Fantasy Report: Pepsi 500

In week two of the 2008 season Carl Edwards found victory lane at Auto Club Speedway. He did it again last week with an exciting bump and run finish at Bristol. With Edwards in the spotlight there are a few questions that will soon be answered. Can Edwards keep building on his solid late season run with a third straight win? What of the newly formed Busch/Edwards rivalry? Only time will tell but it makes NASCAR even more compelling at this point of the season.

Erik’s picks:
Jimmie Johnson✔, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle ✔, Jamie McMurray ✔, Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman, Travis Kvapil✔ and Scott Riggs.

Brandon’s picks:
Carl Edwards✔, Jimmie Johnson, David Ragan✔, Martin Truex Jr.✔, Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman, AJ Allmendinger✔ and Aric Almirola.

IN THE CHASE?: After last week's disappointing finish at Bristol Dale Earnhardt Jr. seems even more motivated to make a statement this week at Fontana. With a strong finish Jr. will be able to lock up his spot in The Chase. Look for a strong run from the 88 team in order to secure that spot and tie up some loose ends in order to make a run for his first championship.

ROUSH AND HENDRICK: Consider putting in any of the Roush or Hendrick teams. Both of these teams have each won six races at Fontana. That is more than any of the other organizations in NASCAR. Also keep an eye on Jeff Burton. He has some experience being one of the few drivers to drive in all of the sixteen races at Auto Club Speedway.

NASCAR puts Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards on probation

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) – NASCAR placed Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards on probation Wednesday for the next six Sprint Cup Series races, the result of their on-track incident last weekend at the end of the race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

During the cooldown lap after Edwards' Ford took the checkered flag for Roush Fenway Racing, Busch drove alongside Edwards and bumped his car. Edwards responded by driving the nose of his car into the right side of Busch's Toyota, spinning him out.

The postrace incident was apparently a reaction to Edwards nudging Busch aside with 30 laps to go Saturday night. Busch had led the previous 415 laps.

Read more >>

Watch the incident:

2009 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona to have new format

DAYTONA BEACH — The 2009 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona will have a new format that puts more emphasis on the series' four manufacturers — and the same star-power appeal that has become a season-opening tradition for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and its fans.

The 31st annual season-opening event at Daytona International Speedway will be held on Saturday night, Feb. 7, with a field of 24 cars representing the top teams from Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford and Toyota that will showcase the close competition in NASCAR's premier series. That lineup will consist of the top six teams from each manufacturer, based on the final 2008 car owner points.

The race distance will be increased from 70 laps to 75 (187.5 miles) on the 2.5-mile tri-oval. The race will have two segments, of 25 and 50 laps. Both green- and yellow-flag laps will count.

Between segments, there will be a 10-minute pit stop at which time teams will pit and may elect to change tires, add fuel and make normal chassis adjustments. Crews will be permitted to work on cars and will be allowed to perform functions they would do on a normal pit stop in a regular NASCAR Sprint Cup event. All work must be performed on pit road or in the garage. Changing of springs, shock absorbers or rear-ends will not be permitted.

Starting positions will again be determined by a blind draw, at the annual Budweiser Shootout Draw Party on Thursday night, Feb. 5, on the SPEED stage in the Midway, outside Turn 4.

The Budweiser Shootout – a "non-points" event for NASCAR Sprint Cup Series competitors – was first held in 1979, and originally known as the Busch Clash. Dale Earnhardt Jr. won this year's shootout.

— Source: NASCAR

Clinch scenarios at California

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Burton control their own Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup destiny this weekend. With certain Auto Club Speedway finishes – outlined below – they will join Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards, who have already secured spots in the 2008 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

To clinch a Chase spot, a driver needs to leave Auto Club Speedway with a 196-point lead over 13th place.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Earnhardt is currently 350 points ahead of 13th place. Regardless of any other driver’s finish, Earnhardt will clinch if he finishes:
40th or better
41st or 42nd and leads at least one lap

Jimmie Johnson
Johnson is currently 348 points ahead of 13th place. Regardless of any other driver’s finish, Johnson will clinch if he finishes:
40th or better
41st and leads at least one lap

Jeff Burton
Burton is 274 points ahead of 13th place. Regardless of any other driver’s finish, Burton will clinch if he finishes:
15th or better
16th or 17th and leads at least one lap
20th and leads the most laps

Six other drivers can clinch this weekend as well, but do not control their own destiny. Unlike Johnson, Earnhardt and Burton, all six must increase their current points lead over 13th place in Sunday’s race.

Below are those drivers who can mathematically reach the 196-point margin over 13th position this weekend:

• Tony Stewart: Is 170 points ahead of 13th place and needs to pad his lead by 26 points.

• Greg Biffle: Is 141 points ahead of 13th place and needs to pad his lead by 55 points.

• Kevin Harvick: Is 129 points ahead of 13th place and needs to pad his lead by 67 points.

• Jeff Gordon: Is 108 points ahead of 13th place and needs to pad his lead by 88 points.

• Matt Kenseth: Is 78 points ahead of 13th place and needs to pad his lead by 118 points.

• Denny Hamlin: Is 57 points ahead of 13th place and needs to pad his lead by 139 points.

• Clint Bowyer, currently 12th in the series standings, cannot clinch a Chase position at Auto Club Speedway under any scenario, assuming David Ragan starts Sunday’s race.

— Source: NASCAR

Fantasy Report: Sharpie 500

Are you looking forward to watching Bristol under the lights Saturday night? It's one of my favorites ... at least the restarts. This race gets strung out pretty fast which can be a little boring at times but there's also a lot of beatin' and bangin' so it doesn't stay green for long. If you're like me and you're getting down to the last few starts for particular drivers this race could hurt your points standings if you take too many risks. More on that in a moment ... onto the picks:

Brandon’s picks:
Carl Edwards✔, Kurt Busch, Greg Biffle✔, David Ragan, Kasey Kahne✔, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Aric Almirola and David Reutimann✔.

Erik’s picks:
Jimmie Johnson✔, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch✔, Kasey Kahne✔, Jamie McMurray, Greg Biffle, Travis Kvapil✔ and Scott Riggs.

Anybody's guess: Let's be honest — any Cup Series race is up for grabs by almost any driver and Bristol is one of best examples for races that can go in any direction. This is problematic for Fantasy players. Consider this: 78 of 95 races at Bristol have been won from a top-10 starting position but the deepest in the field that a Bristol race winner has started was 38th, by Elliott Sadler in 2001. Richard Childress and Jack Roush have more wins here than any other owners with 9 apiece so you can't go wrong with any of their teams. With that being said, I'm going to have a hard time not putting Edwards and Biffle in for sure this weekend.

Play it safe: As I alluded to earlier, you might want to sit on some of your drivers you've used a lot this year. I still have Junior on my roster just in case but since I can only use him one more time I hope to save him for Talladega. I'll only put him in if he's on the front row. Otherwise, I'll have to decide between Ragan, who has done great for me this year, or Kahne, who I've just been nominal with two times I've used him. I put Busch on my roster because he's won 5 races at Bristol in the past 10 years and this could be the weekend he lets loose.

Good luck!

Press Release: 2009 NASCAR schedules, changes announced

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — NASCAR announced today its national series schedules for the 2009 season, which features realigned dates for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR Nationwide Series and NASCAR Truck Series.

In the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series there will be a three-way date swap between Atlanta Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway (formerly California Speedway) and Talladega Superspeedway.

Atlanta's second 2009 race will be held on Sunday, Sept. 6, taking the Labor Day weekend slot now held by Auto Club Speedway.

Auto Club Speedway's second race will be Sunday, Oct. 11 – the fourth week of the "Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup," a slot formerly held by Talladega.

Talladega's second event will move to Sunday, Nov. 1, making it the seventh Chase event – the slot formerly held by Atlanta.

"The 2009 schedule reflects realigned dates that are good opportunities for everyone involved in our sport – fans, sponsors, tracks and teams," said NASCAR President Mike Helton.

The season begins with a tripleheader weekend at Daytona International Speedway capped by the running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 15.

In addition to that season-opening event for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the NASCAR Truck Series starts its season on Friday night, Feb. 13, followed the next afternoon by the NASCAR Nationwide Series opener.

For all three series, the season will conclude with another tripleheader weekend, at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 20-22.

Other key NASCAR Sprint Cup dates in 2009:

The 31st annual Budweiser Shootout at Daytona – a non-points event – will be held on Saturday, Feb. 7.

On the evening of Saturday, Sept. 12, Richmond International Raceway will again host the "Chase cut-off" race, affording the last opportunity for drivers to qualify for NASCAR's championship playoffs.

New Hampshire Motor Speedway will host the first races in both the "Race to the Chase" (Sunday, June 28) and the Chase (Sunday, Sept. 20).

There also will be an additional off-week for NASCAR's premier series in 2009, prior to the Labor Day weekend event, giving teams a final break before a 12-week stretch that will end the season. Because of the way the calendar falls, NASCAR Sprint Cup teams will have a total of four off-weeks during the 2009 season.

— Source: NASCAR

Fantasy Report: 3M Performance 400

After my ghastly fantasy performance last week I look to be on the rebound this week at Michigan International Speedway. It is getting close to the end so now is time for desperate measures. Lets take a look at our picks …

Erik’s picks:

Jimmie Johnson✔, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch✔, Dale Earnhardt Jr.✔, Greg Biffle, Kasey Kahne, Marcos Ambrose✔ and Travis Kvapil.

Brandon’s picks:

Tony Stewart✔, Carl Edwards, Mark Martin✔, Kasey Kahne✔, Dale Earnhardt Jr., David Ragan, Paul Menard✔, and AJ Allmendinger.

Hint: If your team is low in the standings or has taken a hard hit like I did last week now is the time to make a move. I only have one more start with Kyle Busch and Dale Jr. but now is the best time to use them. Do what it takes to give yourself some space between your competitors. If you wait to long to use them it could already be to late to make that end of the season push.

Kahne you believe it?: Kasey has had several top fives at Michigan over the years. I am keeping him on the list in case he looks strong this week in practice. If not based on his past performance I might take a gamble on him. Don’t rule out Jimmie Johnson either. He is looking for another championship and with the Chase close you can bet he will be on his A game.

Current Cup stats

Statistical Advance: Race to the Chase Week 7

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The final four events in the Race to the Chase are packed with subplots.

• There's Kyle Busch's attempt at 13 wins in a season. Since the schedule was reduced in size in 1972, 13 wins in a season has been the standard. Richard Petty won 13 in 1975 and Jeff Gordon did it in 1998. Busch has a solid shot a matching — and surpassing — that number. Busch nabbed victory No. 8 last weekend at Watkins Glen, becoming the 18th driver with eight wins in the first 22 races — 13 of the previous 17 went on to win the series championship.

• There's Matt Kenseth�s goal of making the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup for the fifth time. In and out of the top 12 over the past seven weeks, Kenseth looks to stay in over the next four races. The statistics suggest he will. He has a series-best Driver Rating of 103.5 at the four remaining tracks before the Chase, as well as a win at all four.

• There's the Chase bonus point hunt for Carl Edwards and Jimmie Johnson. Busch — assuming he makes the Chase — has already locked up the top seed with 80 bonus points. But both Edwards and Johnson have an excellent shot at closing the gap. Last season, Edwards won at Michigan and Bristol, while Johnson conquered Auto Club Speedway and Richmond.

• And there's the snowballing winless drought of Tony Stewart. Stewart's drought is at 36. He has come close to ending the slide though, earning runner-up finishes in each of the last two races. He also has the second-best Driver Rating at the next four tracks (100.6).

Read more (.pdf) >>

Fantasy Report: Centurion Boats at the Glen

NASCAR goes north to Watkins Glen, N.Y., this weekend for the second and last road course race of 2008. This 90-mile race is just about anybody's to win but some are much better than others — however, anything can happen. Remember what happened to two of the better road course drivers last year? Maybe this will jog your memory.

Our picks:

Brandon’s picks:
Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon✔, Ryan Newman, Robby Gordon✔, Jamie McMurray, Juan Pablo Montoya✔, Patrick Carpentier and Ron Fellows✔.

Erik’s picks:
Jeff Gordon✔, Jimmie Johnson, Jamie McMurray✔, Elliott Sadler✔, Juan Pablo Montoya, Greg Biffle, Travis Kvapil✔ and Scott Riggs.

Hints: This is a good week to put in road course ringers. As you can see I have Carpentier and Fellows. It will be hard to choose which driver to put in of the two but I'm leaning toward Fellows who proved his prowess in Montreal last weekend. Another noteworthy ringer is Boris Said. Don't put Mark Martin in because he's not racing this week. Oh and Jeff Gordon and Stewart are the safest bets for A drivers ... put in at least one of the two.

Race facts: Here are a couple of nuggets on info about the Glen that could benefit you this weekend. There have been 14 pole winners out of 25 races at the 2.45-mile track and Jeff Gordon is the only repeat pole sitter in the last ten years with 2. Also, 18 of 25 races at Watkins Glen have been won from a top-10 starting position.

I'll admit: I'm a bigger fan of the road course races than circular tracks. I don't know why but there's just something intriguing about seeing stock cars made for ovals put on a road course and maneuvering through chicanes and up and down hills. With that being said, you bet I'll be parked in front of the TV Sunday sipping on Milwaukee's finest suds hoping I can gain a couple spots through wise Fantasy picks (and secretly wishing ill on my opponents).