Indianapolis Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

William Byron – William Byron is a good dark horse option at Indy. On Sunday, I expect him to race very aggressively in “Hail Mary Mode” since he’ll need to go all out in order to make the Playoffs. Pocono is the most similar track on the schedule and Byron ran well there in both races this year. He finished 9th in the spring and in the summer he finished 4th. Last year at Indy, Byron finished 19th. Additionally, his average running position was 14th and he earned the 16th best driver rating. I’ll also note that with 4 laps to go under caution he was running in 14th.

Alex Bowman – Alex Bowman has a dreadful track record at Indy and over his three combined starts his average finish is 38.7. That should help him fly below the radar of nervous fantasy racers. Last year at Indy, Bowman was involved in a wreck on lap 67 which relegated him to a 33rd place finish. On lap 66 which was one lap before trouble struck he was running in 16th. In the two races prior to that when he was in an uncompetitive situation he had results of 40th and 43rd. I wouldn’t read into those at all. This year at Pocono, Bowman has results of 15th and 20th.

Jimmie Johnson – Jimmie Johnson is a 4-time winner at Indianapolis, and in order to make the post-season he’ll essentially need to win again. Realistically on Sunday I think it would be smart to expect him to finish around the mid-teens. In 3 of the last 5 races at this rectangular track he’s finished between 14th to 16th. Last year, Johnson didn’t have a race to brag about. When the checkered flag waved he finished 16th and had a 15th place average running position. In 2017, Johnson came close to getting his 5th win at Indy, but with 2 laps to go while he was battling three wide for the lead he wrecked. He had the favorable position in the turn and if he would’ve got out of it unscathed the win was likely his for the taking. In 2016, the #48 car was strong. Johnson finished 3rd and earned the 8th best driver rating. I will note he wasn’t quite as good as his result. Performance wise he was closer to 10th place good. In 2015, Johnson showed speed, but his pit strategy was vastly inferior. It led to him finishing 15th, having a 13th place average running position and earning the 12th best driver rating.

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