This week’s NASCAR fantasy picks for the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway
On Sunday, Talladega Superspeedway will host its 100th Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race. Construction began on this track on May 23, 1968, and the gates of the Alabama International Motor Speedway (as it was called back then) opened for the first race on September 14, 1969.
In early 1989, the track got a new name and became the Talladega Superspeedway that we know and love today. Since then, life has been anything but boring in Alabama.
- Kyle Petty made his first NASCAR Winston Cup Series start here on August 5, 1979.
- On August 1, 1982, Daryl Waltrip became the first driver to get a repeat win at the track.
- Patty Moise broke the women’s speed record in her Buick by reaching 217.498 mph around the track.
- The fastest race on this track occurred on May 10, 1997. Clocking in at 2 hours, 29 minutes, and 18 seconds, the event had no caution flags and was won by Mark Martin.
- On October 15, 2000, Dale Earnhardt earned his 10th win at the track, and it turned out to be the final victory of his career.
- Danica Patrick became the first female driver to lead laps here on May 4, 2014.
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the pole for his last start at his favorite track on October 14, 2017. Ironically, this was also the first place he became a pole winner at the start of his career.
Records have been broken here, as have hearts, and there’s no reason to think that this week will bring anything else. Last year, Aric Almirola got his second career victory here. Who will it be this year? Watch out for the wrecks, and don’t miss a minute of the action.
Last Race’s NASCAR Fantasy Picks: Recap From Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway
Brilliant NASCAR fantasy picks:
- Denny Hamlin – finished 5th
- Joey Logano – finished 2nd
- Kyle Busch – finished 8th
Bold NASCAR fantasy picks:
- Clint Bowyer – finished 3rd
- Aric Almirola – finished 23rd
- Kyle Larson – finished 37th
Bonkers NASCAR fantasy picks:
- Ryan Blaney – finished 25th
- Paul Menard – finished 10th
- Austin Dillon – finished 6th
And now, here are this week’s Brilliant, Bold, and Bonkers NASCAR Fantasy picks for the Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway:
Brilliant NASCAR fantasy picks
Brad Keselowski
- Wins: 5
- Top 5 finishes: 7
- Top 10 finishes: 11
Five wins here; are you kidding? How he sneaks through the wrecks is a secret only he knows, and I think he’ll be sneaking a lot this week. I expect a great finish for the #2 regardless of who else bombs out around him.
Joey Logano
- Wins: 3
- Top 5 finishes: 7
- Top 10 finishes: 9
Joey ends up with an average finish of 17th at Talladega, meaning that he goes big or he goes home. The way his season’s been going tells me that he’ll go big once again by hooking up with his teammate for a 1-2 punch. Shake n’ bake!
Clint Bowyer
- Wins: 2
- Top 5 finishes: 7
- Top 10 finishes: 13
Bowyer is ready to win and this is the track where he’s likely to do it. He has good luck here, he’s on a hot streak and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to pull into victory lane. As long as he doesn’t get caught up in a mess, he’s got a good shot of getting that elusive first win.
Bold NASCAR fantasy picks
Paul Menard
- Wins: 0
- Top 5 finishes: 3
- Top 10 finishes: 7
Menard has shown some spunk in the last two races, and he’s got a good record on crazy tracks like this. You can’t help but throw him into a bold mix, because it sure would be cool to see the Wood Brother Racing team get a win this week.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
- Wins: 1
- Top 5 finishes: 5
- Top 10 finishes: 7
When you look at track stats for Stenhouse, Talladega is at the top of the list. His average finish is 10th, and it’s one of his only wins. I expect that he waits all year for the opportunity to get crazy and take out anyone he can to bump that win total up to two.
Aric Almirola
- Wins: 1
- Top 5 finishes: 3
- Top 10 finishes: 6
He’s won here in a worse car, so I think he’s got a chance to win here in a car that’s had a few hot finishes this season. The last two weeks were the pits for Double-A, but I imagine he’s revving it up to make a bold statement on Sunday.
Bonkers NASCAR fantasy picks
Erik Jones
- Wins: 0
- Top 5 finishes: 0
- Top 10 finishes: 1
Jones’ average finish at Talladega is 29th. Though he’s had a couple of good finishes this season, he’s been lackluster in the past few weeks. Unless everyone else crashes, I don’t expect Jones to pull it off at Talladega.
Kyle Larson
- Wins: 0
- Top 5 finishes: 0
- Top 10 finishes: 2
I don’t know if anyone has disappointed themselves more this season than Larson. His woes will likely continue this week at a track that’s not very forgiving if you make a false move. This is one of his worst tracks, so he’ll be lucky if he finishes, let alone get a top 5.
Ryan Newman
- Wins: 0
- Top 5 finishes: 6
- Top 10 finishes: 13
He’s never had a win here, but his stats could be worse. However, I think that there will be so much chaos this week that Newman will find himself well outside of the top 10, barring any extreme action that he somehow scoots out of.
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