Ryan Blaney 2020 Fantasy NASCAR Preview
Ryan Blaney 2019 Stats: Points Finish 7th, 1 Win 11 Top Fives, 18 Top Tens, 13.7 Average Finish, 11.0 Average Running Position, 422 Laps Led, 93.81 Driver Rating
Strengths:
Ryan Blaney is a well rounded driver who’s capable of performing at a high-level across all the different track types.
In 2020, look for Blaney to be at his best at intermediate tracks, short tracks and road courses.
One variable I like about Blaney is how strong he closed out the 2019 season. From Bristol to the conclusion of the season minus Dover (parts failure), Kansas (top 5 contender but wrecked late) and Richmond (His absolute worst track) he had a 7.1 average finish.
Weaknesses:
“Closing out races” has been a weakness for Ryan Blaney. Every year he seems to have more than a handful of races where he should’ve come home with a good finish, but at the end he ends up coming home with a clunker result. Improving on that variable is key for him if he wants to take the next step in his career.
Richmond has been a career long weak spot for Ryan Blaney. It’s head scratching that he’s that bad there since he’s good at the other shorter-flat tracks.
Intermediate Track Fantasy Value – A-
Ryan Blaney is a strong performer at intermediate tracks, but he underachieved in 2019. Last year over the 17 combined races he had 2 top fives, 5 top tens and 10 top fifteen finishes. Over the combined events his 17.1 average finish ranked as the 20th best. His 12.2 average running position ranked as the 7th best. Those numbers tell the tale of a driver who runs well, but has trouble closing out races.
In 2020 at intermediate tracks, I think he’ll have slightly less problems and on a weekly basis he should be viewed as a top ten contender.
Flat Track Fantasy Value – B+
Ryan Blaney is a strong performer at flat tracks, and in 2020 he should be high on your radar at both the bigger and the shorter-flat tracks. Over the combined races in 2019 he scored the 7th most points and had a 10.1 average finish.
Last year at the bigger flat tracks, Blaney swept the top 12 and had a 9.7 average finish. At Pocono, Blaney is a former winner and minus a misleading result in summer 2017 he’s finished in the top 12 every race. Last year at “The Tricky Triangle” he had results of 10th and 12th. In spring 2018 at Pocono, Blaney got his first win. At Indy, Blaney is 3 for 3 in terms of finishing in the top 12 in races where he doesn’t crash. Last year he finished 7th, in 2018 he finished 11th.
At shorter-flat tracks, Blaney was a fantasy ace in 2019, with the exception of Richmond which you’ll read more about below. In the non-Richmond races at shorter-flat tracks he finished in the top 4 every race. At Phoenix last year he had a pair of 3rd place finishes. At New Hampshire last year he finished 4th and he currently has three straight top tens there.
Short Track Fantasy Value – B+
Ryan Blaney is a strong short track driver and if it wasn’t for Richmond which accounts for 1/3rd of this track type, I would’ve given him a higher grade. Last year on this track type minus Richmond he had a 5.8 average finish and a 4.8 average running position.
Richmond ranks as Blaney’s worst track, and for whatever reason it has his number. His all-time best result is 17th, and his overall average finish is 25.5. Last year he had results of 17th and 25th.
At Martinsville, Blaney has performed at an extremely high-level and in 4 of the last 5 races he’s finished in the top 8. Last year, Blaney swept the top five and had results of 4th and 5th.
At Bristol, Blaney has been a serious contender to win and in 3 of the last 4 races he’s led +100 laps. In 4 of the last 5 Bristol races he’s finished in the top ten. In the one race he didn’t, he led 100 laps but crashed while leading. In 2019 he had results of 4th and 10th.
Superspeedway Fantasy Value – A-
Ryan Blaney raced his way to victory lane once last year, and it came on this track type at Talladega. When it comes to superspeedway racing, I think he’s a driver who’s on the border line of becoming elite, but he’s wrecked far too frequently.
At Daytona, Blaney has been very strong and he’s been a contender to win 2 of the last 3 Daytona 500’s. Unfortunately, Blaney has wrecked in 4 of the last 5 races. Last year he wrecked in both races (31st and 36th). In 2018 he finished 40th in the summer, and in the Daytona 500 he led 118 laps and finished 7th.
At Talladega, Blaney led 35 laps and raced his way to victory lane last fall. In spring 2019 he finished 15th. In the four races prior to that he finished 18th or worse.
Road Course Fantasy Value – A-
Ryan Blaney is a strong road course racer who ranks among the better performers in the series. In 2019 on this track type he had 2 top fives, finished in the top ten every race and had a 5.3 average finish.
The Charlotte Roval is his best road course. Last year he finished 8th, and in 2018 he snuck into victory lane after the wild ending.
At Sonoma, Blaney has finished in the top ten every other race. Last year he finished 3rd, in 2018 he had power steering problems and finished 34th. In 2017 he finished 9th.
At Watkins Glen, Blaney has been fast and over the last three races he has an 8.3 average finish. Last year he finished 5th.
