Martinsville Fantasy NASCAR Front Runner Rankings

Chase Briscoe
Martinsville Fantasy Spin – If you’re looking for a sleeper and feel like rolling the dice, consider Chase Briscoe. Briscoe was legitimately one of the best this spring and over the last three in the Next Gen at “The Paper Clip” he’s 3 for 3 at finishing in the top ten and has a 7.6 average finish. On Sunday, I would view him as a teens driver who has top ten upside.
Martinsville Track History – In the Next Gen at Martinsville, Chase Briscoe is one of just 4 drivers who are 3 for 3 at finishing in the top ten, with the other three being Joey Logano, Ryan Blaney and Chase Elliott. This spring, Briscoe was one of the best. In the race, Briscoe started 4th, finished 5th in Stage #1, finished 2nd in Stage #2, had a race best 4.8 average running position, led the 2nd most laps (109), had the best driver rating and then finished 5th. In terms of speed stats, Briscoe had the 3rd best Green Flag Speed and ranked 4th for Total Speed Rankings. Last fall when Briscoe was battling for a berth to the championship #4, he ran a solid race. In the race, Briscoe finished 5th in Stage #1 but then during that Stage caution he was penalized for equipment leaving his pit box. Then in the final Stage, Briscoe battled back and was legitimately up to 9th on lap 458 before the last caution came out. Then Briscoe did a pit strategy play by electing not to pit which got him up to the lead where he paced the field for 25 laps. Briscoe then led up until there was five laps to go, but then he had a rapid free-fall in the running order back to his 9th. In the race, Briscoe had an 11.6 average running position, ranked 12th for speed late in a run and had the 13th best Total Speed Ranking. Last spring, Briscoe was solid and finished 9th.

Aric Almirola
Martinsville Fantasy Spin – Aric Almirola is a great mid-tier dark horse who you don’t want to overlook at Martinsville. Almirola’s come close to victory lane in the past, was one of the best this spring and in 3 of the last 4 races he’s finished in the top 8. On Sunday, I would view Almirola as a teens driver who has top ten upside.
Martinsville Track History – Aric Almirola has been solid at Martinsville and as you read above, in 3 of the last 4 races he’s finished in the top ten. Over the last three races which outline the Next Gen era, Almirola has a 9.6 average finish, he’s tied for having the best average running position (7.8) and his driver rating is the 5th best. This spring, Almirola looked great and was one of the best. In the race, Almirola finished 2nd in Stage #1, 9th in Stage #2, was tied for having a race best 4.8 average running position and then finished 6th. In terms of speed stats, Almirola had the 2nd best Total Speed Ranking, ranked 3rd for Speed Late In A Run and then 4th for Green Flag Speed. Last fall, Almirola had a respectable showing and finished 15th. I’ll note, I do think Almirola was marginally better than his result. In the race, Almirola had a 12.3 average running position, the 11th best Total Speed Ranking, ranked 14th for speed late in a run and was running in 13th shortly before the final caution came out. Last spring, Almirola had a great race. In the event he qualified 2nd, finished 5th in Stage #1, 7th in Stage #2, had a 6.3 average running position and then finished 8th. In terms of speed stats, Almirola had the 6th best Total Speed Ranking and ranked 8th for speed late in a run. In fall 2021, Almirola started 23rd but raced his way up to a 6th place finish. In the race, Almirola had a 10th place average running position, had the 7th best Green Flag Speed and the 7th best Total Speed Ranking.

Bubba Wallace
Martinsville Fantasy Spin – At Martinsville, I think Bubba Wallace is a low double-digit to mid-teens driver who has a good chance to finish in the top ten. Martinsville has historically been one of his best tracks and prior to 2022, I would argue it was his best non-superspeedway.
Martinsville Track History – At Martinsville, Bubba Wallace has been solid. Wallace currently has back-to-back top tens and in 6 of his last 8 races he’s finished in the top 16. This spring, Wallace finished 9th, had a 14.1 average running position and then ranked 11th for Green Flag Speed and Total Speed Rankings. I’ll note, Wallace’s race wasn’t incident free. During a caution around lap 135 while running in 7th, Wallace was caught speeding on pit road. Last fall, Wallace had his best Martinsville performance. In that race, Wallace finished 8th, had the 8th best Total Speed Ranking and had a 12.6 average running position. It was a great race from him. Last spring, Wallace was a mid-teens driver. In the race he finished 16th, had an 18.3 average running position, ranked 9th for speed late in a run and had the 20th best Total Speed Ranking. In fall 2021, Wallace finished 25th but take note on lap 430 while running in 12th he made an unexpected pit stop.

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