NASCAR Fantasy Fusion: Coke Zero 400 at Daytona

Track Classification: Superspeedway

Similar Tracks: Auto Club Speedway (Fontana)

Indianapolis Motor Speedway  • Michigan International Speedway 

Pocono Raceway • Talladega Superspeedway

Distance: 2.5 Miles

Drivers with Most Top 10s (Last 5 Years):

By Race

All with 3 - Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer
All with 2 - Austin Dillon, Michael Waltrip, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Casey Mears, Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson and Kasey Kahne 

By Track

Both with 6 - Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Denny Hamlin
All with 5- Kevin Harvick and Jimmie Johnson
All with 4 -Austin Dillon, Joey Logano, Casey Mears, Ryan Newman, Greg Biffle, Clint Bowyer and Kurt Busch

Recent Pole Winners:  

2015 Rained Out
2014 David Gilliland

Last Year's Race Winner: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Likely Suspects: Restrictor-plate racing can play havoc with fantasy scores. Go with elite restrictor-plate racers and hope they don't get caught in the "Big One." Here are some of my go-to drivers this week:  Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Newman, Kevin Harvick, Casey Mears, Denny Hamlin, Kurt Busch, Clint Bowyer, Austin Dillon, Joey Logano, Jimmie Johnson and Greg Biffle.

My 2 Cents: My no-brainer pick this week is a tie between Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Austin Dillon. My next picks are Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman, Casey Mears and Tony Stewart. I will complete my team with Landon Cassill and Chase Elliott.

My Final Four: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Ryan Newman, Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott.

Points to Ponder:

• The Wood Brothers have the most wins at Daytona in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, followed by Hendrick Motorsports.
• The pole is the most proficient starting spot in the field, producing more winners (nine) than any other starting position in the July race at Daytona International Speedway. The most recent was Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the 2015 July race.
• Jimmie Johnson leads all active drivers in runner-up finishes in the July race with three.
• Tony Stewart leads the series among active drivers in laps led in the July race at Daytona with 369, followed Dale Earnhardt Jr. with 339.
• Since the advent of electronic scoring, the closest margin of victory (MOV) in the Cup Series at Daytona International Speedway for the July race was the July 7, 2007 race won by Jamie McMurray over Kyle Busch with a MOV of 0.005 second.
• Three-quarters (43 of the 57) of the July Sprint Cup races at Daytona were won from a top-10 starting position.

Enjoy the race! Post your comments here or follow me on Twitter @purplecatpr.