Pit Picks Review – Aarons 499 (Talladega)

Ahhhh Talladega…how my fantasy team detests thee.
I had a little pre-race nap on Sunday, after playing 4 games of ball this weekend, and I woke up just in time to see the replay of the lap 8 carnage.  Sure enough, after all is said and done, my two top group drivers are listed in 42nd and 43rd respectively, and the race isn’t even 25 miles in.  After having a score just north of 100 in one of last years ‘Dega races, I was expecting much of the same yesterday.
The exact point where my fantasy week went in the crapper.
The exact point where my fantasy week went in the crapper.

I can’t say that I’m really a fan of any one driver in particular, but I do find Carl Edwards entertaining.  I enjoyed the Ricky Bobby like jog to the finish line to end the race, and the fact that he didn’t rip into the rookie for holding his line, like so many in the series would have.

Group 1 – Clint Bowyer(8) & Mark Martin(9)

This is exactly why I refuse to take a Gordon or a Johnson in a plate race.  They get caught up in a mess and you have a crappy points week and waste one of their starts.  Bowyer and Martin were both caught up in the lap 8 wreck and Bowyer made it back on the track to complete a few laps, ultimately finishing 39th.  Martin’s day was over and he was 43rd…from so high to so low in one week.

Group 2 – Dale Earnhardt Jr(8), Brian Vickers(8), Ryan Newman(8), David Reutimann(8)

Junior failed in his bid to be the 4th straight driver to win a race for the Hendrick team this weekend, but he did pull off a second place finish.  I took Vickers as my second driver in this group and he managed to get his damaged race car across in 8th position.  Newman had another solid run and was in a good spot to win with only a couple laps to go, and ultimately finished 3rd.  Reutimann finished a lap down in 26th…probably not the finish he had hoped for in his sponsor’s race.

Group 3 – Sam Hornish Jr(8), Regan Smith(9)

Hornish was in the mix for a good portion of the race, but got caught in the second major wreck of the day and scored a 34th place finish.  Those Penske Dodge’s continue to impress, and it makes you wonder what’s taking the other Dodge teams so long to get on board with the new engines.  Smith stayed above the yellow line at all appropriate times on Sunday, and finished 15th, which was actually a better finish than last fall when he was first to the checkers.

Recap

  • Points for this race: 233 (Bowyer, Earnhardt Jr, Vickers, Hornish Jr.)
  • Most Possible Points: 401 (Biffle, Earnhardt Jr, Newman (Montoya, Truex Jr qual), Keselowski (Hornish Jr qual))
  • Season Points : 2546
  • Current Place : 1st
  • Lead over 2nd : 195
  • Overall Percentile : 98th (4724 overall) 

Photo Credit: John Harrelson/Getty Images

Filed under: Pit Picks, Speedways by Site Admin - Monday, April 27th, 2009

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