Jamie McMurray 2011 Fantasy NASCAR Preview

Jamie McMurray 20112010 Stats: Points Finish 14th, 3 Wins, 9 Top Fives, 12 Top Tens, Average Running Position 15.3, Average Finish 16.4, Laps Led 346, Driver Rating 86.5

In 2010 Jamie McMurray had a career year. Who would’ve seen that coming? I guess my February 5, 2010 post told you so. Other prognosticators were just spewing doom and gloom about McMurray. They were saying that he was finished and Bass Pro Shops would split from him their first chance possible. A year later it’s obvious nothing that they said happened.

Some of his accomplishments in 2010 were his crown jewel victories at Daytona and Indianapolis. His Charlotte win was big also. Last year McMurray also had a career high in laps led.

Strengths – Jamie McMurray is strong on every track type. I’m not saying he’s Superman but he’s a very skilled driver.

Weaknesses – Every now and then the old “Roush” McMurray would surface and this lead to consistency issues. McMurray also struggled on the big 2.0 mile intermediate tracks.

Intermediate Track Grade- B, Despite his Charlotte win this track type was the most problematic for McMurray. Besides his performances at Charlotte (1st and 2nd) McMurray only finished in the top ten two other times in the 2010 season (Darlington and Chicagoland).

Flat Track Grade- B, McMurray won at Indy and had top tens at New Hampshire and Phoenix. The problem is that he finished 18th or worse in the other four races. The positive sign here is that he closed out the season strongly on this track type by finishing in the top ten in three out of the last four races.

Restrictor Plate Track Grade- A, McMurray is as solid as they get on plate tracks. Nothing is a sure thing at these wild card races but McMurray’s better than most. He started the season by finishing 1st and 2nd at Daytona and Talladega but finished in a whimper. How he wrapped up the season on this track type doesn’t concern me because now he’s refilled his luck bank by getting some bad luck out of the way.

Short Track Grade- A-, I really like McMurray at both Bristol and Martinsville. Roush cars for years have struggled at Martinsville but yet McMurray was good there. If you’re looking for him to get a short track win it will happen there. I’ve never trusted him at Richmond.

Road Course Track Grade- B, McMurray’s a good road course driver but his results stink. He’s only finished in the top ten once at Infineon and twice at Watkins Glen. Last season he finished 15th at Infineon and 6th at Watkins Glen. Last year his teammate Juan Pablo Montoya won at Watkins Glen.

How to use Jamie McMurray from a Fantasy NASCAR Perspective in 2011? Focus on using McMurray at restrictor plate tracks and short tracks.

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