Fantasy Picks – Atlanta Motor Speedway

Kurt Busch heads to Atlanta fresh off a Daytona 500
victory this past Sunday. He has three wins in 25 starts
at Atlanta. 

Sleepers:

Kurt Busch: Fresh off his first Daytona 500 victory, Kurt Busch looks to make #FantasyNASCAR owners pleased again this week at Atlanta. In 25 starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kurt has three wins, six top fives and 11 top 10s. Since 2005, Busch has a driver rating of 95.4 at AMS – good for fifth among active drivers. He’s led 749 laps at Atlanta – which is the most am ong active drivers. Kurt is easily a top sleeper candidate this week and should be picked as such.

Ryan Blaney: Those who watched the Daytona 500 surely liked what they saw from second-year full-time driver Ryan Blaney. Blaney started the Great American Race 36th and finished... second. For those keeping score, that’s a +34 place differential. Blaney’s price makes him appealing heading into Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he scored a top-25 finish a season ago. Though early this season, Blaney could be a top sleeper candidate this season. Pick him up and start him wherever you can.

Kasey Kahne: Kahne makes a solid sleeper pick this week at Atlanta. It’s very early, but you should like what you’re seeing from Kahne early on in 2017. He scored a top 10 in the Daytona 500 and finished second in the NASCAR XFINITY Series race at Daytona. His credentials at Atlanta are worthy of a sleeper pick alone. In 20 starts at AMS, Kahne has three wins, seven top fives and nine top 10s. He also has led 353 laps and owns an average finish of 18.6.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Though not a strong start to 2017 in the Daytona 500, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is sleeping giant this week at Atlanta. His price is slowing decreasing to the sleeper range and his history here warrants a strong look. In 29 starts at AMS, Earnhardt Jr. has one win, 10 top fives and 14 top 10s. His 633 laps led are only third to Kevin Harvick and Kurt Busch. He owns an average finish of 11.6, with a +4.2 place differential. Highly consider Dale Jr. this weekend while he’s affordable.

Value Picks:

AJ Allmendinger: If you can afford a little extra salary, consider Dinger this weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway. In 11 starts at AMS, AJ has three top 10s but has finished outside the top 20 only twice. He has an average finish of 17.2, with an average place differential of +6.8. Dinger has run 32.1% of his laps in the top 15 and has one led lap at Atlanta. For his asking price and potential value at Atlanta, consider AJ very solid value this week.

Paul Menard: Menard’s is open for business! Paul Menard that is. After starting the Daytona 500 33rd, Menard scored a fifth-place finish. Again, for those keeping score, that’s a +28-place differential. Looking ahead to Atlanta, Menard has exceeded value pick production and his price is almost perfect. In 15 starts at AMS, Menard has one top five and three top 10s. He has six-consecutive top 25s and owns an average finish of 19.8. Look for Menard to give owners points in place differential.

Ty Dillon: Though not the best start to the season after wrecking at Daytona, Ty Dillon looks to rebound at Atlanta. And it looks like just the place he can do that. Dillon has raced two Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races at Atlanta and has scored top 25s in both – including a 17th-place finish in 2016. He owns an average finish of 21.0 with a +2.5 place differential. Given his asking price and quality production here, Ty is a strong value play at Atlanta.

Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. is going to be driver you want to take a quality look at as a value play this week for Atlanta. In four career starts here, Stenhouse Jr. has one top 10 (2016) and an average finish of 20.5. In 2013, Stenhouse Jr. won the Coors Light Pole here and he’s only finished outside the top-20 only once in those four starts. He’s run 31.1% of his laps in the top 15. Stenhouse Jr. is likely to earn a top-25 finish but anything better with this asking price is gold for a value play.