The Monster Energy Cup Series heads to the Superspeedway of Talladega. Like races at the Daytona Speedway, Talledega is a restrictor plate race, where the speed of the cars is capped, and no single driver can completely break away from the pack. This means very tight racing, which could lead to the “Big One”, a crash that can easily wipe out 25% of the field at any given time. And there can also be multiple Big Ones. For DFS purposes, I like to pick guys who have won in the past at both Talladega and Daytona as they are skilled at navigating the tight racing packs of Talladega.
My Top 4 Drivers for the Geico 500 at Talledega
Brad Keselowski($10,700): Keselowski will be the chalk for this race. He has the best record among all drivers with an impressive five wins at Talladega. He also has seven Top 5’s and eleven Top 10 finishes. He performed well in 2017, winning the October 2017 race and placing 7th in the May 2017 race.
Kurt Busch($8,600): Kurt Busch is a veteran driver who does well at the superspeedways and short tracks. Even though he has never won at Talladega, he has seven Top 5 finishes, and eighteen Top 10 finishes. He won the Daytona 500 race last year, proving that he can survive and thrive in restrictor plate races. He has five Top 10 finishes in his last seven races at Talladeaga.
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.($9,100): Stenhouse will be another popular driver to use for this race as he excels at restrictor plate races. His only two Monster Energy Cup victories came at Daytona and Talladega, where he won in May of 2017. His last four starts at Talladega are 5th, 1st, 6th and 6th respectively.
Jamie McMurray($7,800): McMurray had the fastest car in practice this week. He drives well at restictor plate races as he has two victories at Talladega. McMurray placed 2nd in last year’s May race, and 4th in the 2016 May race. He also had two wins at the Daytona Speedway.
Others to Consider
Aric Almirola($8,100): In the last four races at Talladega, Almirola has an average finish of 11.00, which is 2nd only behind Kurt Busch. In this year’s Daytona 500, he was actually in the lead to win the race before getting spun out by eventual winner Austin Dillon. His last three finishes at Talladega are 5th, 4th, and 8th respectively. He will provide salary relief at a price of $8,100.
Ty Dillon($6,700): Another salary relief guy, and my sleeper pick to finish in the Top 5 is Ty Dillon. He had Top 5 car in practice this week. In his only two races at Talladega, he has finished 11th and 13th. He is a great value price of $6,700.
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