Michigan Fantasy NASCAR Confidence Ranking Picks
1) Kevin Harvick (Starting – 2nd)
Michigan Fantasy Spin – Kevin Harvick is always a factor at Michigan and on Sunday he’ll be tough to beat. He’s the defending champion of this particular event and over the last three combined Michigan races he has the best driver rating, the best average finish (3.3), the best average running position (5.0) and he’s led the most laps (172). In recent races at high-speed intermediate tracks he’s run well and has been in contention to win a few races, but he’s had a lot of problems which have led to misleading results. In practice, Harvick was very fast. In practice #2 he had the best 5,10 and 15 lap averages. In Happy Hour, his ten lap average ranked as the 3rd best. On Sunday if he can avoid trouble, I would look for Harvick to finish in the top five and compete for the win.
Michigan Track History – Michigan has been a great track for Kevin Harvick. He’s a two-time winner who’s finished in the top five in 9 of the last 13 races. As you read above, over the last three he’s been a “stats standout.” Earlier this year, Harvick had a strong showing and finished 7th despite his race not being incident free. On lap 53 while he was running in 10th he made an unexpected pit stop for a loose wheel which dropped him off the lead lap. Despite his problem he earned the 2nd best driver rating, led the 2nd most laps (15) and had a 10th place average running position. In 2018 at Michigan, nobody was better and he nearly had the season sweep. Last summer, Harvick was the class of the field. He won Stage #1, won Stage #2, won the race, led 108 laps and nearly earned a perfect driver rating. In spring 2018 he should’ve won, but Clint Bowyer doing a two-tire pit stop and then the rain falling at a bad time cost him the win. In the race he earned the best driver rating, had a 2nd place average running position, led a race high 49 laps, finished 4th in Stage #1 and won Stage #2.
DraftKings $11,800 / FanDuel $13,000
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2) Brad Keselowski (Starting – 1st)
Michigan Fantasy Spin – Brad Keselowski will be a driver to watch at Michigan. He’ll have a fast Ford underneath him and with drafting being a bigger part of the equation than in years past, you can count on him being a contender. At Michigan, Keselowski has run well and in 9 of the last 11 races he’s finished in the top ten. Over the last three he’s finished in the top six and on Sunday I think he has a great chance to extend his good finish streak.
Michigan Track History – Brad Keselowski has run well at Michigan. This spring he had a great performance and finished 6th despite his race not being incident free. During pit stops right before Stage #2 ending while he was running in 3rd he got a safety violation which dropped him pretty far back in the running order, but he recovered. Last summer, Keselowski had his best Michigan result and finished runner-up. Additionally, he earned the 4th best driver rating, had a 10th place average running position and finished 9th in both Stage #1 and #2. Closing out the race he was at his best. In spring 2018, Keselowski was a consistent front runner. He finished 6th, had a 6th place average running position, finished 6th in Stage #1 and 7th in Stage #2.
DraftKings $10,700 / FanDuel $12,500
Further Recommend Reading: Michigan Practice Notes/ Practice Speeds Center, Michigan Speed Cheat Sheet, Fantasy NASCAR Start Page, DraftKings Start Page, FanDuel Start Page
3) Joey Logano (Starting – 8th)
Michigan Fantasy Spin – Joey Logano is a fantasy ace at Michigan who’ll be tough to beat. He’s a three-time winner and this spring en route to victory lane he thoroughly dominated the competition. Drafting is a huge part of the equation now at Michigan, and he’s one of the premiere performers at that disciple of racing. It’s doubtful Logano will be as strong as he was in the spring, but he should still be at the top of your fantasy NASCAR radar. One variable I really like about Logano is how strong he’s been at high-speed intermediate tracks. Over the last four races on this track type he has the best driver rating and an impressive 3.3 average finish. For the season on this track type over the 9 combined races he sports a series best 7.9 average finish. On Sunday, look for Logano to finish in the top five and compete for the win.
Michigan Track History – Michigan has been a great track for Joey Logano. He’s a three-time winner who’s finished in the top ten 71% percent of the time. In 12 of the last 13 races he’s finished in the top ten. This spring at Michigan, Logano dominated the competition. In addition to winning he earned the best driver rating, had a 3rd place average running position and led 163 laps. His car was stout and when he was out front nobody could get around him. In summer 2018, Logano had a solid showing. He finished 10th, earned the 10th best driver rating and finished 6th in Stage #2. Last spring he ran slightly better. He finished 7th, earned the 6th best driver rating and had a 9th place average running position. Additionally, he finished 9th in Stage #1 and finished just outside the top ten in Stage #2.
DraftKings $10,200 / FanDuel $13,500
