Richmond Federated Auto Parts 400 Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Kevin Harvick – Kevin Harvick is a good fantasy NASCAR pick to win the Richmond Federated Auto Parts 400. This spring his team approached Richmond as a test session and they tried out things they otherwise wouldn’t do. In the race he performed pretty well. Through the first 220 laps he consistently ran in the top ten. After that point in the race his car dropped off a little and wasn’t as strong. When the checkered flag waved he finished 11th, had a 5th place average running position and earned the 5th best driver rating. Also in the race he started in 5th and led 23 laps. In spring 2013 at Richmond Kevin Harvick drove the 29 car to victory lane. He only led 3 laps but they were the most important three. In that race he started in 17th, had a 9th place average running position and earned the 5th best driver rating. Last fall he finished 11th. That’s one of those results that get an asterisk mark. With 100 laps to go he radioed his crew chief and said his car “came to life”. Before the caution with 58 laps to go he was right on Clint Bowyer’s heels for the lead and was running in 2nd. During that round of green flag pit stops he was a driver who pitted and got burned by the yellow. That dropped him back to the teens. In fall 2012 at Richmond he finished 10th. In 27 races at Richmond Harvick has 3 wins, 7 top fives and 16 top tens. In 89% percent of his Richmond starts he’s had a result in the top 20. At the other similar tracks this season he’s performed well. Phoenix is the most similar track and at that venue he was outright dominant. In that race he finished 1st, led 224 laps and came up just .1 shy of earning a perfect driver rating. At New Hampshire in July he was a contender for a top five but was burned by fuel mileage strategy at the end. (Yahoo A Driver)

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Brad Keselowski – Brad Keselowski will be one of the drivers to beat in the Richmond Federated Auto Parts 400. This season on shorter flat tracks he’s been very strong. In the three combined races he has the best driver rating, a 3.3 average starting position,  3.3 average running position, 2.7 average finish and has led the most laps. Also in these races he’s the only driver who’s finished in the top five every race. At New Hampshire there’s no question he had best car. In that race he went to victory lane, had a 3rd place average running position and led 138 laps. The strength of his car in that race was his ability to cut through the corners. At Phoenix earlier this year he started on the pole, earned the 4th best driver rating, had a 4th place average running position and finished 3rd. Brad Keselowski had a very strong car this spring at Richmond. If Matt Kenseth didn’t hold him up late and run him up the track which grouped up the front of the field he likely would’ve won. In the race he started in 2nd, earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 3rd place average running position, finished 4th and led 114 laps. In the race the strength of his car was being good over short runs. Early in a run he probably had the strongest car on the track. His weakness was long runs because his car dropped off a little. Last fall at Richmond he had a solid performance. His 17th place finish isn’t at all reflective of how he performed. He started 3rd, had a 4th place average running position and led 142 laps. His downfall in the race was when a caution came out during a round of green flag pit stops with 58 laps to go.  That wasn’t beneficial to him and was to his detriment. Prior to the caution he was running within the top five. In spring 2013 at Richmond he was very unlucky and had multiple problems in the race. On lap #151 he had a flat tire, later in the race he had some sort of vibration and then to cap off his evening he lost a cylinder with about 25 laps to go. When the checkered flag waved he finished 33rd. If he would’ve had a problem free race I think he had top ten potential because even after he had his first two problems he looked competitive. In 2012 at Richmond Brad Keselowski finished 7th and 9th. With those two top tens he was one of only four drivers who swept the top ten in 2012. (Yahoo B Driver)

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Joey Logano – This spring at Richmond Joey Logano had a great car and raced his way to victory lane. In the race he was a driver who consistently ran in the top five from lap 100 to the conclusion of the event. He didn’t have the best car but at the end he was positioned perfectly to take advantage of the situation. In the race he started in 17th, had a 4th place average running position, earned the 3rd best driver rating and led 46 laps. The strength of his car was being good over short runs. Over long runs he still had a good car but it wasn’t as strong as it was early in a run. Also from the race this spring it should be noted it’s the first time he ever led at Richmond. Last fall at Richmond Joey Logano’s Chase hopes were on the line and he didn’t look good. If you remember back to the end of the race his team wanted David Gilliland to tank his performance to help him out. That should tell you exactly how bad he was. In the race he started in 8th and finished 1 lap down in 22nd. That performance was really surprising because prior to the race Penske Racing tested here. In spring 2013 Joey Logano performed well. He started 2nd, had a 3rd place average running position, finished 4th and earned the 4th best driver rating. At similar tracks he’s performed extremely well this season. Phoenix is essentially a reverse Richmond and in that race he earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 3rd place average running position, finished 4th and led 71 laps. At New Hampshire he was running in 2nd but wrecked when Morgan Shepard lost control of his car. (Yahoo B Driver)

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