Talladega Geico 500 Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

Joey Logano – Talladega has been a trouble spot for Joey Logano recently. Over the last six races he has a best result of 16th and a 27.5 average finish. In five of those six races he finished between 24th and 35th. His one result outside of that range was a 16th place finish last fall. In May he had one of the strongest cars. In the race he earned the 7th best driver rating, had an 11th place average running position and led 25 laps. His race unfortunately wasn’t incident free. Late in the race while he was running around 13th Jimmie Johnson had a tire go down and Joey Logano got caught in the carnage that ensued shortly after. Before the accident he was running right around 10th. Early in his career Talladega was arguably his best track. In four out of his first five races he finished in the top ten.  In the Daytona 500 this year the Penske Fords were strong. Keselowski was a contender for the win and Joey Logano finished 11th. His driver rating for the race ranked as the 4th best. In July at Daytona he got caught up in the carnage of the second “Big One” and finished 17th. (Yahoo B Driver)

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Jamie McMurray – Jamie McMurray has two wins at Talladega but he’s the definition of a high risk / high reward driver. Since October 2007 he has three top tens and those results are 1st, 1st and 2nd. In the other 11 races over this long stretch he has a 23.8 average running position and a 28.3 average finish. This spring at Talladega he didn’t have a great race. On lap 14 when Keselowski spun Jamie McMurray ducked down in the grass to avoid contact. During that maneuver he sustained damage which dropped him a few laps down while it got repaired. Since it was so early in the race it’s hard to know just how good he was. When the checkered flag waved he finished 29th. Last fall at Talladega Jamie McMurray went to victory lane. In the race he started 9th, had an 11th place average running position and earned the 3rd best driver rating. At the end of the race he led the final 15 laps and held off Dale Earnhardt Jr. To find his next Talladega top ten you have to go all the way back to spring 2010 when he finished 2nd. In fall 2009 he got his other Talladega victory. In the six Talladega races prior to his victory last fall he had a 25.7 average finish. In spring 2013 he finished 23rd and was a victim of the wreck with 6 laps to go. In fall 2012 at Talladega Jamie McMurray was a serious contender. Late in the race he got spun from the top five which brought out the final restart. In that event he led 38 laps, had a 7th place average running position but finished 34th. At Daytona this season McMurray had results of 30th and 14th. McMurray has seven career victories and it’s important to point out four of them have come on this track type. (Yahoo B Driver)

Further Recommended Reading – Talladega Top Tier Elite Picks, Mid Pack Predictions, Who will win at Talladega, Talladega Scouting Report

Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – One trend that’s notable about Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is that the higher attrition rate the better he finishes. Among active drivers at Talladega his 8.7 average result ranks as the best in the series. He’s raced here three times and in every event he’s finished in the top 13. This spring he started in 25th and dropped to the back early to avoid wrecking. Then around lap 55 he started moving forward. Around the middle portion of the event he was a driver who consistently ran 13th or better. Late in the race he pitted following contact with Jimmie Johnson (when the 48 spun) and from there he charged from the high-twenties all the way up to his 10th place finish. The highest Stenhouse Jr. got in the running order was 2nd and that happened around the 2/3rds mark. Last fall he had one of the best races in his career. He started in 21st, had a 10th place average running position, earned the 4th best driver rating and finished 3rd. On the final lap he was the driver who brought out the caution when he spun Austin Dillon. In spring 2013 at Talladega he also performed well. In that race he finished 13th and earned the 11th best driver rating. In that race he performed slightly better than his result. In the last quarter of the race he got a speeding penalty which sent him back in the pack. In this season’s Daytona 500 Stenhouse Jr. finished 7th but in July he finished 41st after being involved in a wreck. In 2013 on this track type he scored the 3rd most points in the series. In the 7 races at restrictor plate tracks in the Gen 6 car Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is the only driver with 6 top fifteen finishes. (Yahoo B Driver)

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