Fantasy NASCAR: Overton 400

The rules I have implemented for myself are:

1.I will not pick a driver more than 10 times this season.

2.Due to #1 these are “Power Rankings” (in quotations) I’m looking for value here.

My general format for my power rankings:

•Top 2 picks will generally be the favorites, the ones who should be top 5 or top 10 finishes.

• #3 and #4 will be your riskier picks, could be top 5 or bottom 15.

• Pick #5 is the dark horse.

Race Information

Race: Overton 400 (race 17 of 26 regular season races)

Laps: 267

Date: July 1^st

Venue: Chicagoland Speedway

2017 Winner: Martin Truex Jr. (2:47:24)

Broadcast: NBSCN (Dale Earnhardt Jr.)

Most Wins: Tony Stewart (3)

Course: Chicagoland Speedway. This 1.5 mile tri-oval Asphalt track was first utilized in 2001. The plane consists of 18 degrees incline on the turns, 11 degrees on the front and 5 degrees on the back. The track holds 55,000 spectators and hosts both the Overton 400 as well as an IndyCar Series race. Previously a playoff race, this is now part of the regular season circuit.

Power Rankings

Favorites

1) Denny Hamlin (5^th selection this year) The most consistent track record of success at Chicagoland over the last four years, Denny won here in 2015, has never finished worse than 6^th and finished 4^thhere last year.

2) Martin Truex Jr. (3^rd selection this year) Back to back wins at Chicagoland he is the favorite going into this weekend. It seems like he has figured this track out and it helps that he is coming into the Overton 400 fresh off a win at Sonoma (and two wins in the last three weeks). To some degree I was waiting intentionally on Martin to get hot which he is clearly doing now.

High Risk/High Reward

3) Jamie McMurray (4^th selection this year). He has top 12 finishes in three of his last four years at Chicago. Outside of his car malfunction last week, he has top fifteen finishes in the three prior races. To recap his season, after a finish worse than 25 he usually rebounds – 26^th, 17^th, 3^rd, 16^th, 6^th.

4) Ryan Blaney (5^th selection this year) Slowly becoming Kyle Larson 2.0 Ryan is going to get you a top ten finish or a wreck out. Here are his last five race finishes: 37^th, 36^th, 6^th, 8^th, 34^th. I’m trusting in the top ten finish as he finished 4^th here two years ago as a rookie and 11^th last year as a sophomore.

Dark Horse

5) Darrell Wallace Jr. (2^nd selection this year). He had success during the Xfinity series here previously. It seems like every other race he does ok lately so I’m gambling on that trend to continue. He has one top fifteen finish this year and I’m gambling we see the second one this weekend.

Average Finish:

Favorites: avg finish 10th (27th percentile)

High Risk/High Reward: avg finish 16th (44^thpercentile)

Dark Horse: avg finish 20th (52nd percentile)