasy NASCAR Preview
2019 Stats: Points Finish 22nd, 0 Wins, 3 Top Fives, 7 Top Tens, 18.3 Average Finish, 18.0 Average Running Position, 152 Laps Led, 69.91 Driver Rating
Matt DiBenedetto is poised to have a big 2020. After gambling on himself leading into the 2019 season (walked away from the #32), he finally hit the jackpot after a surprise firing (#95) and this upcoming season he’ll be driving the Wood Brothers #21. Things couldn’t have worked out better for him.
DiBenedetto has consistently outperformed his equipment and now that he’s in a competitive situation with a team that is committed to his success, I think it’s clear 2020 will be a big year for him.
This upcoming season in the #21, I think DiBenedetto will be a legitimate Playoff contender who’ll get a handful of top fives and reach a double-digit amount of top tens.
Strengths:
In 2020, I would look for Matt DiBenedetto to be at his best at road courses, intermediate tracks, Bristol and Daytona. I also think he’ll be able to get good results at shorter-flat tracks this upcoming season.
Weaknesses:
Big flat tracks have been a weakness for DiBenedetto, but there is hope for him this upcoming season in the #21. At Talladega, DiBenedetto has consistently crashed so I would fade him there.
Intermediate Track Fantasy Value – B
In 2020, I think Matt DiBenedetto is clearly a driver with upside at intermediate tracks. I don’t think we’ve really seen a good sample as to what we can expect from him at intermediate tracks because I don’t think Joe Gibbs Racing ever gave the #95 team their good equipment on this track type, or at least I’m choosing to believe that.
In 2020 in the #21, I think DiBenedetto will be a low double-digit to mid-teens driver on a weekly basis who’ll compete for a good amount of top tens. I’m viewing his equipment as a step up in terms of this preview. For fantasy purposes, I personally wouldn’t read into any of his prior stats on this track type because I think they’ll lack relevance.
Flat Track Fantasy Value – B
In 2020, Matt DiBenedetto will be a driver to watch at flat tracks, and at smaller flat tracks in particular I think he’ll have dark horse potential.
Last year in the #95 over the last three races at shorter-flat tracks he had results of 7th (New Hampshire), 13th (Phoenix) and 14th (Richmond). In his new ride I think he has a good chance to be able to duplicate those performances.
Last year at the bigger flat tracks he had results of 17th (Pocono #1), 17th (Pocono #2) and 18th (Indy). In his new ride I think he’ll be more competitive at those venues.
Short Track Fantasy Value – B
Matt DiBenedetto will have sleeper potential at short tracks in 2020.
At Bristol, DiBenedetto should definitely be high on your radar. Last summer he nearly raced his way to victory lane in the #95. When that race reached its conclusion, he finished 2nd and led 93 laps. Last spring, he finished 12th. Back in his old #32 days he consistently over performed at “Thunder Valley.”
At Martinsville, DiBenedetto had results of 16th and 20th last year. In 2020, I think he’ll likely have a similar level of performance, or perhaps be marginally better.
At Richmond, DiBenedetto will have dark horse potential in 2020. Last fall he had a solid performance and finished 14th. In spring 2019 he finished 24th.
Superspeedway Fantasy Value – B
Matt DiBenedetto will be a solid dark horse driver at superspeedways in 2020. He was pretty good last year, and this upcoming season in Penske equipment with a lot of Ford teammates, I think he has a very high fantasy ceiling.
At Daytona, DiBenedetto has been a really strong performer and in 4 of the last 6 races he’s finished in the top 13, in the two he didn’t he crashed. Last year he finished 8th in the summer and in the Daytona 500 he led 49 laps but crashed late and finished 28th.
At Talladega, times have been tough and he’s never finished better than 18th over his ten starts. Last year he crashed in both races and had results of 30th and 31st. I’ll note in the fall he looked poised to finish well before crashing late.
Road Course Fantasy Value – B+
Prior to last season, who knew Matt DiBenedetto was a road course ace? In 2019 on this track type he ranked as one of the best, and over the combined events his 7.0 average finish ranked as the 4th best.
For the season he had results of 4th (Sonoma), 6th (Watkins Glen) and 11th (Charlotte Roval).
The big question about DiBenedetto on this track type in 2020 is if he can duplicate his level of performance. I think he has a good chance, but personally, I think he won’t be quiet as competitive this upcoming season. That said, I do think he’ll probably get two good results on this track type in 2020.
