Last week we were at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, which was a small, one-mile racetrack. This week we’re at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a massive two-and-a-half mile flat track. Pretty much the only thing those two have in common is that they’re both relatively flat. Further, there’s really no other track on NASCAR’s circuit that compares to Indy, and we really have limited past statistics to evaluate because the Sprint Cup Series only races here once per season. Be sure to watch practice closely this week to see who is going to have a chance to kiss the bricks at The Brickyard in the Crown Royal Presents the Jeff Kyle 400 on Sunday.
Fantasy Sleepers for Indianapolis
Austin Dillon – While Kyle Busch was off winning his third race of the 2015 season last week at Loudon, Austin Dillon was also collected a third specific finish of this year: top 10. Despite continuing his mediocrity since joining NASCAR’s top series, young Austin has actually been a pretty solid pick as of late, finishing 7th at Daytona a few weeks ago and then 8th at Loudon last weekend. In case you forgot, Austin was one of my top sleeper picks last week and I figure you might as well roll with the hot hand right now. It also doesn’t hurt that the Childress engines have plenty of power and that we’re at a track that requires it. Dillon finished 26th in his first ever Cup start here at Indianapolis but he followed that up with a solid 10th-place result last season. And for what it’s worth, he qualified 6th and ended up 19th back at Pocono this year, which is somewhat comparable to Indy (although not really). Going into the Jeff Kyle 400 race weekend I have Austin Dillon as a mid-teens car with some upside potential. Keep an eye on the #3 Chevrolet in practice this weekend.
Greg Biffle – I realize that this guy probably shouldn’t be classified as a sleeper pick, but I’m pretty sure very few people are even considering The Biff for their fantasy rosters this season. The Roush-Fenway organization is all riding the same struggle bus, just as I said they would earlier this year. However, I’m quietly holding out some hope for Biffle and this #16 team at The Brickyard this weekend. Hey, even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while. The reason I kind of like Biffle this week is because of his history at this track: in 12 career starts at Indianapolis, Greg has posted six top 10s and an average finish of 13.2. Even better? Five of those top 10s have come in the last seven years. Even more optimism when it comes to the #16 Ford on Sunday is the fact that The Biff ran 12th at Pocono earlier this year. Right now I don’t see it happening, but if this team can pull off a surprise top 10 finish this weekend, Biffle could be a very valuable pick in some fantasy leagues.
A.J. Allmendinger – When JTG Daugherty Racing made the switch to Chevrolet, I liked it because I believe it gave them just a little more horsepower. Now obviously there’s still some holes that need patched with this organization, but they’re getting there. Also, they have a very talented driver behind the wheel–yeah, I just said that about A.J. Allmendinger. Last week at Loudon, A.J. came home a very surprising 13th, which has been his best finish since Richmond back in April. But this team ran very well at Sonoma last month and had a decent weekend the following week in Daytona, so it’s not like the #47 has been running terrible. So, looking at A.J.’s history here at Indianapolis, paired with the speed he has shown as of late, I think there’s some upside potential in this #47 Chevrolet on Sunday. In six career Cup starts at The Brickyard, Allmendinger has just one top 10, but he has also never finished worse than 22nd. Also, his career average result of 18th is better than some of the “big dog” drivers like Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Kurt Busch, and Martin Truex, Jr. It’s going to take a mistake-free race and a whole lot of luck for Allmendinger to get a good finish here at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, but it’s not out of reach for this team.
