6 days agoErik Jones has never been very successful at Martinsville, and Sunday might have been one of the lowest moments of his career. Not only did he start 31st and finish 24th in a race where his former crew chief Chris Gayle won his first race for Denny Hamlin -- a driver he was ordered not to pass in the 2020 fall event -- but he was disqualified for violating NASCAR's minimum weight rule, even though he didn't seem to gain any speed from it and he was much slower than the other Toyotas were. It's especially painful to get nabbed for a technical infraction without being fast to begin with. The disqualification dropped him to 38th. Although Jones picked up some stage points on strategy at the end of Stage 1, he was also stripped of those, which dropped him from 24th to 29th in points. Unless he wins a drafting-track race, his playoff hopes are likely over.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
1 week agoErik Jones has never been particularly good at Martinsville, as he has never led a lap and has only earned one top-10 finish in the 2021 fall race. Even in his years with Furniture Row Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing, his best finish was a mere 12th twice, and the only thing anyone remembers about him at Martinsville was when he was ordered not to pass Denny Hamlin in 2020 as a lame-duck JGR driver. Now he is with Legacy Motor Club, a Toyota team that has far less speed on short tracks than JGR did, so it's hard to imagine him contending here, especially since his 31st-place starting position is actually the worst of his career here. He was also far off his teammate John Hunter Nemechek, who hasn't been great here, either. This looks like it will be another slow race for Legacy in general, and Jones probably won't gain enough positions for DFS consideration.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
2 weeks agoErik Jones of Legacy Motor Club will start 28th for this week's race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the Straight Talk Wireless 400. This starting position will be tied for the lowest of his Cup career at Homestead, along with his October 2024 appearance at the Miami track. In eight Homestead races, Jones has two top-20 finishes and obtained positive Place Differential three times, including his last two Cup events at the site. Through five races so far in 2025, Jones has had two top-20 finishes and only collected positive PD once. In practice for this week's race, Jones ranked eighth in overall lap averages while displaying top-20 speeds in the five through 15 consecutive lap average categories. The starting position for Jones provides plenty of potential upside and for his cheap salary ($6,100 on DraftKings), he is worth consideration as a driver who will compete for a top-20 finish.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
3 weeks agoErik Jones of Legacy Motor Club acquired a starting position of fifth for this week's Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the Pennzoil 400. This is the first time that Jones will start inside the top 10 at Las Vegas since he earned his last pole at the site in 2018. In 15 races at Vegas, Jones has four top-10 finishes, with only one of them being scored since 2022. After four races so far this year, Jones has two top-20 finishes and a best finish of 12th at Daytona. In practice, Jones ranked 13th in overall lap averages and displayed top-10 speeds in the 10, 15, and 20 consecutive lap average categories. Although Jones has a cheap salary ($6,300 on DraftKings) and relatively solid practice speeds, his Vegas track history and low upside make him difficult to recommend for DFS outside of the occasional tournament lineup.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
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