NASCAR Fantasy Fusion: FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan

 

Hmm. Richmond Raceway did not disappoint last weekend. In fact, we're still all talking about it. While the No. 3 team had the strongest car right out of the truck and was permitted to keep their controversial win, we just found out that there are limits to the "win and you're in" Playoff scenario. I'm counting three teams looking for some redemption this weekend in the Irish Hills, but there is a group of about six drivers struggling to save their season who aren't going to make it easy. Stay tuned.

 

This Week's Pick Strategy: Michigan is a D-shaped oval track that is fast and challenging. Veteran drivers usually prevail, but I wouldn't count out younger drivers especially if they pilot a Ford. I'm loading up on Fords and drivers who love to study the track and figure out the fastest line.

 

Active Drivers with Most Top 10s :

By Race (Last 5 Races)

Both with 5 - Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Blaney

Both with 4 - Denny Hamlin and Brad Keselowski

All with 3 - Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, and Kyle Busch

By Track *
Martin Truex Jr.- 7

Denny Hamlin - 6
Both with 5 - Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch
All with 4 - Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski, and Chase Elliott

* Seven races including with two August races in 2020 

Last Year's Pole Winner: Christopher Bell

 

Last Year's Race Winner: Chris Buescher

The Likely Suspects: My Michigan go-to drivers include Martin Truex Jr., Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano, and Kyle Busch.

My 2 Cents: This week's no-brainer pick is Chase Elliott. My next picks are Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, Ty Gibbs, Chris Buescher, and Joey Logano. I will round out my team with Noah Gragson and Corey LaJoie.

My Final Four: Kyle Larson, Ty Gibbs, Brad Keselowski, and Noah Gragson.
 

Second-Look Driver: This week’s second-look driver is Chris Buescher. In 14 starts at Michigan, he has one win, one Top 5, two Top 10s with an average finish of 18.7. Buescher is the defending winner of this race, and comes into this weekend tied in 16th place with Ross Chastain, but currently owns the tiebreaker. Buescher was eighth-fastest in limited practice, and it doesn't hurt that he drives a Ford.

 

Points to Ponder:

• 22 of the 106 (20.75%) NASCAR Cup Series races at Michigan have been won from the pole or first starting position; the most recent win from the pole at Michigan was June 2019 (Joey Logano).
• Joey Logano (2013, 2016, 2019) and Kyle Larson (2016, 2017 sweep) lead all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in wins at Michigan with three wins each.
• The longest streak of wins by a manufacturer in the NASCAR Cup Series at Michigan International Speedway is nine straight by Ford from 6/10/2018 to 8/6/2023. 
• Martin Truex Jr. leads all active drivers in runner-up finishes at Michigan International Speedway with four second-place finishes. 
• Denny Hamlin leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in Top 5 finishes at Michigan with 12. Hamlin is tied with Joey Logano among Cup Series drivers in Top 10s at MIS with 18 each. 
• Joey Logano leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in laps led at Michigan with 590 laps led in 27 starts.
  
• Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing leads the series in wins at Michigan with 14 among six drivers. The Wood Brothers Racing organization has the second-most series wins at Michigan with 11. 
• Six of the 40 NASCAR Cup Series race winners at Michigan are active this weekend: Joey Logano and Kyle Larson with three wins each, Denny Hamlin with two wins, and Chris Buescher, Ryan Blaney, and Kyle Busch with one win each.
• Chase Elliott leads all active drivers in the series in average finishing position at Michigan with a 8.0 in 12 starts.

Remember, if you're playing Driver Group Game, make your final picks by 2:30 p.m. ET on race day Sunday, August 18th.

Enjoy the race!

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Carol D'Agostino has been playing Fantasy NASCAR for 17 years. She launched  NASCAR Fantasy Fusion for Skirts & Scuffs in October 2011. Each week, Carol pores through statistics and combs through her personal notebooks to arm fans with analysis and picking strategies that will leave their friends wondering how they got so smart. Carol also does race coverage for Skirts & Scuffs at Richmond Raceway and occasionally at her home track, Dover International Speedway. She is also part of the distinguished NASCAR Expert Picks panel at frcs.pro. formerly called Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet.

When she isn’t wielding her fantasy-racing superpowers, you’ll find Carol hammering out a news release or creating a marketing strategy at a small niche public relations firm she founded called Purple Cat or executing downtown revitalization projects for a small town on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.