The Low Tier – Martinsville
Michael McDowell – Michael McDowell has a terrible track record at Martinsville, I would urge you to disregard anything before 2016. Last year he had a successful season in his tier. Between the combined events he scored the 22nd most points and had a 21st place average finish. Last fall he had his most successful showing. In the event he finished 18th and had a 22nd place average running position. In spring 2016 he had his second best Martinsville performance and finished 24th. Additionally in the race it should be noted he had a 24th place average running position and earned the 25th best driver rating. (Yahoo C Driver)
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Chris Buescher – Chris Buescher will be a driver to watch at Martinsville. His track record leaves a lot to be desired but he’s in much better equipment this year. Personally I would recommend largely overlooking his track history. JTG Daugherty Racing has this place figured out and teammate AJ Allmendinger has finished in the top eleven in 5 of the last 6 races. By his own account Martinsville hasn’t been a place of great success for Buescher and his average finish over his three events is 28.0. Last fall Buescher didn’t run well. He finished 27th and had a 30th place average running position. Last spring he ran even worse and finished 33rd. In spring 2015 in a pre-rookie start in the #34 Chris Buescher finished 24th. (Yahoo B Driver)
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – If you pick Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at Martinsville you’re asking for trouble. There’s a good chance if he’s your selection you’ll get burned. He has a 32.8 average finish and has had a result between 31st and 40th in 6 of his last 7 starts. Last fall he started in the rear of the field after wrecking in qualifying and then backed his car into the wall on lap 21 which marked the end of his race leading to his last place finish. In spring 2016 he might’ve been high-teens to low-twenties good but on lap 140 while he was running in 18th he was spun and backed his car into the wall. After that he was no longer competitive. In fall 2015 his race also wasn’t incident free and as a result he finished 39th. In that race on lap 127 he pounded the wall hard which sent him to the garage for repairs. Performance wise he might’ve been mid-twenties good based on how he performed. In spring 2015 he was a caution machine single handily bring out three and his last one was the nail in the coffin and led to his 40th place finish. In fall 2014 he had his best performance and finished 15th. It’s important to note in that event he had a 24th place average running position and earned the 24th best driver rating. (Yahoo B Driver)
David Ragan – Martinsville is a track where David Ragan is capable of having better than normal fantasy production. In recent races he’s been a respectable performer, given his tier. Last fall Ragan finished a misleading 37th after he had problems under his hood around lap 60 while running in 26th that caused him to go to the garage area. In the two Martinsville races prior to that he finished in the twenties with results of 21st and 25th. In the two Martinsville races prior to those events he swept the top ten with results of 5th and 10th. (Yahoo C Driver)
Landon Cassill – At Martinsville you should look for Landon Cassill to finish between 19th and 29th. Over the last seven races at NASCAR’s oldest track he’s finished within that range so I don’t see why he won’t extend that streak to 8. Last year he didn’t have a successful afternoon by any standards in either event. Last fall he finished 29th and had a 29th place average running position. In spring 2016 he didn’t do a lot better finishing 28th and having a 28th place average running position. In the three Martinsville races prior to that he had measurable success by his standards and came home with results of 19th, 21st and 21st. (Yahoo C Driver)
Make sure you read the full spectrum of our Martinsville Fantasy NASCAR Rankings
Top Tier Elite Picks > Front Runners Rankings > Mid Pack Predictions > The Low Tier
