David Ragan 2012 Fantasy NASCAR Preview
2011 Stats: Points Finish 23rd, 1 Win, 4 Top Fives, 8 Top Tens, Average Running Position 18.3, Average Finish 18.2, Laps Led 49, Driver Rating 78.3
Strengths- David Ragan is at his best on plate tracks, intermediate tracks and he performs good on shorter tracks like New Hampshire and Richmond.
Weaknesses- Throughout his career David Ragan has failed to consistently perform on a high level. In three out of his five seasons he’s finished with three or less top tens. His new Front Row Motorsports car presents a significant competitive disadvantage. Beyond road courses and restrictor plate tracks the 34 car never finished in the top fifteen.
Intermediate Track Grade- C, David Ragan scored 449 points on this track type last season (26 points per race). That’s the number of a mid pack driver. What makes this number look worse is the fact that his former teammates Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth scored nearly 200 points more at these venues. A good day for the 34 car in 2011 was a high 20’s finish. I think David Ragan is good enough to bring the car home in the mid 20’s consistently.
Flat Track Grade- C-, Ragan was solid at New Hampshire last year (7th and 14th). Unfortunately there’s more than one flat track on the circuit. His average finish on all of the other flat tracks combined was 28.6.
Restrictor Plate Track Grade- B, For years I have been saying that plate tracks are David Ragan’s best tracks (2011 preview, 2010 preview). Last season he won at Daytona in July and he nearly won the “Great American Race”. Last year in the #34 Gilliland scored the 4th most points on this track type and had the third best average finish.
Short Track Grade- C, Short tracks have always been tough on Ragan. Racing in a Front Row Motorsports car on these tracks will only increase the difficulty. He did have more success than usual on these venues last year. He finished 4th at both Richmond races and had an 8th at Martinsville.
Road Course Track Grade- D, Things were pretty ugly for Ragan before at these tracks but his team transition will only make things worse. His best finish at both road courses is 24th.
How to use David Ragan from a Fantasy NASCAR Perspective in 2012? I would focus on using Ragan at plate tracks exclusively. If you’re in an allocation league I would also consider throwing him in at the shorter flat tracks and Richmond.
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