NASCAR is at the end of a three race West Coast swing with the last stop at Auto Club Speedway in California, for the fifth race in the 2017 season.
After a surprising win at Phoenix Raceway by Ryan Newman, NASCAR finishes their west coast swing at a track that has provided it’s fair share of excitement and drama in the last few seasons.
Will there be another driver who will step up into the role Ryan Newman played last weekend, with a gamble late in the race for track position? Or will we see a reemergence from Jimmie Johnson and his Hendrick Motorsports teammates? Will Martin Truex Jr.’s hot start to the fantasy racing season continue?
Now we head to Auto Club Speedway where sticking with the drivers who have started the season strong with a good mix of drivers starting towards the back of the pack will provide a balanced team.
Jimmie Johnson and Joey Logano are must haves
Jimmie Johnson ($9,800) and Joey Logano ($10,300) are starting the race from the 36th and 38th place respectively. After trouble in qualifying for both, they are no primed for a large point total in the place differential category. That is the only thing in common for Johnson and Logano heading into Auto Club Speedway.
Johnson has averaged just 29.9 fantasy racing points this season compared to 37.4 fantasy racing points averaged by Logano. Although Logano is coming off a poor showing at Phoenix, he and Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski have started the season on a hot streak. Johnson is entering one of his best race tracks and just laughed off any talks of a slow start, as if he needed any other reason to prove others wrong.
More drivers from Hendrick Motorsports?
Dale Earnhardt Jr. ($8,700) will start 18th at arguably one of his best tracks, in his 600th race. Earnhardt Jr. boasts an average finish 7.8 at Auto Club Speedway in his last four starts, that tops all drivers in the last four starts at Auto Club Speedway.
Chase Elliott ($9,600) finished sixth at Auto Club Speedway last year in his only start at the track. So far in 2017, Elliott has averaged the second highest average fantasy daily racing points this season with 44.5. Elliott will be rolling off the grid from the 13th starting place.
Value Picks: Trevor Bayne and Paul Menard
Trevor Bayne ($7,200) and Paul Menard ($6,800) each provide different value for a daily fantasy racing team at Auto Club Speedway. Bayne will start 37th and has started the 2017 season with an average finish of 13.5
Paul Menard on the other hand has not started the 2017 season as he would like, but is visiting a track where he has three top-tens in his last four races there.
Next: NASCAR: Five Drivers Most Likely To Win At Auto Club Speedway
Menard has an average finish of 9.0 in his last four races at Auto Club Speedway and will start 23rd, providing a good chance at place differential if he finishes well, and a low risk option if he finishes just inside the top 20.