Bristol Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Kyle Busch – Seven-time Bristol winner Kyle Busch will be a favorite. He’s been extremely competitive here and has won 2 of the last 3 races. Last summer, Busch had a stellar car but finished 20th. On lap 3 he was involved in an accident and that was a huge setback. When the race went back to green following that caution he was on pit road and was two laps down. His car had a good amount of damage and it took him nearly the entire race but he battled back. With 81 laps to go he was up to 3rd and at that time he arguably had the fastest car on the track. Then with 68 laps to go he had contact with Truex Jr. while passing him for 2nd and that likely later led to his flat tire with 20 laps to go which cemented him to his poor result. Last spring, Busch was impressive and won from the pole. He led 117 laps, earned the 2nd best driver rating and had a 4th place average running position. I will note if there wasn’t a late caution he likely would’ve finished 2nd. In summer 2017, he had a great car and raced his way to victory lane. In addition to winning he earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 3rd place average running position and led 156 laps. Additionally, he won Stage #1 and probably would’ve won Stage #2 if there wasn’t a late caution that allowed others to use pit strategy. In many of the Bristol races prior to that he was top five good, but walked away with a misleading result.

[themify_box]Want to be a better fantasy racer? Get the ifantasyrace advantage and read all of our full exclusive week to weekend content. Join Now![/themify_box]

Kyle Larson – Kyle Larson should be on your short list of favorites at Bristol. He’s run exceptionally well here and has come close to victory lane in many of the recent races. When it comes to running the high-line around “Thunder Valley” nobody is better. Over the last four races at Bristol he has the best driver rating, the best average finish (4.8), the best average running position (4.8), he’s led the most laps (489) and he’s run the most fastest laps. Last summer, he was fast but he really wasn’t a factor. In the race he started on the pole, finished 2nd, had a 7th place average running position, earned the 8th best driver rating and led 17 laps. I’ll note at the very end he was on fresh tires which allowed him to rally towards the front. Realistically he was around 7th place good. Also from the race it should be noted he finished 6th in Stage #1 and 3rd in Stage #2. Last spring I thought Larson had the best car but he finished 2nd when the checkered flag waved. In the race he earned the best driver rating, led 200 laps, had a 3rd place average running position and finished 5th in the first two Stages. What makes that even more impressive is that on lap 177 while leading he spun. If there wasn’t a late caution which regrouped the field at the end, nobody was going to beat him. In summer 2017, he was strong. He earned the 3rd best driver rating, had a 5th place average running position, finished 9th and led 70 laps. Additionally, he finished 3rd in Stage #1 and 6th in Stage #2. In spring 2017 he was phenomenal. In that race he started on the pole, led a race high 202 laps, had a 4th place average running position and finished 6th.

Joey Logano – Joey Logano is a two-time winner at Bristol who’ll be tough to beat. Over the last seven races at “Thunder Valley” he has the 2nd best driver rating, a 7.4 average finish, an 8.9 average running position and has finished in the top 13 every race. Last summer, Logano had a great car and was a threat to win. He finished 4th, had a 6th place average running position and led 95 laps. Additionally, he finished 9th in Stage #1 and won Stage #2. Last spring, Logano had a strong showing and finished 9th. Additionally, he earned the 5th best driver rating and had an 8th place average running position. I will note he was likely better than his result but around lap 200 he got into the wall. In summer 2017, while he was in a slump he had an OK race and was a low-double digits driver. When the checkered flag waved he finished 13th and had a 12th place average running position. In spring 2017, Logano was very strong and was a factor to win. In the race he finished 5th, had a 4th place average running position, earned the 4th best driver rating and led 72 laps. Additionally, he finished 4th in Stage #1, and 2nd in Stage #2. In 2016 he finished 10th both races. At Bristol, look for Logano to finish in the top ten and compete for a top five.

Make sure you read the full spectrum of our Bristol Fantasy NASCAR Rankings

Top Tier Elite Picks > Front Runners Rankings > Mid Pack Predictions > The Low Tier