Michigan Saturday Fantasy NASCAR Confidence Rankings/ Driver Breakdowns

1) Kevin Harvick / Starting 3rd / DraftKings $11,000 / FanDuel $14,000

Kevin Harvick is a super-elite performer at Michigan who’ll be the favorite. He’s the most recent winner, and in 3 of the last 4 MIS races he’s finished in the top 2. Over the last four combined Michigan races, Harvick has a series best 2.8 average finish, a series best 5.4 average running position and he’s averaged leading 48.5 laps per race. Last summer at Michigan, Harvick was stout and raced his way to victory lane. In addition to winning he had a 7.0 average running position, led 22 laps and ranked as the “Fastest Driver Late In A Run.” I’ll note before Logano started easing up at the end, Harvick was running in 2nd. In spring 2019, Harvick had a great performance 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. That created a long afternoon for him, but he battled back. Also in the race it should be noted he earned the 2nd best driver rating, led the 2nd most laps (15) and had a 10th place average running position despite his problem. In 2018, nobody was better than Harvick at Michigan. He dominated in the summer, and in the spring if the race wasn’t rain shortened he probably would’ve won that race too. In August 2018, nobody had anything for Harvick and he easily raced his way to victory lane. In the race he won Stage#1, won Stage #2, led 108 laps, had a 3rd place average running position and nearly earned a perfect driver rating. In spring 2018, Harvick finished 2nd, but nobody was better than him. 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. If it wasn’t for rain and Clint Bowyer doing a two-tire pit stop right at the end, I think he clearly would’ve won. This year at high-speed intermediate tracks, Kevin Harvick has been fast. Across all the intermediate tracks visited minus Homestead he’s finished in the top ten every race and has a 5.1 average finish. In the three race recent stint at low to minimal tire wear tracks he had results of 4th (Kansas), 5th (Texas) and 4th (Kentucky).

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2) Denny Hamlin / Starting 2nd / DraftKings $10,400 / FanDuel $13,500

Denny Hamlin should be on your short list of favorites at Michigan. I consider Kansas to be a “Mini-Michigan”, and at that venue he just raced his way to victory lane. This year at high-speed intermediate tracks, Hamlin has been fast and since Charlotte #2 minus Texas his average finish is 4.2. At Auto Club, the other 2.0 mile oval on the circuit he finished 6th this spring. At Michigan, Hamlin has been strong and over the last four races he has the 3rd best average finish (8.3), the 6th best average running position (9.9) and he’s finished in the top 12 every race. Last summer at Michigan, Denny Hamlin had a great car and was a consistent front runner. When the checkered flag waved he finished 2nd, had a 4.7 average running position and ranked as the 2nd “Fastest Driver Late In A Run.” In spring 2019, Hamlin was solid. He finished 11th and had a 14th place average running position. In summer 2018, Hamlin finished 8th and had a 9th place average running position. Additionally, he finished 6th in Stage #1 and just outside the top ten in Stage #2. In spring 2018, Hamlin started in the rear of the field, but that wasn’t a problem. When the checkered flag waved he finished 12th, earned the 12th best driver rating and had a 13th place average running position.

3) Joey Logano / Starting 1st / DraftKings $9,700 / FanDuel $11,400

Joey Logano is a fantasy ace at Michigan who’ll be tough to beat. Michigan is a stellar venue for Logano and since 2013 he’s only finished outside the top ten twice, and both of those are misleading results. Last year at Michigan, I would argue nobody was better “Performance Wise” then Joey Logano. In both races he ranked #1 in our exclusive PROS Rankings. Last summer, Logano finished 17th, but you can quickly get out your asterisk mark for that result. In the race he finished 4th in Stage #1, 4th in Stage #2, had a 4.7 average running position, led 52 laps and ranked as the 5th “Fastest Driver Late In A Run.” With 4 laps to go while he was running in 2nd he ducked down to pit road for fuel. With 22 laps to go before he eased up to save fuel he was the race leader. In spring 2019, Logano had the field covered and easily raced his way to victory lane. In addition to winning he earned the best driver rating, led 163 laps and ranked as the 2nd “Fastest Driver Late In A Run.” In summer 2018, Logano had a solid showing. He finished 10th, earned the 10th best driver rating and finished 6th in Stage #2. In spring 2018, Logano 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. On Saturday, Joey Logano is going to start on the pole. In 3 of the last 4 Michigan races he’s started first, he’s finished first!