Talladega Fantasy NASCAR Top Tier Elite Picks

Ryan Blaney
Talladega Fantasy Spin – Ryan Blaney’s a super-elite performer at superspeedways who’s always a favorite at Talladega. His “knack for the draft” is on par with the best, and he’s more than proven he can get the job done. Over the last fourteen races on this track type, Blaney has 3 wins, 6 top fives, 9 top tens and a series best 9.3 average finish. In the Next Gen on this track type, Blaney has a series best 8.0 average finish. In the Daytona 500 to kick off the year, Blaney was involved in multiple wrecks but still managed to come home 8th. On Sunday, look for Blaney to be a factor.
Talladega Track History – Ryan Blaney is without question one of the best at Talladega. He’s a two-time winner and over the last 7 races, Blaney has a series best 9.1 average finish and the best driver rating. Last fall, Blaney won Stage #1, led 31 laps, was the leader during the final lap but was then passed by Chase Elliott coming to the finish line which led to his runner-up. Last spring, Blaney led 23 laps, had a 12.1 average running position and then finished 11th. I’ll note, the last Stage went green without a caution and prior to the final pit cycle starting he was running in 2nd. It just kind of shuffled him back about 10 spots. In fall 2021, Blaney had a strong showing and was better than his 15th. In the race, Blaney finished 6th in Stage #1 and had a 9.8 average running position. Blaney was just back in mid-pack when the race reached its early conclusion. In spring 2021, Blaney was strong. In the race he finished 2nd in Stage #1, 6th in Stage #2, led 11 laps and then finished 9th overall. With 5 laps to go until the scheduled distance he was running in 2nd.

Joey Logano
Talladega Fantasy Spin – Three-time Talladega winner, Joey Logano is one of the best superspeedway performers in NASCAR and on Sunday, he’ll be a factor. When it comes to superspeedway prowess, I’ve long viewed Logano as the perfect combination of being smart and aggressive. Recently at superspeedways, Logano’s looked great, but he’s become an asterisk mark machine. Since 2020 at big superspeedways, Logano’s finished 17th or worse in 9 of the 12 races. That said, I think Logano might just be getting back his mojo on this track type. Logano won at Atlanta, won his Daytona Duel 150 and then finished 2nd in the Daytona 500. Logano’s due for an incident free race at Talladega and if he finally does, there’s no doubt he’ll be a factor.
Talladega Track History – Joey Logano has been elite at Talladega, but he’s been down on his luck in many of the recent races and in 5 of the last 6 he’s finished 17th or worse. Last fall, Logano finished 5th in Stage #1 but then ended up finishing a low effort 27th. I’m just chalking up that result to him not trying, which was ironic since he was complaining earlier in the week that drivers just sit back at superspeedways and then get rewarded with a good result. I’ll note, Logano was involved in an accident on lap 24, but I don’t think it really looked like something that would impact him too much. Last spring, Logano showed speed but crashed on lap 90 while running in 6th which led to his 32nd. “Performance Wise”, there’s no doubt he had a good car. In fall 2021, Logano finished 2nd in Stage #1, 3rd in Stage #2, had the 3rd best driver rating, led 9 laps and finished 3rd when the checkered flag waved. In spring 2021, Logano had a great car but was wrecked on the last lap of Stage #1 while running in 3rd. Prior to his demise he led 10 laps. In fall 2020, Logano had a great car that I thought was subjectively the best, but he finished an asterisk mark 26th. In the race, Logano earned the best driver rating, led a race high 45 laps, was the leader with 2 to go (scheduled distance), but then later that lap he crashed which led to his poor finish. In June 2020, Logano was a standout performer but finished 17th. In the race he finished 3rd in Stage #1, 6th in Stage #2, led 33 laps, had a race best 4.2 average running position but finished a misleading 17th. Fuel mileage came into the equation at the end, and that really hurt him since he had to pit for it which dropped him deep in the field late. With 8 laps to go he was running in 3rd. In the five Talladega races prior to that, Logano had 1 win and a 5th place average finish.

Brad Keselowski
Talladega Fantasy Spin – Brad Keselowski is one of the premiere superspeedway racers in NASCAR and at Talladega, there’s no question he’ll be a factor. The #6 team has had a major bump up in performance in 2023, so you better believe this race is circled on his schedule. This year at superspeedways, Keselowski finished 2nd at Atlanta and was a standout performer in the Daytona 500. In the “Great American Race”, the #6 was fast and was perhaps the best “Pusher.” In the race, Keselowski won Stage #1, led a race high 42 laps, earned the 2nd best driver rating but then finished a misleading 22nd after getting caught up in late carnage.
Talladega Track History – Brad Keselowski is a super-elite performer at Talladega. He’s a six-time winner who’s finished in the top five 32% of the time, and in the top ten 46% of the time. Last fall, I think Keselowski was poised to walk away with a great result but during the final green flag pit cycle, he was caught speeding on pit road which led to his 24th. With 30 laps to go until the end and before he was caught speeding, Keselowski was running in 2nd. Last spring, I think the #6 was primed to run well, but Keselowski got two speeding penalties and you can’t overcome that, and it led to his 23rd. One was early and the other was late. In 2021 at Dega, nobody was better than Keselowski. In fall 2021, Keselowski finished 3rd in Stage #1, led 13 laps and then finished 2nd when the checkered flag waved. In spring 2021, Keselowski finished 2nd in Stage #2 and for the afternoon he only led 1 lap, but it was the final one. Also in the race, Keselowski had the best driver rating and the best average running position (8.5). In fall 2020, Keselowski finished 4th in Stage #1, 2nd in Stage #2, led 6 laps and was running in 2nd with 10 to go before all the late mayhem ensued. Then during overtime, Keselowski was caught up in not one, but two accidents. On the final lap while he was running in the top ten he crashed which led to his 18th place finish.

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