Phoenix Fantasy NASCAR Post Practice Predictions/ Confidence Rankings

This weekends spring race at Phoenix has a little more anticipation in the air then in years past. A new short track rules package is debuting this weekend, and Phoenix will also mark the 2020 season finale where drivers duel it out in the desert for the championship.

The new rules package being put in place will make the cars more difficult to drive which in theory should help make passing easier. In fantasy NASCAR I often find it to be the case that “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Look for the top drivers to still be the drivers to beat.

The full starting lineup for Phoenix can be found here. There were two practices held on Friday and those speeds can be found here: Practice #1 – Happy Hour. As always, make sure you check out our in-depth notes for those practices, and those can be found here: Practice #1 – Happy Hour. I’ll also note that this is a combined post-practice predictions and confidence rankings post. Regular posts will resume as normal next week. Thanks for understanding.

[themify_box ]Want to be a better fantasy racer? Get the ifantasyrace advantage and read all of our full, exclusive content. FULL SEASON PASSES AVAILABLE FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER! We offer tons of content every week to help you dominate your leagues, both season-long and DFS. Click here to Join Now.[/themify_box]

1) Kevin Harvick (Starting – 2nd)
Phoenix Fantasy Spin – Kevin Harvick is a premiere performer at Phoenix who’ll be a favorite. He’s won here 9-times, and this weekend he has a great car underneath him. In Happy Hour, Harvick had a great car and Jeff Gordon proclaimed, “Kevin Harvick is back!” That could certainly spell doom to the competition. Also in Happy Hour, Harvick had the best 10 lap average and the 2nd best 15,20 and 25 lap average. One attribute you have to like about Harvick is his shorter flat track prowess. In 2019 over the combined races on this sub-track type he raced his way to victory lane once, had a 5.2 average finish, a 6.0 average running position and his Speed Ranking Late In A Run ranked as the 4th best. On Sunday, look for Harvick to compete for a top five and potentially be a factor to win.
Phoenix Track History – Kevin Harvick is a fantasy ace at Phoenix who’s consistently performed at a high-level. He has 13 straight top tens and has only once finished lower than 6th over that stretch. Last fall at Phoenix, Harvick had a great race. He finished 5th, had a 7th place average running position and his Green Flag Average Speed ranked as the 6th best. In spring 2019, Harvick was a stop watch standout in practice, but it didn’t materialize in the race. When the checkered flag waved he finished 9th, had an 8th place average running position and earned the 5th best driver rating. Additionally, he finished 10th in Stage #1 and 3rd in Stage #2. In 4 of the 5 Phoenix races prior to that he finished between 4th to 6th. In fall 2018, Harvick finished 5th and led 73 laps. That result is impressive when you consider on lap 72 while he was leading he had a flat tire that dropped him off the lead lap and back to the high-twenties. In spring 2018, Harvick got his most recent Phoenix win. In that race he led 38 laps, earned the 2nd best driver rating and had a 3rd place average running position. In the three races prior to that he had results of 4th, 5th and 6th.
DraftKings $11,300 / FanDuel $12,500

2) Denny Hamlin (Starting – 3rd)
Phoenix Fantasy Spin – Denny Hamlin should be on your short list of favorites at Phoenix. He’s the most recent winner, and without question he’s one of the strongest drivers at shorter-flat tracks. Last year at shorter-flat tracks over the combined events, Hamlin finished in the top five every race, was tied for a series best 3.2 average finish and his Speed Ranking late in a run was a series best 3.6. In Happy Hour, Hamlin was fast. In that session he had the 4th best ten lap average and the 10th best 15 and 20 lap average. On Sunday, look for Hamlin to be a top five contender who’ll be a factor to win.
Phoenix Track History – Denny Hamlin has thrived at Phoenix and without question he’s been one of the strongest drivers in recent races. In 3 of the last 4 he’s finished in the top five. Over those four combined races he has a 5.8 average finish and a 5.8 average running position. Last fall, Hamlin had a clutch performance and raced his way to victory lane. In addition to winning he earned the best driver rating, had a 2nd place average running position, led a race high 142 laps, had the best Green Flag Average Speed and ranked as the Fastest Driver Late In A Run. Additionally, Hamlin won Stage #1 and finished 2nd in Stage #2. In spring 2019, Hamlin had a strong showing. He finished 5th, had a 7th place average running position and finished 5th in Stage #2. In fall 2018, Hamlin finished 13th but I’ll note he was better than his result. On lap 222 while he was running in 5th he made an unscheduled pit stop. Also from that race despite his problem I’ll note he earned the 7th best driver rating and had an 8th place average running position. In spring 2018 he finished 4th, earned the 5th best driver rating, had a 6th place average running position and led 33 laps (pit strategy).
DraftKings $10,200 / FanDuel $13,000

3) Chase Elliott (Starting – 1st)
Phoenix Fantasy Spin – Chase Elliott will be a contender at Phoenix. The #9 team has showed a lot of speed every week, and at Phoenix I don’t think they’ll disappoint. At Phoenix, Elliott had a great car last fall and minus the last three races where he’s had trouble in some form or fashion his average finish is 6.8. I will note trouble over the last three races here will likely give him out of sync potential. In Happy Hour, Elliott was fast and in that session he had the 5th best 15 and 20 lap average. On Sunday, look for Elliott to finish in the top ten and compete for a top five.
Phoenix Track History – Chase Elliott has been fast at Phoenix, but he’s had trouble the last three races. Last fall when Elliott’s championship hopes were on the line he ran well, but wrecked on lap 166 while he was running in 3rd and had a tire go down. “Performance Wise”, Elliott was clearly a top five contender. In that race he finished 2nd in Stage #1 and 3rd in Stage #2. In spring 2019 he was fast, but his race was far from incident free. In the event he started on the front row but was black flagged at the start for jumping the green flag. That greatly increased his level of difficulty, but he battled back, but that wasn’t his last problem. On lap 219 while he was running in 8th after he just complained about having a vibration, he spun but didn’t hit anything. When the race reached its conclusion he finished 14th, finished 9th in Stage #1 and 9th in Stage #2. In fall 2018 he was a top five contender, but finished a misleading 23rd after wrecking late while running near 5th. In the race he won Stage #1, finished 7th in Stage #2, had a 7th place average running position and led 16 laps. In the two races prior to that he had results of 2nd and 3rd.
DraftKings $9,600 / FanDuel $11,000