Fantasy NASCAR: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 Power Rankings

One race in and if you are a fan of wrecks Daytona did not disappoint. A grand total four drivers were not involved in any of the wrecks. Four.

The rule 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) such that I’m not going to be picking Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch every week. 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: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500
Laps: 325
Date: February 24^th
Venue: Atlanta Motor Speedway
2018 Winner: Kevin Harvick (3:29:54)
Broadcast: Fox

Course

Atlanta Motor Speedway. Opened in 1960, this 1.54 mile quad-oval track is among the fastest tracks on the NASCAR circuit. It underwent a few renovations including nearly rebuilding the track in 1997 and switching the frontstretch with the backstretch. It should be a fast racing with some dirt coming up on the track. There are grooves along the track and familiarity is almost as important as success in higher speed tracks.

Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images

Power Rankings

The Favorites

Kevin Harvick — He won here last year and was 9^th in 2017. After a wreck filled Daytona, I think Atlanta will be fairly clean.

Chase Elliott — He has shined here with top 10 finishes across the board and this will be his chance to make a bold statement into 2019. He finished 17^th last week at Daytona.

High Risk / High Reward

Daniel Hemric — He got caught up in the thick of the thick last week and I want to see how the rookie rebounds going into Atlanta where the more skilled speed drivers can excel.

Kyle Larson — I feel like true speed, Kyle is amongst the fastest in the spot but he gets caught up cutting off drivers and trading rubber so often it’s a question of how much of that gets in the way. He has been a top ten driver the last two years at Atlanta.

The Dark Horse

Ricky Stenhouse — He has been a consistent 10^th -16^th place finisher here the last few days. He was 13^th last week at Daytona and I think he could be a top 15 finisher at Atlanta for a lower cost.

2019 Results

Favorite: Avg Finish 24^th (62^nd Percent)
High Risk/High Reward: Avg Finish 14^th (36^th Percent)

Dark Horse: Avg Finish 5^th (13^th Percent)