NASCAR: 6 drivers who surprised Fantasy Live players in 2019

Aric Almirola

Aric Almirola had a rather disappointing 2019 season. It’s almost as if 2018 never happened, and he went back to the same consistency he had when he was still with Richard Petty Motorsports.

His first season with Stewart-Haas Racing was one of consistency. He recorded 17 top 10 finishes, including one win at Talladega that got him into the round of 8 and propelled him to a career-high fifth place in the championship standings. It looked like he finally found his footing and 2019 could’ve been a breakout season.

Comparing 2018 to 2019 is like apples and oranges. 2019 saw no wins and just 12 top 10 finishes, with half of them coming in the first seven races of the season.

Through the first one-third of the season, Almirola was really hot, notably taking the pole position at Atlanta. The rest of the season was loaded with top 15 finishes and very few moments of shine. This was all done in Stewart-Haas Racing equipment, I will remind you.

I think Almirola was the quietest driver this season. Although he was getting good results in the beginning of the season, he was still quietly consistent at that time as well.

I know Almirola can be better in 2020. He’ll have a new crew chief in Mike Bugarewicz, but if that doesn’t do the trick and get him Almirolling, it could be a slow descent for The Cuban Missile.