NASCAR Fantasy Fusion: FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan

 

Despite some brake rotor issues last week, Nashville treated fans to some competitive racing with Denny Hamlin showing the field that some thing get better as they age. The win was the 62nd of Denny's career, his second of the season and the first for Toyota at Nashville.

Like last week, this Sunday Hamlin will start from the pole position which should intimidate the field a bit since he has earned an average finish of 4.3 here since 2023. Only Chris Buescher has a better average with a 3.0. Oh did I mention that Denny won this race last year?

 

This Week's Pick Strategy: Michigan is a super fast track which suits drivers who aren't afraid of high commitment tracks and who study the track and figure out the fastest line. I will be loading my roster with those drivers who love to run the high line and who have dirt track experience. Good luck. 

 

Active NASCAR Cup Drivers with Most Top 10s :

Last 5 Races (2021 to 2025)
Denny Hamlin - 5
Both with 4 - Kyle Larson and Brad Keselowski

Active NASCAR Cup Drivers with Most Top 5:
Denny Hamlin - 4
Kyle Larson - 3
All with 2 - William Byron, Chris Buescher, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Bubba Wallace, and Brad Keselowski
SOURCE: frcs.pro

Top 12 Active NASCAR Cup Drivers with Best Average Finish at Michigan
From 2023 to 2025
Chris Buescher 3.0
Denny Hamlin 4.3
Ty Gibbs 5.7
Brad Keselowski 6.3
Zane Smith 7.0 
Daniel Suarez 9.3
Erik Jones 12.3
Ross Chastain 12.7

Ryan Preece 14.0

Tyler Reddick 14.7
Kyle Larson 14.7
Bubba Wallace 16 
SOURCE: driveraverages.com

Last Year's Race Winner: Denny Hamlin

 

The Likely Suspects: My Michigan go-to drivers include Denny Hamlin, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Ty Gibbs, Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney, William Byron, Christopher Bell, and Chris Buescher.

My 2 Cents: This week's no-brainer pick is Denny Hamlin. My next picks are Kyle Larson, Brad Keselowski, Ty Gibbs, Chris Buescher, and Erik Jones. I will round out my team with Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar.

My Final Four: Denny Hamlin, Ty Gibbs, Brad Keselowski, and Zane Smith.
 

Second-Look Driver: This week’s second-look driver is Chris Buescher. In 16 starts at Michigan, he has one win, two Top 5s, four Top 10s with an average finish of 16.7. Buescher's best finish last year was second here at Michigan. Chris has finished sixth or better in the last three Michigan races, including two runner-up finishes. He is currently eight in the driver's standings, looking for his first win of the season. Could this be the weekend? Stay tuned.

 

Points to Ponder:

• The first starting position is the most proficient starting position in the field, producing more winners (22) than any other starting position at Michigan International Speedway: 21 from the pole and one from the first starting position due to qualifying being cancelled – 1985 (Bill Elliott).
• Joey Logano leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in poles at Michigan International Speedway with four (2013, 2016 sweep, 2019). 
• RFK Racing leads the NASCAR Cup Series in wins at Michigan International Speedway with 14 wins among six drivers: Mark Martin (four: 1990, 1993, 1997, 1998), Greg Biffle (four: 2004, 2005, 2012, 2013), Carl Edwards (two: 2007, 2008), Matt Kenseth (two: 2002, 2006), Kurt Busch (one: 2003) and Chris Buescher (one: 2023). 
• Six of the 41 NASCAR Cup Series Michigan race winners are active this weekend: Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Larson with three each. Tyler Reddick, Chris Buescher, and Ryan Blaney each have one. 
• Brad Keselowski, Chase Elliott, and Denny Hamlin lead all active drivers in runner-up finishes at Michigan International Speedway with three second-place finishes each.
•  Denny Hamlin leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in Top 5 finishes at Michigan with 13 and in Top 10s with 20.
• Joey Logano leads all active NASCAR Cup Series drivers in laps led at Michigan with 590 laps led in 29 starts.
  
• Ty Gibbs leads all active drivers in the Cup Series in average finishing position at Michigan with a 6.8 in four starts.  

If you are playing Driver Group Game, remember to make your final picks by 3 p.m. ET on race day, Sunday, June 7th.

Enjoy the race!

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Carol D'Agostino has been playing Fantasy NASCAR for 19 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.