Ryan Blaney 2017 Fantasy NASCAR Preview
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2016 Stats : Points Finish 20th, 0 Wins, 3 Top Fives, 9 Top Tens, 18.5 Average Finish, 17.1 Average Running Position, 11 Laps Led
Strengths – In 2017 look for Ryan Blaney to be at his best at flat tracks, intermediate tracks and plate tracks.
Weaknesses – Trouble often doesn\’t seem to be far from Blaney. I would avoid him at road courses and most of the short tracks.
Track Type Fantasy Value Key = Elite > High > Medium High > Medium > Low
Intermediate Track Fantasy Value – High
If you\’re looking to pick Ryan Blaney, I would recommend taking a look at picking him at intermediate tracks. Last year many of his best results were on this track type.
Late in 2016 at intermediate tracks his team looked pretty good. From Michigan #2 until the conclusion of the season minus Dover #2 and Charlotte #2 (wrecked both races) he had a 12.2 average finish.
In 2017 I would look for him to come home with some top tens on this track type and have a baseline fantasy value of low-teens to high-teens.
Flat Track Fantasy Value – High
Ryan Blaney was a pretty good driver at flat tracks in 2016. Over the 7 races held on this track type he scored the 10th most points and only once finished outside of 8th to 12th. His average finish minus Indy where he crashed was 10.3.
At the smaller flat tracks he was very consistent and had a 10.25 average finish. Between those four combined races he finished between 8th to 12th every race.
At Pocono he ran well last year and had results of 10th and 11th. Indy was the one stain on his resume on this track type last year. He finished 36th after being involved in an accident. In 2015 at the Brickyard in a pre-rookie start he finished 12th.
Short Track Fantasy Value – Medium
I wouldn\’t feel the most comfortable picking Ryan Blaney at a short track. Trouble often isn\’t far from him on this track type. Last year he finished 19th or worse in 6 of the 7 races.
Between the three short tracks I would only really consider picking him at Bristol. It\’s a good track for him and he\’s previously won there in the Truck Series and the Xfinity Series. Last spring at Thunder Valley he finished 11th. In summer 2016 he finished 35th.
In 2016 at Martinsville he was consistent. He finished 19th in the Spring and in the fall. This upcoming season I think he\’ll probably be marginally better.
Richmond has been his least successful short track. In 2016 he had results of 28th and 39th.
Plate Track Fantasy Value – High
Ryan Blaney is a good restrictor plate racer. Last year on this track type he scored the 9th most points and finished between 9th and 14th in three of the four races. He also did a good job and avoided trouble having finished in the top 19 every race. One attribute I like about him is that he stays in line and doesn\’t make stupid mistakes which often plummet drivers in the running order.
Between the two plate tracks I like him more at Talladega. Since 2015 minus a fall 2015 engine failure he has an 8th place average finish. Last year he had results of 9th and 11th.
At Daytona he hasn\’t been as successful. Last year he had results of 14th and 19th.
Road Course Track Fantasy Value – Medium
Ryan Blaney doesn\’t really strike me as a road course racer and his results on this track type last year didn\’t exactly instill any level of confidence.
Last year he had results of 19th (Watkins Glen) and 23rd (Sonoma). If you really want to pick him I think he has better fantasy potential at Watkins Glen. It\’s a much better track for Penske Racing who aides the Wood Brothers.
Now that he has a season under his belt I think we\’ll see natural improvement from the sophomore driver.
