Auto Club 400 Fantasy Racing Preview

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series travels back to the west coast this weekend with the running of the Auto Club 400 in Fontana, California. Last week Carl Edwards captured the checkered flag at the Food City 500 in an event that unfolded in a setting much like fall race normally held at Bristol Motor Speedway. After a few rain delays pushed the racing action into the late evening hours, Edwards used some pit strategy for track position to hold off the field for the final 71 laps to score his 22nd career victory. While the rain was frustrating for viewers, the racing action did not disappoint. Bristol proved once again why it is a fan favorite track with plenty of lead changes, close racing, and wild action throughout the night.

This week, Sprint Cup drivers will put short track racing in their rear-view mirror when they return to Auto Club Speedway. Formerly known as Fontana, Auto Club Speedway is a 2.0 mile track with 14 degree banking that will see speeds peak at over 200mph. Kyle Busch is the defending champion of the Auto Club 400 and is 1 of just 3 drivers to finish in the top 5 in the last two races in California. Dale Earnhardt Jr and Carl Edwards are the only other two drivers to accomplish that feat. Earnhardt lost the points lead last week with a 24th place running at Bristol relinquishing the championship lead to Brad Keselowski. If you look at how strong Junior was at Las Vegas and his recent trips to Auto Club Speedway, there is a good probability that he will bounce back with a strong showing this week.

For Edwards and Busch, they both have two of the best average finishes among active drivers. Edwards and the Ford camp appear to have gained a lot of speed since 2013 and that makes the #99 car another strong choice this week. For Kyle Busch and Joe Gibbs Racing, this is a big week. Neither Busch nor Matt Kenseth have scored a top 5 this season and both drivers have underperformed at tracks they ran very well at in 2013. Both drivers have experienced a lot of bad luck this season and it will be interesting to see if either can put themselves in contention for the win this week.

A guy that you must have on your roster this week is 6 time Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson. Six-time has 5 career wins at Auto Club Speedway which is the most among all drivers. Johnson has had sort of a quiet start to his standards through 2014 and sits 6th in the standings. However, Johnson has been nothing short of dominate throughout his career in Fontana posting a 5.74 average finish in his 19 starts. This seems like the perfect spot and track for Johnson to climb back up the points ladder with another good running this week. Johnson’s teammate Jeff Gordon has 3 career wins at Auto Club Speedway but the last of those was back in 2004. Gordon has just been too inconsistent to predict and has failed to finish inside the top 10 in the last 3 races in his home state.

If you are looking for a couple of guys to keep on your radar throughout the week as dark horses, consider Greg Biffle and Joey Logano. This is one of those wide open race tracks that fits Biffle’s style of driving and he has visited victory lane once back in 2005 at Auto Club Speedway. The ‘Biff’ has two top 10’s in the last two races here and he may be worth a few looks this week. Logano finished 3rd in last year’s Auto Club 400 and he has been fast everywhere this season. Those Penske cars have shown a lot of speed this season especially at the superspeedway size tracks. If nothing changes, keep Logano on your radar as well. Cars are expected to unload for the first practice on Friday at 3:00pm eastern which will give us our first look and feel for expectations this Sunday.