3 weeks agoHendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman scored a qualifying position of seventh for Sunday's Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway. This marks the highest starting position for Bowman in his Cup career at the site since November 2020. In 16 races at Martinsville, Bowman has one win and five top-10 finishes with an average finish of 18.9. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver also grabbed three finishes of 12th or better in his last four events at the site. After 34 races completed this year, Bowman has one win and 17 top-10 finishes with an average finish of 14.8. At short tracks so far in 2024, Bowman has four top-10 finishes, including a finish of eighth in the April race at Martinsville. In practice, Bowman ranked 30th in overall lap averages while ranking ninth in 25 and 30 consecutive lap averages. Despite offering little upside based on his starting position, Bowman is a quality tournament option based on his practice speeds, recent Martinsville history, and top-notch equipment as a driver who will compete for a top-10 finish.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
3
weeks
agoStewart-Haas
Racing
driver
Josh
Berry
will
start
11th
for
Sunday's
Xfinity
500
at
Martinsville
Speedway,
which
is
a
lower
starting
position
compared
to
his
only
previous
race
at
the
site
earlier
in
the
year.
During
Berry's
only
race
at
Martinsville
back
in
April
this
season,
he
ran
inside
read more...
3 weeks agoIf Chase Elliott wants to be a part of the Championship Four drivers at the Phoenix finale next weekend, he's going to have to win at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday afternoon, and it looks like the No. 9 Chevrolet has the speed to compete this weekend. In addition to qualifying on the outside pole for this weekend's Xfinity 500 race, Chase Elliott had one of the best cars during practice on Saturday afternoon, ranking sixth-fastest or better when it came to 10-, 15-, 20-, 25-, and 30-lap average in practice. When you pair that with the fact that he has the second-best average running position in the Next Gen era at Martinsville, as well as the second-most laps led, it shouldn't surprise anyone that Chase Elliott is going to be a contender this weekend.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: ifantasyrace
3 weeks agoLook for Ryan Blaney to have a strong race in this weekend's Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway. The Team Penske driver is the defending winner of this race and has finished 11th or better in 11 straight races at this track. Over the last five, Blaney has finished fifth or better four times and his worst result is seventh. This weekend, Blaney qualified back in 14th, but that just gives him some room for Place Differential FPTS in DFS contests to go along with his potential dominator upside. The No. 12 Ford was one of the fastest cars during practice at Martinsville on Saturday, as Blaney ranked fourth-fastest in 20- and 25-lap average before ending up second-quickest in 30-lap average. Only two drivers (Kyle Larson and Chase Elliott) have a better average running position than Blaney in the Next Gen era at Martinsville Speedway. And if he's going to defend his Championship this season, Blaney will need to get the win here this weekend. It looks like he has the race car to do that.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Win The Race
3
weeks
agoDenny
Hamlin's
Championship
hopes
took
another
hit
on
Saturday
afternoon
when
the
No.
11
Toyota
suffered
a
stuck
throttle
in
practice
and
backed
in
the
wall
at
Martinsville
Speedway.
The
damage
wasn't
severe
enough
to
warrant
a
backup
car,
but
Hamlin
wasn't
able
to
complete
a
lap
in
read more...
3
weeks
agoHeading
into
the
Xfinity
500
race
weekend,
most
sportsbooks
pegged
Kyle
Larson
as
the
favorite
to
win,
but
that
noise
has
quieted
down
a
bit
now
that
practice
and
qualifying
are
complete.
Larson
had
a
relatively
quiet
Saturday
at
"The
Paperclip,"
ranking
just
30th-fastest
in
overall
speed
in
read more...
3 weeks agoMartin Truex Jr. is still winless on the 2024 Cup Series season, but that could change this weekend at Martinsville Speedway. The No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing team brought a rocket ship for Truex this weekend, as he was not only the fastest car in practice on Saturday, but also the fastest in qualifying, which means MTJ will lead the field to the green flag on Sunday. As far as long-run speed goes, Truex had the best 15- and 20-lap average during practice and ranked second-fastest in 25-lap average while posting the third-best 30-lap average. MTJ is a three-time Martinsville winner and has led 1,063 laps in his career at this race track. He should be able to add to that total on Sunday and compete for another win. As far as playability in DFS contests goes, Truex is relatively cheap on DraftKings ($9,300) and should be able to grab early dominator points. He's going to be a popular daily fantasy pick on Sunday and has a pretty high ceiling when it comes to scoring fantasy points.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: ifantasyrace
3 weeks agoOver the past couple of years, Bubba Wallace has been one of the strongest drivers at Martinsville Speedway. In addition to four straight finishes of 11th or better, Bubba also has the eighth-best average running position at this track in the Next Gen era. The No. 23 team has some work to do if they want to continue those strong runs this weekend, though. Bubba qualified back in 19th for Sunday afternoon's Xfinity 500 race (his worst starting position here since 2022), and while he wasn't slow in practice, Wallace was relatively underwhelming, as the 23XI Racing driver was just 17th-fastest on the overall speed chart and 16th-fastest when it came to 30-lap average during practice. However, with Bubba's palatable salary on DraftKings this weekend ($7,800) as well as his Place Differential upside and track history, he's still a decent DFS pick this weekend's race. If Bubba can crack the top 10 once again on Sunday afternoon, he could end up making it into the optimal DraftKings lineup on Sunday.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Win The Race
3 weeks agoOne of the most consistent drivers at Martinsville Speedway in the Next Gen era has been Chase Briscoe. Over the last five races at this track, he has finished between fourth and 10th each time, and he even led 109 laps here in the 2023 spring race. In the first race at Martinsville this season, Briscoe qualified fifth and ended up finishing 10th when it was all said and done. This weekend, the No. 14 Ford will roll off of the starting grid from fourth-place when the Xfinity 500 goes green on Sunday. Briscoe didn't show the most speed during practice this weekend, but with his track history at Martinsville, it wouldn't be surprising at all to see him walk away with another top-10 finish when it was all said and done. As far as playability in DFS contests, Briscoe's salary of $8,500 and lack of Place Differential upside will make it very difficult for him to hit value this weekend. There are better options out there when it comes to daily fantasy contests.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Driver Averages
3 weeks agoIf you're looking for a low-dollar driver on DraftKings that could end up with a top-10 finish this weekend, look no further than Todd Gilliland ($6,600). The Front Row Motorsports driver has been excellent at Martinsville Speedway, with finishes of 13th or better in three of his last four starts at the track. That includes a 13th-place finish this spring. Additionally, in the exception during that span, Gilliland looked to have a top 10 car but had engine issues, which relegated him to a 25th-place result. Looking at this weekend, Gilliland qualified 13th and had the fifth-best 10-lap average during practice. His Place Differential upside is limited when it comes to DFS this weekend, but Gilliland could legitimately challenge for a top-10 finish--and that's all you really need out of a DFS driver that is that cheap. Gilliland ranks 14th-best when it comes to average running position in the Next Gen era at Martinsville.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Win The Race
3 weeks agoDon't overlook Ryan Preece in the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway this weekend. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver finished ninth here in the spring race despite starting back in 22nd, and his two other results in the Next Gen era have been 20th- and 15th-place efforts. This weekend, Preece qualified up in eighth for Sunday's race, which means he has a solid starting position to work with. Additionally, Preece's No. 41 Ford looked pretty solid in practice on Saturday, ranking eighth-fastest in 15-, 20-, and 30-lap average. At $6,900 on DraftKings with limited Place Differential upside, Preece is a very risky tournament play on that DFS site, but in general, he does have the sleeper potential to challenge for a top-10 finish this weekend. Over the last three Martinsville races, Preece ranks 10th-best in driver rating and average running position.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: ifantasyrace
3 weeks agoOne of the surprises during qualifying for the Xfinity 500 at Martinsville Speedway this weekend was Harrison Burton, who made the final round and will roll off the starting grid from sixth place on Sunday afternoon. And while that is a great run for Burton and his Wood Brothers Racing team -- that's actually their best qualifying effort of the season -- that high starting position does make him pretty much unplayable in DFS contests. Burton is extremely likely to fall back from sixth on Sunday, and while he does have finishes of 15th and 11th place over the last two Martinsville fall races, those aren't the norm, as Burton's three other Cup Series finishes here have been 33rd, 29th, and 26th. Burton could have been viewed as a DFS sleeper this weekend if he qualified back in the mid-20s, but that's not the case. You should look elsewhere when building your DraftKings lineups on Sunday.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Jayski
3 weeks agoRicky Stenhouse Jr. has had a low-key bad season in the NASCAR Cup Series despite his win at Talladega, and it's hard to envision that changing at Martinsville, a track where he starts 28th, has never led a lap, and has never finished better than eighth. About the only good thing about Stenhouse's career at Martinsville is the crash-prone driver has only crashed out of one race there way back in 2016. Given his lack of speed, he's extremely unlikely to have a top-10 run, so his goal should be to avoid crashing and hope for a wild race where a lot of other drivers are taken out in big wrecks.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 weeks agoThere are unconfirmed rumors swirling that John Hunter Nemechek will be replaced for 2025 even though he is technically still signed for next year. While Corey Heim's Craftsman Truck Series success does suggest this could be a real possibility, the sources of the rumors don't seem very reliable. If Nemechek is on the hotseat, however, he is more likely to want to prove himself, as his father Joe had a history of grabbing wins to extend his career when he was about to be fired. However, Nemechek probably won't do this at Martinsville, where he starts 32nd and has never finished better than 25th, even though he did win there in the Xfinity Series. The Legacy Motor Club cars just aren't fast enough to win anywhere, even on drafting tracks. His recent form suggests he'll be one of the slowest drivers on track and finish between 25th-30th.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
3 weeks agoAlthough Michael McDowell is fast on drafting tracks and road courses, short tracks are consistently his Achilles heel. Darlington, Bristol, and Martinsville are the only tracks that have been on the schedule his entire career where he has not led a lap, and of those Martinsville is the only track where he has never earned a top ten finish and he's only earned a single top fifteen. Quite possibly it is his worst track and short tracks in general are the only tracks where Todd Gilliland is expected to outrun McDowell. McDowell's qualifying run of 17th was below average for him but he tends to finish worse than he qualifies, which should likely be expected here given how lackluster he typically runs here.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
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