Talladega CampingWorld 500 Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Dale Earnhardt Jr. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be a good fantasy NASCAR pick to win at Talladega. This year at restrictor plate tracks he’s been the driver to beat. In the three races on this track type in 2015 he has 2 wins, a 1.7 average finish, 3.7 average running position and has led 195 laps. This spring at Talladega he was the “Pied Piper”. He led the most laps, finished first, earned the best driver rating and had a 4th place average running position. His car had standout speed and whatever line he ran became the fastest line. His victory marked his 6th at this venue. Last fall at Talladega Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a fast car. In the race he earned the 5th best driver rating, had a 9th place average running position and led 31 laps. Unfortunately the race wasn’t incident free for him. At the end during the Green-White-Checker while he was running around 15th he got caught up in the “Big One”. In the event when his car was out front he was fast but when he was in dirty air he didn’t perform well. In May 2014 Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a very strong car and it could’ve potentially been the best. Unfortunately he disappointed fantasy racers at the end when he decided he didn’t want to race because he felt the “Big One” was looming and he wanted to use his car in the fall. In that race Dale Earnhardt Jr. led the 2nd most laps (26) and when the checkered flag waved he finished in 26th. In fall 2013 Earnhardt Jr. could’ve potentially won, but on the last lap he never got his chance to make a move for the lead because Austin Dillon wrecked and brought out the caution that ended the race. When the checkered flag waved he finished 2nd, earned the best driver rating, led 38 laps and tied Jimmie Johnson for the best average running position. In May 2013 Dale Earnhardt Jr. had a fast car but finished 17th. He just wasn’t positioned correctly at the end of the event. It should be noted that he did earn the 7th best driver rating. (Yahoo A Driver)

Don’t be a fantasy NASCAR pretender. Become a contender and get the ifantasyrace advantage. Join Now!

Jimmie Johnson – Jimmie Johnson has been one of the drivers to beat at restrictor plate tracks this season. At these venues in 2015 he’s scored the 2nd most points, has a 3.0 average result and is one of two drivers who have finished in the top five in all three events. Since the Generation Six car rolled out Johnson has arguably been the best driver on this track type. In the 11 races in the current car he has the best driver rating, best average running position, 2 wins, the most top fives and has led the most laps. This spring at Talladega he was very strong. He finished 2nd, earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 4th place average running position and led 50 laps. Last fall at Talladega Jimmie Johnson likely had the best car but due to some late restart bad decisions he ended up finishing 24th. Also in that event it should be noted he started 2nd, earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 4th place average running position and led a race high 84 laps. In spring 2014 he was a consistent front runner. In that race he earned the 5th best driver rating but finished 23rd. With 14 laps to go he spun and caused a big wreck. At the time of that incident he was running right around 10th. For about the first half of the event he ran roughly 80% percent of the laps inside the top five. In 2013 at Talladega he was good in both races. In fall 2013 Johnson had the best car in the field. He led the most laps, tied Earnhardt Jr. for the best average running position and finished 13th. That result can be chalked up to poor decision making at the end. In the race his car was extremely strong and when it came time to lead a line of cars on the bottom groove nobody was better. In May 2013 at Talladega his car was exceptionally strong. I thought it was the best looking car on the track despite Kenseth dominating much of the race. When he wanted to get around Kenseth he had no problem accomplishing the task. When the checkered flag waved he finished 5th, had a 4th place average running position and earned the 2nd best driver rating. In his career at Talladega he has two wins and has finished in the top ten 41% percent of the time. (Yahoo A Driver)

Further Recommended Reading – Talladega Front Runner Rankings, Who will win at Talladega, Talladega Scouting Report

Matt Kenseth – At Talladega Matt Kenseth has been strong. Since 2012 he’s led the most laps (282), has the best average running position (11.1), the 2nd best driver rating and a 13.7 average finish. This spring he ran well but over the last quarter of the event he was a driver who fell back in the running order for whatever reason. When the race reached its conclusion he finished 25th. Last fall at Talladega Kenseth had a strong car. In the event he started in 13th but dropped to the back early to avoid carnage. Around the midpoint he drove up towards the front for about 40 laps but then he choose to drop back again. At the end of the race Kenseth quickly drove up through the pack with his draft mastery and when the checkered flag waved he finished 2nd. In spring 2014 he had a good car that was capable of finishing in the top five but his race wasn’t incident free. He was a driver who was taken out when Keselowski who was a number of laps down choose to run with the leaders and spun. In fall 2013 at Talladega he had a good car in the first half of the race, in the second half he lost the handle of his car and was very loose. In that race he led 32 laps, earned the 8th best driver rating and finished 20th. In spring 2013 at Talladega Matt Kenseth had an impressive performance. If he would’ve managed the draft a little better at the end he likely would’ve won. In the race he earned the best driver rating, had a 2nd place average running position, led 142 laps and finished 8th. What happened is that he got shuffled out of line during a late restart and didn’t have time to recover. In 2012 at Talladega he had results of 1st and 3rd. (Yahoo A Driver)

Make sure you read the full spectrum of our Talladega CampingWorld.com 500 Fantasy NASCAR Rankings

Top Tier Elite Picks > Front Runners Rankings > Mid Pack Predictions > Yahoo C List Preview