Fantasy Preview: Bristol

Ahh, yes … from the super speedways to the cookie cutters, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series has finally truly arrived here in the fifth week of the season as we head to Bristol – the place where men are broken and legends are made. Here is a track that you won’t find drivers boasting an average finish of 4.0 or any ridiculous number like that. In fact the only three active drivers in the series with an overall average under  11.0  in the last 17 races are Greg Biffle, Kevin Harvick, and Jeff Gordon – none of which are better than 10.3 (Biffle). Why is that? Because Brisol possesses the one factor that cannot truly be found at any other track on the circuit. Aside from a good setup and great pit stops, drivers must also be able to avoid tearing their car in half. The beating and banging that NASCAR brings to Tennessee is second to none. Additionally, these drivers are constantly on the wheel – a testament to how physically demanding this sport can be.

The first guy that’s going to be on people’s minds this week is undoubtedly the series points leader Kyle Busch. Kyle won this race last Spring and finished 9th in the Fall race. He’s currently working on a string of four consecutive top-ten finishes at the track, and is also coming off of an historic weekend in Atlanta.  Without question, the younger of the Busch brothers is the guy with the giant bulls-eye on his back this weekend. Carl Edwards is the only driver in the garage that has really been able to rival Busch in the spotlight department so far this year, and coincidentally, Edwards won the Fall race at Bristol in 2007 and finished 12th in the Spring. He appeared to be handling the situation regarding NASCAR’s decision to penalize the no. 99 team over their Las Vegas incident, but now many people are wondering if it’s just all too much at once after breaking his transmission in Atlanta and dropping out of the top 12 in points.

Kurt Busch leads all active drivers at Bristol by far with the most wins with 5 to his credit. He won here in the Spring of ’02, both races in ’03, the Spring of ’04, and again in the Spring of ’06. Since then, however, he’s finished 37th, 29th, and 6th. He’s had an up-and-down season so far in 2008, so Bristol could be his make it or break it track. Matt Kenseth has won twice here himself back in the Fall of ’05 and the Fall of ’06, splitting them with a 3rd place finish in the Spring of ’06. He wasn’t overly impressive in the COT races here last year, though, finishing 11th and 39th, but the entire Roush organization seems to have a better handle on the whole COT program now, and Kenseth’s been getting stronger and stronger these last few races.

As previously mentioned, Greg Biffle, Kevin Harvick, and Jeff Gordon have the best average finishes amongst active drivers at the track. Biffle’s never won here, Harvick won in 2005, and Gordon’s last Bristol victory came in 2002. Dale Earnhardt Jr. has the best average finish over the last five Bristol races, with a finishing average of 7.0 during that time. He’s won here once – back in 2004 – and has seven top-ten finishes here in his last eight Bristol trips.

TZ’s Six-Pack Challenge:

 Winner – Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2nd Place – Kyle Busch
3rd Place – Jeff Gordon
4th Place – Greg Biffle
5th Place – Kevin Harvick
6th Place – Carl Edwards

Lock of the Week – Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Sleeper Pick – Bobby LaBonte
Steer Clear of – Martin Truex Jr