Talladega Geico 500 Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Dale Earnhardt Jr. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be the favorite to win at Talladega. He’s an elite plate racer and his last name certainly doesn’t hurt his popularity as a pick. At this venue he’s been to victory lane six times and has finished in the top ten 50% percent of the time. Last year he was the best performer. Between the combined events he had a 1.5 average finish, led 128 laps and had the best driver rating by a healthy margin. Last fall he had a great chance to win but he increased his level of difficulty while he was leading during the pit cycle on lap 120, but he got a pit penalty when his pit crew went over the wall to soon. He was able to rally up to 2nd and seriously challenge for the win but he never really got a chance because of how the race ended. In that race it should be noted he earned the best driver rating and led the most laps (61). Last spring nobody really had anything for him. 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. In fall 2014 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 spring 2014 I thought he had the best car but he had no desire to race at the end because he didn’t want to wreck. In the Daytona 500 Earnhardt Jr. ran well at times but faded when handling entered the equation. In that race he finished 36th after wrecking. (Yahoo A Driver / DraftKings – $10,300)

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Kevin Harvick – Kevin Harvick will be one of the drivers to beat at Talladega. He’s an elite restrictor plate driver and ranks as one of the best on this track type. At Talladega he’s been a strong performer. Over the last five races he’s tied with Ryan Newman for the best average finish (10.2). Also over that stretch it should be noted he’s the only driver who’s finished in the top fifteen every race. Last fall I thought he had a great car but it’s hard to gauge just how good he was. Over the last 40 laps he had an ailing engine. It should be noted that at the time of the first Green-White-Checker before he wiped out half the field he was running in 11th. Last spring at Talladega he had a strong car. He started 24th, finished 8th and earned the 5th best driver rating. His race also wasn’t incident free because on lap 118 he got a pit penalty. In fall 2014 he ran well. He started in 39th but that wasn’t a problem for him. Whenever he wanted to get to the front he had no trouble doing so. At the end of the race he got as high as third but Joey Logano became a “Moving Chicane” which broke his momentum and caused him to fade back to 9th. Also in the event it should be noted he earned the 7th best driver rating and had a 14th place average running position. In spring 2014 at Talladega he had a successful afternoon and performed well. In the race he started 8th, had a 9th place average running position, finished 7th, and led 15 laps. Over the final 70 laps he was a driver who consistently ran in the top five. In the closing laps he was very strong but lost a number of positions late. Of the final 21 laps he led 15 of them. In the Daytona 500 Kevin Harvick finished 4th and earned the 5th best driver rating. (Yahoo A Driver / DraftKings – $9,400)

Further Recommended Reading – Front Runner Rankings, Mid Pack Predictions, Talladega Scouting Report, Talladega Fall 2015 DraftKings Points, Talladega Loop Data Box Score

Jimmie Johnson – Jimmie Johnson will be one of the drivers to beat at Talladega. In the Generation 6 car he’s arguably been the best driver at plate tracks. Last fall at Talladega he had a great car but finished 18th. It should be noted that result deserves an asterisk mark. Late in the race he was spun during a restart. Prior to spinning he was running in 7th. Also in the race it should be noted he earned the 4th best driver rating, had a 7th place average running position and led 34 laps. In spring 2015 he was very strong. He finished 2nd, earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 4th place average running position and led 50 laps. The only driver who had a better car was race winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. In fall 2014 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 May 2013 I thought Johnson had the best car and when the race reached its conclusion he finished 5th. In the Daytona 500 Jimmie Johnson ran well at times but faded when handling entered the equation. In that race he finished 16th and led 18 laps. (Yahoo A Driver / DraftKings – $9,800)

Make sure you read the full spectrum of our 2016 Talladega Geico 500 Fantasy NASCAR Rankings

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