NASCAR Fantasy Fusion: Go Bowling at The Glen

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

By Race & Track

Both with 4 - Kurt Busch and Kyle Busch
All with 3 - Martin Truex Jr., Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick

Watkins Glen International Driver Ratings
Since 2005 - Factors in Wins, Finishes, Top-15 Finishes, Average Running Position While on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps and Lead-Lap Finish. SOURCE: MRN.com.

Rank	Driver	High Rating	Avg. Rating
1	Kyle Busch	145.1	111.8
2	Chase Elliott	148.8	110.6
3	Daniel Suarez	113.1	107.9
4	Erik Jones	111.4	101.8
5	Brad Keselowski	129.1	99.4
6	Martin Truex Jr	139.5	97.9
7	William Byron	94.5	94.5
8	Kurt Busch	117.2	92.8
9	Jimmie Johnson	117.7	91.1
10	Kevin Harvick	132.7	89.8
11	Denny Hamlin	123.8	87.9
12	Kyle Larson	102.2	86.1
13	Jamie McMurray	109.1	84.0
14	Clint Bowyer	109.5	83.1
15	Ryan Blaney	105.5	81.9

Recent Pole Winners:
2018 Denny Hamlin
2017 Kyle Busch

Last Year's Race Winner: Chase Elliott

The Likely Suspects: When it comes to road-course racing at Watkins Glen these drivers excel: Kyle Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Daniel Suarez, Erik Jones and Denny Hamlin.

My 2 Cents: The racing this season has been exciting and exceptionally competitive. A road race at The Glen will not disappoint. This week's no-brainer pick is Kyle Busch. My next picks are: Daniel Suarez, Martin Truex Jr., Erik Jones, William Byron and Austin Dillon. I'll round out my team with Matt DiBenedetto and Daniel Hemric.

My Final Four: Kyle Busch, Erik Jones, Daniel Suarez and Matt DiBenedetto

Second-Look Driver: This week's second-look driver is William Byron. He's coming off a fourth-place finish at Pocono, which was his third top-10 in the last five races. In his only Cup race at Watkins Glen last year, Byron started 16th and finished eighth. In his only race here in the the XFinity series, he finished 10th. Last week's second-look driver Chris Buescher passed a lot of cars last weekend. Buescher had to come from the back along with eight other drivers who failed pre-race inspections. He started 33rd and finished in 16th.

Points to Ponder:

• The Busch Pole position (1st) is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (nine) than any other starting position at Watkins Glen. 
• Kyle Busch leads all active drivers in poles at Watkins Glen with two (2011 and 2017).
• Five drivers have won multiple poles in the Monster Energy Series at WGI, but Kyle Busch is the only active driver with multiple WGI poles (two).
• Kyle Busch leads all active Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers in wins at Watkins Glen with two (2008, 2013). 
• Nine of the 36 (25%) Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races at Watkins Glen have been won from the Busch Pole; the most recent was Kyle Busch in 2008. 
• Joe Gibbs Racing and Hendrick Motorsports are tied for the series lead in wins at Watkins Glen International with seven victories each 
• Brad Keselowski leads all active Cup drivers in runner-up finishes at Watkins Glen with three. 
• Kyle Busch leads all active drivers in top-five finishes at Watkins Glen with six and in top-10 finishes with 12 (second all-time). 
• Daniel Suarez leads all active series drivers in average finishing position at WGI with a 3.5.

Remember, if you're playing Driver Group Game, make your picks by 8 a.m. EST on Sat., August 3rd, and your final picks by 3 p.m. EST on race day Sun., August 4th.

Enjoy the race!

________

Carol D’Agostino wields fantasy-racing superpowers. Each week, Carol researches statistics and combs through her personal racing notes to provide fans with fantasy racing advice in NASCAR Fantasy Fusion, a column she has written for Skirts & Scuffs since October 2011. Carol also does race coverage for Skirts & Scuffs at Richmond Raceway and occasionally at her home track, Dover International Speedway. This year she joins the NASCAR Expert Picks panel at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. When she isn’t crunching numbers, you’ll find Carol in business meetings or hammering out a news release or creating a marketing strategy at a small niche public relations firm she founded called Purple Cat.