Well what a way to start the season last week at Daytona! That race had everything, great passes, cars just loose enough to make them a real chore to driver, and a last lap block that didn’t go as planned. We will now leave Daytona and plate racing in general behind for the next several races, until April to be specific, and turn our attention to Atlanta Motor Speedway for this Sunday’s race.
Atlanta is a 1.5-mile track, like most of the tracks on the schedule, and it’s nearly identical in shape and banking to Charlotte Motor Speedway, which is also owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc. The banking in the turns at AMS is 24 degrees, or pretty standard for a track of this length. What distinguishes Atlanta from pretty much any other 1.5-mile track is the track surface itself. If you caught the Austin Dillon interview on our very own Fantasy Alarm Show on SiriusXM on Tuesday, you’d have found out that Atlanta has what’s described as a slick surface and it eats tires. The track hasn’t been repaved in quite sometime, in fact the drivers asked the track owners not to repave it last year so as to get one more race out of old surface. However most believe that it will be repaved after this year’s race weekend.
With tires being of such importance this week, the new pit crew changes will be brought to the forefront even more. Last week green flag pit stops were in the 16-18 second range, compared to 11-12 seconds last year. That difference will make it tougher not to lose a lot of track position in green flag stops on the shorter and more standard sized tracks. The issue with the older surface is that seeping is an issue here. It’s when the track can’t properly drain excess moisture and it makes the track treacherous and potentially unusable until it is completely dried out. This issue really only becomes a problem if there is rain in the forecast, but that’s exactly what’s being called for in the Atlanta area this weekend.
Track Data
Last Four Folds of Honor 500 On a mobile device scroll right
Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
Jimmie Johnson | 4 | 22.5 | 8.3 | 6.3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 146 |
Kasey Kahne | 4 | 15 | 15.3 | 10.5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 25 |
Brad Keselowski | 4 | 9 | 8.5 | 14.5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 26 |
Kevin Harvick | 4 | 2.5 | 2.8 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 734 |
Chase Elliott | 2 | 17.5 | 7 | 6.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Kurt Busch | 3 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 84 |
Joey Logano | 4 | 11.8 | 8.3 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 84 |
Kyle Larson | 4 | 9.3 | 14.5 | 15.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
Denny Hamlin | 4 | 10.8 | 13 | 23.8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 51 |
Kyle Busch | 3 | 16.7 | 15.3 | 11.7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
Martin Truex Jr | 4 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 34 |
Ryan Newman | 4 | 4.3 | 10 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
Jamie McMurray | 4 | 6.8 | 15.5 | 20.8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 4 | 13.8 | 17 | 19.8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
Aric Almirola | 4 | 21.8 | 20.5 | 15.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
AJ Allmendinger | 4 | 19 | 25 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Erik Jones | 1 | 23 | 12 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Austin Dillon | 4 | 13.8 | 20.5 | 26.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Ryan Blaney | 2 | 18.5 | 18.5 | 21.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Clint Bowyer | 4 | 24.8 | 23.5 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Trevor Bayne | 3 | 15.7 | 19.3 | 17.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
Paul Menard | 4 | 21 | 20 | 18.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
David Ragan | 4 | 30.5 | 25.8 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Ty Dillon | 3 | 24.3 | 22.3 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
Cole Whitt | 4 | 38.5 | 30.3 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Gray Gaulding | 1 | 31 | 35 | 37 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Daniel Suarez | 1 | 21 | 27 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Chris Buescher | 2 | 29.5 | 29 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Matt DiBenedetto | 2 | 28.5 | 30 | 28.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Alex Bowman | 2 | 36 | 32 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Michael McDowell | 3 | 30.7 | 33 | 29.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Jeffrey Earnhardt | 2 | 36.5 | 36.5 | 35.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Darrell Wallace Jr. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Harrison Rhodes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Ross Chastain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
William Byron | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fast | Top 15 | Pass | Avg. | High | Low | Pos. | Laps Led | High to | Low to | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driver | Laps | Rate | Diff. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts/Race | Avg Rating | Avg Rating |
Jimmie Johnson | 83 | 78.00% | 24 | 107.4 | 126.7 | 74 | 16.2 | 9.13 | 19.3 | 33.4 |
Kasey Kahne | 31 | 56.00% | 3 | 85.8 | 105.2 | 55.9 | 4.5 | 1.56 | 19.4 | 29.9 |
Brad Keselowski | 70 | 94.00% | 9 | 102.1 | 130.4 | 90.6 | -5.5 | 1.63 | 28.3 | 11.5 |
Kevin Harvick | 249 | 98.00% | 11 | 132.3 | 137.2 | 128.5 | -6.5 | 45.88 | 4.9 | 3.8 |
Chase Elliott | 35 | 96.00% | 9 | 105.2 | 114.9 | 95.5 | 11 | 0.00 | 9.7 | 9.7 |
Kurt Busch | 19 | 89.00% | 2 | 98.9 | 111.8 | 91.9 | 4 | 7.00 | 12.9 | 7 |
Joey Logano | 81 | 88.00% | 4 | 106.9 | 126.9 | 92.3 | 2.8 | 5.25 | 20 | 14.6 |
Kyle Larson | 12 | 58.00% | 1 | 82.7 | 112.3 | 51.1 | -6.2 | 0.44 | 29.6 | 31.6 |
Denny Hamlin | 48 | 70.00% | -9 | 85.9 | 114.9 | 67 | -13 | 3.19 | 29 | 18.9 |
Kyle Busch | 17 | 42.00% | 0 | 78.1 | 96.6 | 68.7 | 5 | 0.17 | 18.5 | 9.4 |
Martin Truex Jr | 41 | 86.00% | -1 | 98.5 | 116.6 | 71.2 | -1.5 | 2.13 | 18.1 | 27.3 |
Ryan Newman | 12 | 91.00% | -12 | 90.5 | 94.2 | 84.5 | -14.7 | 0.19 | 3.7 | 6 |
Jamie McMurray | 1 | 57.00% | -9 | 75.8 | 84.2 | 69.5 | -14 | 0.00 | 8.4 | 6.3 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 15 | 51.00% | -4 | 74.5 | 91.9 | 53.8 | -6 | 0.00 | 17.4 | 20.7 |
Aric Almirola | 6 | 24.00% | 5 | 67.5 | 83.8 | 40.2 | 6.3 | 0.00 | 16.3 | 27.3 |
AJ Allmendinger | 29 | 17.00% | -7 | 64.6 | 86.6 | 51.4 | -6 | 0.00 | 22 | 13.2 |
Erik Jones | 3 | 78.00% | 15 | 83.2 | 83.2 | 83.2 | 9 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Austin Dillon | 7 | 49.00% | -10 | 66.9 | 82.9 | 44.4 | -12.7 | 0.00 | 16 | 22.5 |
Ryan Blaney | 22 | 45.00% | -6 | 69.1 | 69.6 | 68.5 | -3 | 0.00 | 0.5 | 0.6 |
Clint Bowyer | 36 | 37.00% | 3 | 64.3 | 84.6 | 38.4 | -2.2 | 0.06 | 20.3 | 25.9 |
Trevor Bayne | 4 | 34.00% | -12 | 69.5 | 80.9 | 63.4 | -2 | 0.00 | 11.4 | 6.1 |
Paul Menard | 12 | 20.00% | 1 | 67.6 | 79.6 | 49 | 2.5 | 0.00 | 12 | 18.6 |
David Ragan | 16 | 9.00% | 1 | 54.6 | 78.1 | 32.3 | 5.5 | 0.00 | 23.5 | 22.3 |
Ty Dillon | 6 | 1.00% | -1 | 64.2 | 69.5 | 55.6 | 5.3 | 0.00 | 5.3 | 8.6 |
Cole Whitt | 1 | 1.00% | 10 | 43 | 52.8 | 35.1 | 7.5 | 0.06 | 9.8 | 7.9 |
Gray Gaulding | 11 | 1.00% | -4 | 31.9 | 31.9 | 31.9 | -6 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Daniel Suarez | 1 | 0.00% | -4 | 50.9 | 50.9 | 50.9 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Chris Buescher | 5 | 0.00% | 3 | 44.8 | 47.7 | 41.9 | 3.5 | 0.00 | 2.9 | 2.9 |
Matt DiBenedetto | 0 | 0.00% | -3 | 43.2 | 45.2 | 41.2 | 0 | 0.00 | 2 | 2 |
Alex Bowman | 1 | 0.00% | 3 | 46 | 53.4 | 38.6 | 7 | 0.00 | 7.4 | 7.4 |
Michael McDowell | 2 | 0.00% | -1 | 40.9 | 44.1 | 34.8 | 1 | 0.00 | 3.2 | 6.1 |
Jeffrey Earnhardt | 6 | 0.00% | 0 | 26.8 | 29.1 | 24.5 | 1 | 0.00 | 2.3 | 2.3 |
Darrell Wallace Jr. | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Harrison Rhodes | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Ross Chastain | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
William Byron | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 |
Top-15 Drivers at Atlanta Motor Speedway (Since 2009) On a mobile device scroll right
Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
Jimmie Johnson | 10 | 15.1 | 10.8 | 14 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 200 |
Kasey Kahne | 10 | 10.8 | 16.8 | 17.2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 260 |
Kurt Busch | 9 | 13.6 | 12.1 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 223 |
Kyle Busch | 9 | 8.3 | 11.6 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 169 |
Brad Keselowski | 9 | 16.7 | 11.3 | 18.1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 59 |
Denny Hamlin | 10 | 9.8 | 12.8 | 21.2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 291 |
Kevin Harvick | 10 | 16.7 | 7.4 | 10.1 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 901 |
Martin Truex Jr | 10 | 10.7 | 9.8 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 145 |
Joey Logano | 10 | 18.5 | 16.3 | 16.4 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 162 |
Ryan Newman | 10 | 9.2 | 14.4 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 16 |
Chase Elliott | 2 | 17.5 | 7 | 6.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
Kyle Larson | 4 | 9.3 | 14.5 | 15.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
Paul Menard | 10 | 22.3 | 20.1 | 17.9 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 1 |
AJ Allmendinger | 9 | 19.6 | 19.4 | 18.7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 0 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 5 | 11.2 | 17.4 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
Fast | Top 15 | Pass | Avg. | High | Low | Pos. | Laps Led | Rating | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driver | Laps | Rate | Diff. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts/Race | Range |
Jimmie Johnson | 173 | 73.0% | 11 | 99.2 | 126.7 | 55.8 | 1.1 | 5.00 | 70.9 |
Kasey Kahne | 172 | 54.0% | 0 | 87.6 | 138.1 | 45.7 | -6.4 | 6.50 | 92.4 |
Kurt Busch | 80 | 71.0% | -3 | 94.9 | 133.3 | 73.9 | 3.6 | 6.19 | 59.4 |
Kyle Busch | 119 | 65.0% | -10 | 94 | 120.7 | 68.7 | -3.7 | 4.69 | 52 |
Brad Keselowski | 112 | 77.0% | 7 | 92.4 | 130.4 | 48.3 | -1.4 | 1.64 | 82.1 |
Denny Hamlin | 205 | 71.0% | -3 | 97.3 | 141 | 50.7 | -11.4 | 7.28 | 90.3 |
Kevin Harvick | 390 | 83.0% | 14 | 113.3 | 137.2 | 66.7 | 6.6 | 22.53 | 70.5 |
Martin Truex Jr | 112 | 84.0% | -3 | 97.4 | 116.6 | 71.2 | -2.3 | 3.63 | 45.4 |
Joey Logano | 146 | 51.0% | -1 | 85.7 | 130.8 | 43 | 2.1 | 4.05 | 87.8 |
Ryan Newman | 48 | 61.0% | -2 | 84 | 102 | 66.6 | -7.8 | 0.40 | 35.4 |
Chase Elliott | 35 | 96.0% | 9 | 105.2 | 114.9 | 95.5 | 11 | 0.00 | 19.4 |
Kyle Larson | 12 | 58.0% | 1 | 82.7 | 112.3 | 51.1 | -6.2 | 0.44 | 61.2 |
Paul Menard | 32 | 29.0% | 0 | 70.4 | 88.7 | 49 | 4.4 | 0.03 | 39.7 |
AJ Allmendinger | 50 | 42.0% | 0 | 75 | 99.9 | 51.4 | 0.9 | 0.00 | 48.5 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 17 | 45.0% | -15 | 75 | 91.9 | 53.8 | -7.8 | 0.00 | 38.1 |
Top-15 Drivers at 1.5 Mile Tracks (Since February 2014) On a mobile device scroll right
Avg. | Avg. | Avg. | Top | Top | Top | Top | Laps | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driver | Races | Start | Run Pos. | Finish | Wins | 5s | 10s | 15s | 20s | Led |
Martin Truex Jr | 27 | 7.6 | 5.8 | 6.6 | 7 | 12 | 21 | 26 | 27 | 2053 |
Jimmie Johnson | 27 | 14.8 | 11.3 | 12.8 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 628 |
Kyle Busch | 24 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 15 | 19 | 22 | 878 |
Kevin Harvick | 27 | 6 | 6.4 | 8.4 | 2 | 13 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 1386 |
Joey Logano | 27 | 9.1 | 11.7 | 13.2 | 2 | 11 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 676 |
Brad Keselowski | 27 | 7.1 | 11.1 | 10.9 | 2 | 8 | 20 | 23 | 24 | 607 |
Denny Hamlin | 27 | 8.2 | 12.1 | 14.9 | 1 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 19 | 271 |
Austin Dillon | 27 | 15.6 | 17.2 | 19.9 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 18 | 13 |
Chase Elliott | 19 | 13.8 | 12.9 | 13.2 | 0 | 8 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 241 |
Kurt Busch | 26 | 10.2 | 10.3 | 10.3 | 0 | 6 | 18 | 21 | 24 | 297 |
Kyle Larson | 27 | 16.4 | 13.6 | 19.7 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 12 | 14 | 101 |
Ryan Blaney | 23 | 13.8 | 16 | 18.2 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 13 | 15 | 242 |
Ryan Newman | 27 | 14.4 | 16.7 | 17.2 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 7 |
Kasey Kahne | 27 | 19.9 | 17.1 | 17.3 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 15 | 18 | 11 |
Jamie McMurray | 27 | 14.7 | 15.3 | 15.7 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 16 | 22 | 14 |
Fast | Top 15 | Pass | Avg. | High | Low | Pos. | Laps Led | Rating | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Driver | Laps | Rate | Diff. | Rating | Rating | Rating | Diff. | Pts/Race | Range |
Martin Truex Jr | 1088 | 95.0% | 3 | 120.1 | 150 | 90.1 | 1 | 19.01 | 59.9 |
Jimmie Johnson | 531 | 78.0% | 12 | 99.7 | 137.5 | 53.2 | 2 | 5.81 | 84.3 |
Kyle Busch | 578 | 80.0% | 1 | 107.4 | 148.4 | 69 | -1 | 9.15 | 79.4 |
Kevin Harvick | 837 | 90.0% | 9 | 116.7 | 140.6 | 76.9 | -2.4 | 12.83 | 63.7 |
Joey Logano | 382 | 73.0% | 0 | 96.9 | 146.4 | 44.1 | -4.1 | 6.26 | 102.3 |
Brad Keselowski | 438 | 82.0% | 5 | 97.7 | 145 | 29.7 | -3.8 | 5.62 | 115.3 |
Denny Hamlin | 253 | 74.0% | -4 | 92.4 | 117.1 | 45.1 | -6.7 | 2.51 | 72 |
Austin Dillon | 115 | 55.0% | -2 | 77.3 | 103.5 | 35.9 | -4.3 | 0.12 | 67.6 |
Chase Elliott | 254 | 70.0% | 13 | 95.1 | 129.1 | 35.2 | 0.6 | 3.17 | 93.9 |
Kurt Busch | 200 | 84.0% | 4 | 95.2 | 125.6 | 71.2 | -0.1 | 2.86 | 54.4 |
Kyle Larson | 301 | 66.0% | 13 | 86.9 | 112.3 | 51.1 | -3.3 | 0.94 | 61.2 |
Ryan Blaney | 174 | 61.0% | 0 | 82.8 | 128.4 | 30.8 | -4.4 | 2.63 | 97.6 |
Ryan Newman | 39 | 49.0% | -5 | 76.7 | 99.9 | 38.5 | -2.8 | 0.06 | 61.4 |
Kasey Kahne | 129 | 51.0% | 2 | 77.7 | 115.9 | 41.4 | 2.6 | 0.10 | 74.5 |
Jamie McMurray | 43 | 60.0% | 2 | 81.1 | 103.8 | 46.7 | -1 | 0.13 | 57.1 |
Points Changes at Folds of Honor 500
17 Race | Season | DK Pts +/- | |
Driver | DK Pts. | Avg DK Pts. | Season AVG |
AJ Allmendinger | 14 | 23.30 | -9.30 |
Aric Almirola | 20.5 | 28.74 | -8.24 |
Austin Dillon | 0.5 | 27.60 | -27.10 |
Brad Keselowski | 75.25 | 41.64 | 33.61 |
Chase Elliott | 54.5 | 40.30 | 14.20 |
Chris Buescher | 26 | 26.64 | -0.64 |
Clint Bowyer | 49 | 28.28 | 20.72 |
Cole Whitt | 41 | 19.14 | 21.86 |
Daniel Suarez | 23.5 | 28.62 | -5.12 |
David Ragan | 35.5 | 24.04 | 11.46 |
Denny Hamlin | -18.5 | 39.96 | -58.46 |
Erik Jones | 40.5 | 28.86 | 11.64 |
Gray Gaulding | 6.5 | 16.26 | -9.76 |
Jamie McMurray | 31.5 | 26.84 | 4.66 |
Jeffrey Earnhardt | 13 | 14.28 | -1.28 |
Jimmie Johnson | 24.5 | 34.15 | -9.65 |
Joey Logano | 48 | 32.43 | 15.57 |
Kasey Kahne | 67 | 24.98 | 42.02 |
Kevin Harvick | 129.5 | 43.84 | 85.66 |
Kurt Busch | 43 | 26.68 | 16.32 |
Kyle Busch | 16 | 55.94 | -39.94 |
Kyle Larson | 54.25 | 47.34 | 6.91 |
Martin Truex Jr | 39 | 62.76 | -23.76 |
Matt DiBenedetto | 10 | 18.93 | -8.93 |
Michael McDowell | 23 | 24.85 | -1.85 |
Paul Menard | 11 | 26.01 | -15.01 |
Ricky Stenhouse Jr | 29.5 | 27.76 | 1.74 |
Ryan Blaney | 32.5 | 25.54 | 6.96 |
Ryan Newman | -19.75 | 30.92 | -50.67 |
Trevor Bayne | 35.5 | 26.24 | 9.26 |
Ty Dillon | 42.5 | 29.62 | 12.89 |
Avg. +/- | 18.88 |
Top-10 and Bottom-10 Values Drivers
Top 10 Value | Bottom 10 Value | ||||
1 | Alex Bowman | 6.08 | 34 | Ryan Blaney | 3.04 |
2 | Martin Truex Jr | 6.03 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | 3.11 |
3 | Kyle Busch | 5.77 | 32 | Kurt Busch | 3.25 |
4 | Darrell Wallace Jr | 5.00 | 31 | Erik Jones | 3.36 |
5 | Kyle Larson | 4.73 | 30 | Clint Bowyer | 3.49 |
6 | Ty Dillon | 4.56 | 29 | Matt DiBenedetto | 3.51 |
7 | Brad Keselowski | 4.53 | 28 | Jamie McMurray | 3.53 |
8 | Chris Buescher | 4.51 | 27 | Joey Logano | 3.60 |
9 | Ryan Newman | 4.48 | 26 | Gray Gaulding | 3.61 |
10 | Michael McDowell | 4.36 | 25 | Aric Almirola | 3.68 |
Drivers to watch this week
Jimmie Johnson: Flashing back to the Austin Dillon interview for a second, Johnon was mentioned as his pick for the driver to watch out for at Atlanta since he always does well here. And Dillon is right. Johnson has two wins, three top-fives, and three top-10s in the last four races with 146 laps led and 83 fastest laps. He also has the best position differential in the field at +16.2 in that same span. All of those stats plus his impressive history at Atlanta overall and 1.5-mile tracks in general make him hard to turn down, especially at just a paltry $8,800 this week.
Chase Elliott: At $700 more than JJ we find Elliott coming to his home track. Despite racing here just twice in the MENCS he has a remarkable track record (excuse the pun) with two top-10s already and 35 fastest laps. He also has a healthy +11 position differential and has spent 96% of his time on the track running in the top-15 in the last two races. The downside is that he has yet to lead a lap, but if the speed he showed at Daytona transfers to Atlanta, that should change in a hurry.
Kasey Kahne: It’s a new beginning for Kahne as he switched teams to a single-car operation for Levine Family Racing instead of being the low man on the totem pole at Hendrick Motorsports. However, his skills here have shown through well in the last four races. He has a win, two top-fives, and three top-15s in the last four tries at Atlanta. That doesn’t bring in the 25 laps and 31 fastest laps either. His 10.5 average finish is best for sixth in the field this week. Kahne had speed at Daytona and his experience here can really help the new team new how he likes the car setup. His $6,200 price tag this week allows him to provide a boost to the lineup without costing anywhere close to a top-tier driver.
Kevin Harvick: Harvick is the second-most expensive driver this week, $300 cheaper than Martin Truex Jr., but that doesn’t mean he has worse stats than Truex. In fact Harvick in some regards has been far and away the best driver at this track in the last four races. His 734 laps led and 249 fastest laps are about 4-5 times better than the next closest driver in the field. Unfortunately he doesn’t have a win and only has one top-five in the four-race span. His three top-10s are nice as is his field-best 132.3 average driver loop rating. Running in the top-15 98% of the time is huge as are his 45.8 laps led points per race, but getting into victory lane is the only thing that can improve his stats here.
Brad Keselowski: Yes, I know I wrote about Keselowski last week as well, but as the defending winner of the race, he deserves a mention. Keselowski has three top-10s including the win last year and 26 laps led with 70 fastest laps. The downside is his negative positional differential of -5.5 in the last four tries at AMS. A rating of 102.1 puts him squarely in the top-five in the field and his 4.53 FPPK this week ranks him the seventh-best value salary-to-points wise.