The Pit Stop is the essential guide to setting your Fantasy Racing lineup for the upcoming week. We provide you with pertinent news and roster management advice during every race week. It's down to the last two races NASCAR Fantasy fans and the race in Texas made the Chase for the Championship a pretty interesting one.
Sure, Jimmie Johnson controls his own destiny to win a third consecutive Sprint Cup title, but Carl Edwards certainly keeps pushing and trying to prevent that from happening.
Edwards took the checkered flag at Texas Motor Speedway probably on fumes as he raced the final 68 laps without pitting and gambled on fuel mileage. It worked out for his eighth win this season and 15th of his career.
More significant was the fact that he cut into Johnson's huge 183-point lead in the Chase down to 106 points. That's a pretty nice 77-point cut, which gives him confidence coming to Phoenix and then the finale at Homestead.
Johnson encountered trouble early on with the handling of his Chevrolet and was never able to completely adjust, having to eventually settle for a 15th-place finish.
Greg Biffle also kept his hopes going in the Chase alive by finishing third and reducing Johnson's lead from 185 to 143 points.
However, all these numbers could mean nothing if Johnson is able to finish seventh or better in the races at Phoenix and Homestead. The good news for Johnson and the bad news for those chasing him is that Johnson has won the last two races in Phoenix and has run very well on mid-flat tracks this season. Johnson won the first stop in Phoenix this season on April 12.
For Fantasy purposes, there are a few other drivers who tend to perform well at Phoenix, a track similar to those at New Hampshire and Richmond.
Clint Bowyer, winner at Richmond, is one of them. Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick also have won at Phoenix a couple of times and should be considered quality Fantasy contenders for this week.
Martin Truex Jr. and Mark Martin are pretty consistent drivers at this flat track as well.
Driver Stockwatch
Here's a list of drivers expected to produce better or worse than their salaries indicate on the coming track. Prices are derived from the
CBS Sports.com Fantasy Racing Challenge:Best value
Jimmie Johnson, $285,441: It's his title to win or lose. Take the winning side as Johnson has to be still feeling good about his chances this week in Phoenix where he has the best average finish (6th) of all drivers. He won the last two times at the track and has not finished lower than 15th in his 10 starts. It's a good bet he'll complete another quality finish this time.
Kevin Harvick, $246,323: Is a two-time winner at Phoenix, sweeping the events at the track in 2006. Harvick has scored five top 10 results and averages a 13.7 finish over 11 starts in the desert. he placed 19th in the spring race.
Jeff Gordon, $243,529: Until the spring of 2007, Phoenix was one of the tracks where Gordon has never won. He ended that problem by winning from the pole that spring. He also has finished 10th and 13th in the two races since. Gordon owns an average finish of 8.5 in 19 races at Phoenix, with 15 results in the top 10.
Carl Edwards, $291,250: True, he's very expensive, but he has to come up with a good result if he is to have a chance at Johnson going into the last race at Homestead. Edwards has not won at Phoenix in his career, but does have a respectable average finish of 14.5 in eight starts. He was fourth this past April.
Jeff Burton, $257,941: Captured back-to-back wins at Phoenix in 2000-2001 when he drove for Roush Racing. After joining the Richard Childress team, his best result was a third in the first race of 2005. Burton has a strong 9.5 average finish in eight races at Phoenix. He should be good for another quality result on Sunday.
Clint Bowyer, $234,191: He should be full of confidence after taking a fourth-place finish in Texas. Not to mention that he comes back to Phoenix after posting a career-best finish of second in April. That was his second top-five finish at the track to improve his average finish to 15.8.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., $249,632: Junior has won twice at Phoenix in his career. He also managed a solid seventh-place finish in the spring race, his first at the track with Hendrick Motorsports. Figuring he'll use a similar car setup, he should be good for another fine result come Sunday.
Greg Biffle, $256,102: Has recorded decent results at Phoenix where he was second last fall and also a top-10 this spring. Biffle has led the most laps in two races at the track, but was not able to come up with the wins. He was again runner-up in the fall of 2005 after leading 189 laps and again the next spring when he led 151 laps before finishing 15th.
Martin Truex Jr., $205,955: Pretty consistent in his five career starts at Phoenix, with improvements in the last two races. Truex Jr. finished eighth in April and was seventh in this race last season. He averages a 13.8 finish at the track.
Overpriced value
David Ragan, $224,558: This is a lot of money to spend on a driver who averages a poor 33.3 finish at Phoenix over three starts (27th, 32nd, 41st). Ragan is still looking for his first top 25 finish at the track, so take this money and look for another driver for this race.
Jamie McMurray, $180,441: He will try to carry a good momentum from Texas where he finished a season-best third. But Phoenix is a track where McMurray is still looking for his first top 10 finish. In 10 races, his best effort was a 12th in 2003, and his 23.6 average finish is a pretty modest one when it comes to Fantasy purposes.
David Reutimann, $160,367: He's only had two starts at Phoenix in his young career, but he has yet to finish on the lead lap. Reutimann was 18th in April, but it might be a good idea to consider some other options for this price range.
Reed Sorenson, $127,136: His 29th average finish at Phoenix over five starts is not encouraging. In the spring race he was 42nd, while last fall he finished a more respectable 19th. That's still not good enough to use him in Fantasy lineups when it comes to the Phoenix race.
Elliott Sadler, $161,176: In four of the last five races at Phoenix, Sadler has finished 27th or lower, including a 41st in April. His only top 10 at the track was back in 2003, but that's not good enough to skip him for lineups considering his average finish in 13 starts is 25.8.
Paul Menard, $145,073: If you're looking for a driver with an average finish of about 23 at Phoenix, then Menard is your guy. He's been consistent in his three races here finishing 21st, 22nd and 25th. It all depends how you manage your lineup in giving Menard some consideration.
| T H E P I T S T O P S T A R T I N G F I V E |
| Beat the Expert! Staying within the $1,000,000 parameters set in the 2008 CBS Sports.com Fantasy Racing Challenge, here are the picks for this week's best lineup for the money: |
| Driver | 2007 Phoenix finish | Salary |
| Jimmie Johnson (No. 48, Chevrolet) | 1st | $285,441 |
| Clint Bowyer (No. 07, Chevrolet) | 11th | $234,191 |
| Martin Truex Jr. (No. 1, Chevrolet) | 7th | $205,955 |
| Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 42, Dodge) | 17th | $152,941 |
| Robby Gordon (No. 7, Dodge) | 24th | $116,617 |
| Total salaries | $995,145 |
Next race: Ford 400 -- Homestead-Miami Speedway -- Nov. 16
