Bristol Food City 500: Drivers who you don’t want to pick
Paul Menard – Menard finished 5th last spring and led 35 laps. In the summer race he finished 30th four laps down. Despite his 5th place finish I really don’t like Paul Menard in the Food City 500. In eight of his nine Bristol races he’s failed to finish in the top twenty. I believe Paul Menard is his 21.7 average finish this week. Statistically his 5th place finish is an outlier
Regan Smith – In 2011 at Bristol Regan Smith finished 18th and 22nd. Much like Paul Menard I truly believe Regan Smith is his average finish (24.8). In six of his eight races he’s finished between 18th and 30th. In the Food City 500 I’m gong to predict another finish for him right around his average finish.
Brian Vickers – This week at Thunder Valley last fall’s Mr. Excitement will be making his 2012 series debut. Unless your in certain allocation leagues like Yahoo you should avoid Brian Vickers (you have to start someone here who’s committed to 500 laps). He’s never finished in the top ten at Bristol and he’s only led one lap in fourteen races. I really think the best case scenario for him would be about a 20th place finish. Don’t look for Brian Vickers to be a head hunter this week. I expect him to be on his best behavior.
Bobby Labonte – Don’t look for this Labonte to be racing for the win like his brother did in 1995 (video). Since 2007 he has one top ten finish (spring 2007, first COT race) and a 25.5 average finish. Last spring he finished 13th so there is a little hope at this high attrition track. So far in 2012 Labonte has done a good job avoiding problems on the track.
David Ragan – As usual look for Ragan to finish right in front of the start and parkers. His Bristol accolades include one top ten finish and a Nationwide series win. In the last four Bristol races he’s finished 29th, 32nd, 16th and 20th. I certainly don’t expect him to top these numbers in a Front Row Motorsports car.
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