Fantasy Racing Online 2016 End of Season Wrap-Up

First and foremost, thank you to everyone who played at Fantasy Racing Online this season. 2016 was the biggest year for this site on many fronts: we had our highest number of teams playing in our 7 (yes, 7) different Fantasy NASCAR contests, and with the addition of my weekly fantasy advice articles, we also gained some new faces that regularly checked the website there. My goals with spending the time writing those articles were simple: 1.) provide fantasy guidance for those who needed it the most, and 2.) to hopefully get those new people to try out our games next season.

If this was your first year at Fantasy Racing Online, there’s one thing I’m dedicated to: making the Fantasy NASCAR contests here the best they can possibly be. This website and group of members has grown exponentially since I started it back in 2012, and that couldn’t be done without the help of you. Below I have a small write-up for each different game here along with my vision for the future with it. I’d love to hear your ideas, though, and you can send those in via this survey I put together (click here), or by simply leaving a comment in the dedicated section at the bottom of this post. You can always email me, too, if you’d like to keep the conversation private.

So, once again, thank you very much, and I hope to see you back for the 2017 season. For anyone that is owed prize money, you will be hearing from me soon. Thank you for your patience, there is quite a bit to go through.

The Showcase

Despite having an awesome Segment 6 that they won by nearly 100 points, Balls to the Wall was not able to catch Danicas Pole Position on the Overall Leaderboard and will now relinquish the Showcase crown. If you remember back to last season, Balls to the Wall was the 2015 Showcase Champion. I believe this is the third time that the Showcase Champion has went on to finish 2nd the following year. rmiller did it after winning our inaugural game back in 2012, and then Rocky Top did it after winning the 2013 Showcase. Danicas Pole Position is also our inaugural Showcase Chase champion, so they’re getting a nice little return on their initial investment.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE SHOWCASE: This is still our flagship game, and the number of people playing this season saw a nice jump from last year (as did the prizes). As far as the scoring, I’m always looking for ways to improve the games here. I think the handicap system in The Showcase works, but only to a mid-level extent. I do like the idea of adding in place differential points as a part of The Showcase, and maybe even points for laps led. Awarding points for laps led would provide a “safeguard” in the event that a driver dominates a race but wrecks in the closing laps. I’m very open to any any new suggestions as well. How would you like to see The Showcase change next year? Let me know in the Comments below or fill out my survey (the link is near the bottom of this page).

2nd Half Showcase

We had a pretty decent turnout in the 2nd Half Showcase this season (58 teams) and it was Balls to the Wall who took home the championship. Congratulations to that team on a great season all the way around.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE 2nd HALF SHOWCASE: The 2nd Half Showcase is a bit different than our original Showcase game, as this one ditches the handicap values for each driver and introduces a salary cap into the mix. I really like this format personally, but the manual work I have to do with each week does make for a long 2nd half of the season. That reason is why I am hesitant on implementing the salary cap aspect into The Showcase. Overall I think the format for the 2nd half game works pretty well and I don’t see a huge need to change much here.

Salary Cap Challenge

We had a record number of teams play in the Salary Cap Challenge this season, so I picked a pretty bad time to make the blunder that I did. Due to the pricing structure of the drivers this season, we wound up with a lot of duplicate rosters among the 249 teams. I do have a plan to avoid that next season, though. As far as 2016 goes, congratulations are in order for our co-champions, Cain Racing #2 and rmiller. There was a lot of movement among teams in the top 10 in the final week but those two stayed strong on top.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE SALARY CAP CHALLENGE: With this year’s 2nd Half Salary Cap Challenge, we had the “All Star Car” (which scores double points and costs double the salary). This only made sense, as that is kind of the differentiating factor of Fantasy Racing Online, and there’s a 99% chance that it will be introduced with the 2017 full-season Salary Cap Challenge. This will make the likelihood of duplicate rosters extremely low, and will also make it easier for teams to make up points from week to week. Another idea I’m thinking of is paying out a prize for each weekly winner. I’ll have to think more about that over the offseason, but I’d love to hear your thoughts.

2nd Half Salary Cap Challenge

Congratulations to American Muscle, the champion of the first annual 2nd Half Salary Cap Challenge. I wish the prizes were a little bit higher for this game, but unfortunately the signups for this game were a little lower than expected. Part of that could be attributed to the new format and the All Star Driver, though, as that aspect can sometimes be confusing–especially for those that have never played a game with one before.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE 2nd HALF SALARY CAP CHALLENGE: I don’t really see the need to change much in this game next season, although I am open to any ideas you may have. I thought this format worked quite well.

Fantasy NASCAR 4×4

The inaugural champion of the Fantasy NASCAR 4×4 is Earnhart3fan, who edged out Fantasy NASCAR expert @FantasyRace by 4 points and F&B by 9 points to take home the crown. Those are the three teams that will take home cash from this game, and it’s interesting to note that none of them used the “Restrictor Plate Bonus.” The teams that finished 4th and 5th both did, though. So it seems like those 30 bonus points weren’t quite worth it this season, but it was close.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE FANTASY NASCAR 4×4: I think this new game and format confused people this season, but we still got a very nice turnout. This game will definitely be returning in 2017. The one change that might be made is a salary cap structure to select your four drivers simply so we have a more wide range of picks for the scoring. Also, it might be wise to have on designated driver be the “All Star Driver” and score double–that’s kind of the thing that makes Fantasy Racing Online different than the rest. What do you think? Take our survey (link at the top of this post) or leave a comment at the bottom of this page!

Auction Series

I have updated the results page with a profit/loss column, and as you can see, four drivers actually turned a profit this season. From a pure wins perspective, Martin Truex, Jr. was the biggest bargain this season, as he won myrtlemagic $283.28 after a $161.00 preseason investment. The biggest winner this season was taylor1, though, as they owned the champion Jimmie Johnson.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE AUCTION SERIES: The Auction Series still remains one of my favorite “original idea” games here at Fantasy Racing Online. With the technical glitches resolved this year, the bidding went very smooth, and the format is straightforward enough that everyone gets it. The only potential change I could see making here next season is a tweak of the payouts (awarding more for wins and less for the championship).

Pick Six Contest

The Pick Six Contest was a free game offered to any team that signed up for The Showcase this season and had a $100 prize for the overall winner. And…drumroll please…the 2016 Pick Six Contest Champion is Waterslager2 with a total score of 169 points. Congratulations!

MY THOUGHTS ON THE STATUS OF THE PICK SIX CONTEST: The format for the Pick Six Contest is very easy and straightforward, and I feel like those who play this game have a good time doing so. I’d like to hear comments from those of you who played every week on what you think of it as well as any possible changes.