| The fantasy NASCAR season started with racing | | | | tracks, and is the only driver in this group without a |
| action from coast to coast, and one name familiar to | | | | single career win at a short track. |
| race fans resurfaced. Jimmie Johnson, the four-time | | | | Driver 6 |
| Sprint Cup champion, took the checkered flag in the | | | | Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Juan Pablo Montoya |
| western portion of the first three races of the | | | | - Their Season so Far: Each of these racers has |
| season, winning at California and Las Vegas. The next | | | | started the season slower than they would have |
| three races on the docket, and those that make up | | | | liked - Hamlin is 22nd in the standings, Kahne is 23rd, |
| the latest Fantasy NASCAR Challenge, take place at | | | | and Montoya is 27th. That's because there are only |
| tracks that are decidedly more southern and eastern; | | | | two top-10 finishes between them, with Kahne |
| but something tells us that Johnson will still do just | | | | placing ninth at Las Vegas and Montoya 10th at |
| fine. | | | | Daytona. Otherwise, the two haven't finished inside |
| (Note: The three races in this Fantasy NASCAR | | | | the top-30. Hamlin has finished inside the top-30 in all |
| Challenge take place at Atlanta, Bristol and | | | | three races this season, but hasn't placed higher than |
| Martinsville) | | | | 17th. |
| Driver 1 | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Jimmie Johnson | | | | Hamlin has had very good showings on short tracks |
| - Their Season so Far: Harvick is the current points | | | | in his career, with 18 top-10 finishes among 25 career |
| leader in the NASCAR Sprint Cup by virtue of a | | | | starts, so it's fitting that two of his eight career wins, |
| seventh-place finish in the Daytona 500 and then two | | | | and one of his seven poles, have come at Martinsville. |
| consecutive runner-up finishes at California and Las | | | | Kahne has two wins at Atlanta and one pole at |
| Vegas. The man Harvick ended up behind in both of | | | | Bristol, while Montoya, as you may expect, has |
| those races was Johnson, who is currently fifth in | | | | neither a win nor pole at these tracks. |
| the standings because of a 35th finish at Daytona. | | | | Driver 7 |
| Gordon is 13th in the standings because he didn't | | | | Ryan Newman, David Reutimann, Brian Vickers |
| place inside the top-20 in either of the season's first | | | | - Their Season so Far: These three drivers all over |
| two races, though he did claim third in Vegas. | | | | the map as far as the standings, with Newman a |
| - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: | | | | miserable 32nd due to twice finishing 34th or worse. |
| Still, Gordon will be in his comfort zone on the two | | | | Reutimann is a very respectable ninth in the |
| upcoming short tracks in Bristol and Martinsville - he | | | | standings, with a fifth-place finish at Daytona to his |
| has more career poles in Martinsville (seven) than any | | | | credit, and two top-15 finishes. Vickers is in between |
| other track, and his seven wins there are tied for the | | | | the two at 18th place with two top-15's but also a |
| most at one track in his career. His five poles at | | | | 32nd in Vegas. |
| Bristol are tied for the second-most at any track in | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| his career, and he has five wins there. Harvick has | | | | While Newman hasn't won at any of these tracks, it |
| not taken a pole at any of these speedways, but he | | | | hasn't been for lack of a good starting position. He |
| does have one career win at both Atlanta and Bristol. | | | | has two career poles at Bristol, three at Martinsville |
| Meanwhile, Johnson's six wins at Bristol are tied for | | | | and seven at Atlanta. Neither Reutimann nor Vickers |
| his most at one track, and he also has three career | | | | has a win or pole at these race tracks, and they |
| wins at Atlanta. | | | | haven't been very successful at short tracks over |
| Driver 2 | | | | their careers. Reutimann has one top-10 in 16 career |
| Matt Kenseth, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart | | | | races at short tracks and Vickers has three top-10's |
| - Their Season so Far: Kenseth started his season | | | | in 32 career races at that type of track. |
| with three consecutive top-10 finishes, and he is | | | | Driver 8 |
| currently in fourth place in the Sprint Cup standings. | | | | Paul Menard, Scott Speed, Martin Truex Jr. |
| Martin is one spot above him in third due to his | | | | - Their Season so Far: Menard, Speed and Truex are |
| consecutive fourth-place finishes in California and Las | | | | each between 16th and 21st in the Sprint Cup |
| Vegas, while Stewart is 11th in the standings with | | | | standings, with Speed at 16th, Menard 17th and |
| top-10 finishes in each of his last two races. | | | | Truex 21st. Menard has been consistent this season, |
| - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: | | | | placing between 13th and 18th in each of the |
| Harvick has taken the pole position on four occasions | | | | season's three races. Speed's best finish is 11th, and |
| in his career, and one of those was at Bristol, a track | | | | also has a 19th-place finish and 21st-place finish, but |
| where he has two of his 18 career wins. But that's | | | | he has led at least three laps in each race of the |
| nothing compared to Martin's success at taking the | | | | season. Truex has been inconsistent for his fantasy |
| lead position at that track; nine times in his career has | | | | NASCAR owners, finishing in the top-10 at Daytona, |
| Martin won the pole at Bristol, which is four more | | | | but then placing 39th the next week at California. |
| than at any other track, and he's won there twice. | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| The vet has taken three poles at Martinsville and two | | | | None of these three racers has obtained a victory at |
| in Atlanta, with two wins at each of those | | | | these tracks, and only Truex has a pole, with that |
| speedways. Stewart also has taken the pole position | | | | coming at Atlanta. |
| three times at Martinsville, and it's the only track in | | | | Driver 9 |
| which he has more than one. He has two career wins | | | | A.J. Allmendinger, Sam Hornish Jr., Elliott Sadler |
| there, with two more in Atlanta and one in Bristol. | | | | - Their Season so Far: These three races are close in |
| Driver 3 | | | | the standings, and apparently like even numbers. |
| Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch, Carl Edwards | | | | That's because Sadler is 24th, Allmendinger is 26th, |
| - Their Season so Far: After a third-place finish at | | | | and Hornish is 28th after three NASCAR races. And |
| Daytona, Biffle landed two consecutive 10th-place | | | | as their respective places in the standings represent, |
| finishes at California and Las Vegas, and he's sixth in | | | | none of them has been overly successful. |
| the Sprint Cup standings. Busch was more erratic, | | | | Allmendinger has two 25th-place finishes while also |
| with a top-10 at California, but was outside the | | | | finishing 32nd at Daytona; Hornish's 16th-place finish |
| top-20 in his other two races, leaving him 19th in the | | | | at California is actually the highest finish in this group, |
| standings. Edwards is 10th in the standings, and has | | | | but he's also finished 37th and 28th; Sadler finished |
| finished between ninth and 13th in each race this | | | | 24th in each of his first two races before placing |
| season. | | | | 27th at Vegas. |
| - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| Biffle has never won at any of these tracks, and in | | | | Sadler is the only racer in this group with a win or |
| fact has never won at a short track in his career, | | | | pole at these three tracks; he has one of each at |
| though he does have one pole at Atlanta. Busch has | | | | Bristol. |
| had far more success on short tracks, with seven | | | | Driver 10 |
| wins in 55 career starts, including a career-high five at | | | | Marcos Ambrose, Brad Keselowski, David Ragan |
| Bristol, and one at Martinsville, with a pole at each. He | | | | - Their Season so Far: Ambrose finished 14th at Las |
| also has two wins at Atlanta. Edwards has two wins | | | | Vegas, a marked improvement after not placing |
| and one pole at Bristol, but he seems to really like | | | | higher than 35th in the first two races of the |
| racing at Atlanta - he has a career-high (tied) three | | | | NASCAR season, which leaves him at 33rd in the |
| wins on that track. | | | | standings. Keselowski is currently 30th in the |
| Driver 4 | | | | standings, and has nary a top-20 to his name, while |
| Clint Bowyer, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano | | | | Ragan is a respectable 20th in the standings after |
| - Their Season so Far: Bowyer's excellent start to | | | | finishing 16th at the Daytona 500 and 23rd at both |
| the season has him in second place in the Sprint Cup | | | | California and Las Vegas. |
| standings this season, and first place in the hearts of | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| fantasy NASCAR owners who utilized him. He has | | | | None of these racers has won or taken the pole |
| three consecutive top-10 finishes, and has led at least | | | | position at these three race tracks. |
| two laps in all three races this season. Busch, who is | | | | Driver 11 |
| 12th in the standings, has also led at least one lap in | | | | Robby Gordon, Travis Kvapil, Bobby Labonte |
| each of the three races this season, and he's been | | | | - Their Season so Far:Gordon is the low man in the |
| nothing if not consistent with two 14th-place finishes | | | | standings in this collection of fantasy NASCAR drivers |
| and one 15th-place. Young Mr. Logano is eighth in the | | | | at 34th due to finishing each race of the season |
| standings and after finishing 20th at Daytona he has | | | | between 28th and 33rd. Kvapil is the high man at |
| been in the top-10 twice. | | | | 29th, and his finishes have come from between 24th |
| - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: | | | | and 30th. Meanwhile, Labonte is between the two at |
| Neither Bowyer nor Logano has won or taken a pole | | | | 31st in the standings and has the highest finish in this |
| position at any of these three tracks. Busch hasn't | | | | group with a 21st at Daytona. |
| taken a pole at any of them, either, but he does | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| have a win at Atlanta, and three at Bristol, which | | | | Gordon won his only career pole position at Atlanta, |
| makes that track the only one in which he has | | | | but as you likely know, Labonte has all the history in |
| multiple victories. In fact, Busch has finished in the | | | | this group. His six wins at Atlanta are double the |
| top-10 in 20 of his 30 career short track races. | | | | amount he has at any other track, and he's won the |
| Driver 5 | | | | pole there twice. Labonte also has a win and pole at |
| Jeff Burton, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jamie McMurray | | | | Martinsville. |
| - Their Season so Far: Burton is 11th in the Sprint Cup | | | | Driver 12 |
| standings with a third-place at California sandwiched in | | | | David Gilliland, Joe Nemechek, Max Papis |
| between two 11th-place finishes. Earnhardt was | | | | - Their Season so Far: At the end of the standings |
| second at Daytona, and many thought that maybe | | | | come Gilliland, Nemechek and Papis. Gilliland is currently |
| his troubles from last year were behind him, but he | | | | in 38th after not being in the field at Daytona and a |
| followed that promising start with a 32nd- and | | | | 26th and 30th at California and Las Vegas, |
| 16th-place finish, respectively; he's 15th in the | | | | respectively. Nemechek, who is in 42nd place in the |
| standings. McMurray started the NASCAR season by | | | | standings, was in the field for all three races, but he |
| winning the Daytona 500, then followed that up by | | | | has yet to finish higher than 40th, while Papis is in |
| taking the pole position at California, only to finish | | | | 35th place and has finished a race in varied fashion, |
| 17th there and 34th at Las Vegas; those numbers | | | | though none with success - his high finish is 28th, and |
| landed him at 14th in the current standings. | | | | his low is 40th. |
| - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: | | | | - Career Success at Atlanta, Bristol and Martinsville: |
| Burton has a win each at Bristol and Martinsville, while | | | | No racer in this group has won a race at these three |
| Earnhardt has won once at Bristol and once at | | | | tracks, and only Nemechek has taken a pole - he has |
| Atlanta, while also taking a pole in Atlanta. McMurray, | | | | one at Martinsville. |
| meanwhile, has not had a win or pole at any of these | | | | |