Martin Truex Jr. 2012 Fantasy NASCAR Preview
2011 Stats: Points Finish 18th, 0 Wins, 3 Top Fives, 12 Top Tens, Average Running Position 16.0, Average Finish 17.7, Laps Led 153, Driver Rating 82.4
Strengths- Truex Jr. is at his best on intermediate tracks where the high line comes into play, New Hampshire, Dover, and Bristol. He’s also a very capable driver on road courses.
Weaknesses- Martin Truex Jr. ended the season on a strong note by finishing in the top ten in four of the last five races. That’s dangerous for fantasy racers because many will think they found a hidden gem for the 2012 season. However Martin Truex is still an inconsistent driver and I assure you he’ll be the same driver he’s been for the last six years. If you pick him he’ll bite you more than he’ll reward you.
Truex also has problems getting top five finishes. Only one time in his six years has he finished with more than three top five finishes.
Intermediate Track Grade- B-, Last season Martin Truex Jr. scored the twenty-third most points on this track type. He often has good runs but it seems like something always happens to derail him. His best intermediate tracks are Dover and Homestead.
When it comes to running the high line around intermediate tracks Treux is among the best in the series.
Flat Track Grade- B, Truex for the most part does relatively good on flat tracks. Historically he’s had an amount of success at all of the flat tracks with the exception of Indy. My ranking of flat tracks for him would be 1)New Hampshire 2)Pocono 3)Phoenix and 4)Indy.
Restrictor Plate Track Grade- B, Martin Truex Jr. has been very good in the last four Talladega races. In those races he’s accumulated the 7th most points and has finished 13th or better in every race. The downside is that his average finish is still 23rd here.
At Daytona his average finish is slightly better (22nd). It’s only better because he’s managed to avoid really bad finishes there (only two finishes worse than 30th). One top ten in thirteen starts isn’t good though.
One big plus for him on this track type will be his new drafting partner, Clint Bowyer.
Short Track Grade- C+, Martin Truex Jr. had a very good year at Bristol in 2011. He finished 2nd in the summer and in the spring he led 63 laps (finished 17th). However his second place finish is his only top ten at the bull ring.
Richmond has always been a tough track to him. Last season he finished 27th and 30th. Truex has two top tens here in twelve starts and all of his other finishes are 15th or worse.
At Martinsville Truex is starting to develop a finish pattern. For him it’s been good finish, bad finish, bad finish. This fall at Martinsville he finished 8th so this might prove to be another tough season for him here. His average finish at Martinsville is 23rd.
Road Course Track Grade- B+, In 2011 Truex finished 8th and 4th at the road courses. He’s had troubles in the past at Infineon but at Watkins Glen he’s finished in the top six in half his starts there.
How to use Martin Truex Jr. from a Fantasy NASCAR Perspective in 2012? Treux to me is a high risk little chance for a reward driver because of his proven propensity to have problems. He’s a good driver but his risk level to me is a solid 10. If I were to use him from an allocation league standpoint I would use him at Homestead, Dover, New Hampshire, and Watkins Glen. I would use him at a 1.5 mile track but that’s dependent on how he looks in practice.
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