Martinsville STP 500 Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Jimmie Johnson – Jimmie Johnson is a good fantasy NASCAR pick to win the Martinsville STP 500.  Since he’s been on the scene at Martinsville he’s been a fantasy juggernaut. He’s good at every track on the circuit but this is arguably his best. At this historic half-mile he has 8 wins, a 6.2 average finish and has led 2,747 laps. Among the 23 venues on the circuit Martinsville is home to his best top five (69%) finish percentage and second best top ten percentage (85%).  Also at Martinsville he’s been an extremely safe pick because minus his most recent race and first overall race he’s never finished lower than 12th. All four of his finishes outside the top ten deserve an asterisk mark. Last fall at Martinsville Johnson had a good car that had top five potential but his race didn’t go smoothly. In the event he started in 7th and marched his way towards the front when the green flag waved. Then around lap 100 while he was running in 3rd he pitted under green because of a vibration and it dropped him two laps down. Then on lap 179 he ran into to back of Kasey Kahne and got heavy damage to the front of his car. Later around lap 220 he was to the garage area because he was leaking oil and that dropped him 38 more laps down. If he would’ve had an incident free afternoon I think a top five was definitely in the cards. In spring 2014 he had a great car but came up short at the end. In that race he started in 4th, finished 2nd, had a 2nd place average running position, earned the best driver rating and led 296 laps. Late in the race his car wasn’t at his best and an ultra-motivated Kurt Busch passed him with about 10 laps remaining for the win. In fall 2013 he also had a great car. He started 2nd, earned the third best driver rating, had a 4th place average running position, finished 5th and led 123 laps. The strength of his car was being good thru the corners and having good drive off. In the race Johnson drove a little conservative because he had so much to lose. Also in the event he had some drivers rough him up a little (Biffle). In spring 2013 Johnson displayed outright dominance. He started 1st, finished 1st, had a 1st place average running position, led 346 laps and earned a near perfect 148.4 driver rating. In fall 2012 Johnson had a near parallel performance. In that event he also started 1st, finished 1st, led 193 laps and earned the best driver rating. In spring 2012 Johnson was going to finish either 1st or 2nd but he spun when Clint Bowyer made his “Hail Mary” at the end. In that event he finished 12th and led 112 laps. The only real downside about picking Jimmie Johnson is that everybody else will likely be picking him as well. (Yahoo A Driver)

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Jeff Gordon – Jeff Gordon is a good fantasy NASCAR pick at Martinsville. He’s a proven fantasy ace and over the last couple of Martinsville races he almost always has the best car over long runs. If the race ends with a long run there’s a good chance you’ll find him in victory lane. Throughout Gordon’s career he’s been a stellar performer at Martinsville. In 44 races he has 8 wins, 9 poles, 28 top fives and 35 top tens. He’s also been remarkably safe and only has four finishes outside the top fifteen. Last fall at Martinsville Jeff Gordon had the best car in my opinion but he failed to reach victory lane. In the event he had the best driver rating, finished 2nd, had a 5th place average running position and led 130 laps. When the green flag waved he started in 12th but he didn’t stay back for long. On lap 85 he passed Jamie McMurray for the lead and then proceeded to lead the next 83 laps. Unfortunately his race wasn’t incident free. Just before lap 200 under caution while he was leading he got busted speeding on pit road and that dropped him down to 30th. He was able to drive up through the field without much difficulty but that penalty was huge because it put him behind the other elite cars. If he wouldn’t have got that penalty I think he would’ve won. Over the duration of a run nobody had a better car than him. In spring 2014 he had a competitive car early in the event but pitted out of sequence while he was running near the front and while he was back in traffic he ran into the back of a slow car and damaged the #24. Immediately following the contact he radioed his team and told them he “killed the car”. When the checkered flag waved he finished 12th. If he didn’t damage his car I think he easily had top five potential based on how well he ran early. In fall 2014 he won his 8th race at Martinsville and tied Jimmie Johnson for the most wins by an active driver. It also marked the first time he’s been to victory lane here since 2005. His strength in the race was being good over long runs. Over the duration of a long green flag run nobody was better on the stop watch than him. In that event Gordon started 9th, had a 5th place average running position, led 78 laps and earned the 2nd best driver rating. At the end it came down to him versus Matt Kenseth but he had the edge because of his experience working with lapped traffic. He took the lead with 21 laps to go and never looked back. In April 2013 at the end Gordon was reeling in the #48 for the win but a late caution came out and it changed the complexion of the race. Gordon’s car was good over long runs and the late caution was favorable for the competition. In that race Gordon started 6th, had a 6th place average running position and earned the 3rd best driver rating. In October 2012 Gordon was impressive. He started in 11th and drove up to 2nd in the first 30 laps. In the event he led 92 laps and had a fifth place average running position. If it wasn’t for a late caution then it would’ve come down to him versus Jimmie Johnson at the end. When the checkered flag waved he finished 7th and earned the 3rd best driver rating. In April 2012 Gordon unquestionably had the best car. He led 328 laps but was taken out by Clint Bowyer’s “Hail Mary” at the end while leading. (Yahoo A Driver)

Recommended Reading – Front Runner Rankings, Mid Pack Predictions, Yahoo C List Preview, Martinsville Scouting Report, Who will win at Martinsville

Dale Earnhardt Jr. – Up until last fall Martinsville was the lone short track Dale Earnhardt Jr. was winless. That’s certainly not the case anymore. Last year at Martinsville nobody was better than Junior. Between the two events he scored the most points, had a 2nd place average finish and was one of two drivers who finished in the top ten both races. Last fall he started in 23rd but that wasn’t a problem for him. He drove up through the pack without difficulty and by lap 100 he was solidly in the top ten for essentially the remainder of the race. Around lap 130 he drove up to 2nd. From that point to the remainder of the race I would estimate his average running position was around 3rd. Of the final 47 laps Junior led them all except those run under caution. In spring 2014 he started mid-pack in 26th but that wasn’t an issue for him. He had an 8th place average running position, finished 3rd, earned the 3rd best driver rating and led 25 laps. His car didn’t appear to have any real weaknesses and was strong throughout the duration of a run. In fall 2013 Earnhardt Jr had a solid race. He started in 12th, had a 10th place average running position and finished 8th. Also in the race he earned the 8th best driver rating and drove in the top fifteen in 86% percent of the laps completed. In spring 2013 Dale Earnhardt Jr. didn’t have an incident free race. For whatever reason his car seemed a little off. He started in 17th, earned the 14th best driver rating and finished 24th. With 35 laps to go while he was running in the mid to upper teens he spun and went a lap down. In fall 2012 he finished 21st in his first race back following his concussion. In that race he performed better than his result. He had an 8th place average running position and earned the 7th best driver rating. What happened is that late in the race he was on old tires and got spun. In 2011 he nearly had the race won but Kevin Harvick passed him with a few laps remaining and as a result he finished 2nd.

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