Texas Final Yahoo! Fantasy NASCAR Expert Rankings and Picks

Typically the 1.5-mile race tracks are relatively easy to predict, but that might not be the case at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend. Not only are we dealing with a newly repaved race track with very little room for error, but the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series teams never even made a lap at the “new” Texas until Friday. And after seeing the six or seven cars wreck on Friday and Saturday, you have to wonder whether or not NASCAR is regretting that decision. Add on the fact that almost a quarter of the field wasn’t even able to qualify on Friday and we have what’s setting up to be a very exciting race–and probably an equally frustrating day for Fantasy NASCAR players.

My team points last week (Martinsville): 242
Overall team percentile: 79th
Total team points for the season: 1,676

Yahoo! A Group Pick and Final Rankings for Texas

There’s only three A Group drivers starting in the back on Sunday–Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.–and there’s really no need to take on the risk with starting any of them. Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson have pretty good race cars, but with how crazy this race could turn out, they could easily be caught up in a wreck. Plus, if you start a driver that qualified up front, you have a higher chance of getting valuable laps led bonus points.

Kevin Harvick will be in the best position to start Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 but it’s Brad Keselowski that is most likely to dominate this race. The Blue Deuce has got a ton of speed in it this weekend and the #2 team is the hottest in the garage right now, with five straight top 5 finishes, including two victories. Also, don’t forget that Keselowski won at Kentucky last year, which this “new” Texas is getting compared to. His teammate, Joey Logano, is also a solid top 5 threat this weekend and a relatively safe Fantasy NASCAR option. Martin Truex, Jr. will start 7th but doesn’t appear to be as fast here at Texas as he has been at other 1.5-mile tracks recently. Still, the #78 Toyota should be inside the top 10 when the O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 ends on Sunday.

My Starter: Brad Keselowski

Final A Group Rankings: (1) Brad Keselowski, (2) Kevin Harvick, (3) Joey Logano, (4) Martin Truex, Jr., (5) Kyle Busch, (6) Matt Kenseth, (7) Jimmie Johnson, (8) Denny Hamlin, (9) Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

Yahoo! B Group Picks and Final Rankings for Texas

The one dilemma that many Yahoo! Fantasy Auto Racing players are facing this weekend is whether or not to start Chase Elliott and Kyle Larson. And really the best way to approach that is looking at your other two B Group drivers. The fact of the matter is that because Elliott and Larson have so far to come up through the field, the chances of them leading any laps on Sunday are severely diminished. Yes, they both have top 5 finish potential, but those bonus points for leading a lap are very valuable in this game. So if you have someone like Ryan Blaney and/or Clint Bowyer also on your roster this weekend, it’s probably worth taking a shot with them and saving Elliott and Larson for another day. Bowyer is very happy with his car this weekend and is a must-start (in my opinion) if you have him.

Aside from the top four B Group drivers, though, it’s pretty slim pickings here. Jamie McMurray has a solid top 10 starting spot but will probably fall back a bit during the race and end up in his usual 9th-to-12th-place range. Ryan Newman also qualified well this weekend but didn’t back up that speed at all during the practice sessions on Saturday. In fact, both Richard Childress Racing Chevrolets look relatively subpar this weekend. Kurt Busch but can you trust him right now? He hasn’t finished better than 24th in over a month.

If you want to go with an off-sequence starter, why not try one of the Roush-Fenway Fords? Trevor Bayne looked to be having a great weekend going and had legitimate top 10 potential but ended up wrecking in Happy Hour and will have to go to a backup car and start in the rear. But it’s not like there’s going to be other guys doing the exact same thing. Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., on the other hand, will still start where he qualified (11th) and he’s one of those drivers you always have to keep an eye on when he is strong in qualifying. He finished 13th at Atlanta earlier this year after starting 4th and could have a similar result here at Texas this weekend.

My Starters: Clint Bowyer and Ryan Blaney

Final B Group Rankings: (1) Clint Bowyer, (2) Chase Elliott, (3) Kyle Larson, (4) Ryan Blaney, (5) Jamie McMurray, (6) Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., (7) Ryan Newman, (8) Kurt Busch, (9) Trevor Bayne, (10) Kasey Kahne, (11) Austin Dillon, (12) Aric Almirola, (13) A.J. Allmendinger, (14) Danica Patrick, (15) Paul Menard, (16) Chris Buescher

Yahoo! C Group Pick and Final Rankings for Texas

First and foremost, let’s talk about Michael McDowell. If you rostered him in Yahoo! this weekend, go ahead and start him. Yeah, this is a 500-mile race, and he’s probably not going to finish where he starts (13th) but that #95 team brought their best car to Texas this weekend and McDowell was fast (for him) in both practice sessions on Saturday. Honestly, a top 15 finish wouldn’t be all that surprising. The same goes with Ty Dillon. He qualified 14th for this weekend’s O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 and showed good speed in each practice session as well. With Ty having minimal complaints regarding his Chevrolet, don’t be surprised if he challenges for a solid top 15 and possibly the best finish of his rookie campaign (thus far anyway). As far as the two C drivers with top equipment–Erik Jones and Daniel Suarez–both have top 20 potential but the former is a lot faster. However, Jones missed qualifying and will have to start from back in 36th. With how little room for error there is this week, taking starting Jones brings with it a whole lot of risk in this Yahoo! game, so you might want to consider being on the safe side and going with starting track position.

My Starter: Daniel Suarez

Final C Group Rankings: (1) Erik Jones, (2) Ty Dillon, (3) Michael McDowell, (4) Daniel Suarez, (5) Landon Cassill, (6) Cole Whitt, (7) Matt DiBenedetto, the rest