Greg M. Cooper-US Presswire
Race Two, of NASCAR’s Chase for the Sprint Cup, went to Denny Hamlin, as he cruised by leading 193 of 300 laps at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Ironically enough, I informed readers out there that Hamlin should definitely be considered as an insertion in your starting lineup. It is evident that picking him paid dividends not just for myself, but hopefully for the rest. He helped fantasy owners gain a whopping 220.5 points.
But honestly, picking Hamlin should’ve been a no-brainer. Everyone in the Sprint Cup garage was aware that he had the best car. So with that said, what about the rest of my selections?
One of the other ‘no doubt’ choices of mine was Jeff Gordon. He started from the pole and led some laps early. He didn’t have a race-winning car, but I figured he had a car to finish top five with, which is exactly what he did by finishing third. He got me 52 points.
Clint Bowyer was my third choice. Loudon is arguably his best race track, and he continued his run of great finishes there by finishing fourth, behind Gordon. He gave me 47.5 points.
Finally, there are my filler choices: Bobby Labonte and Mike Olsen.
Labonte started 17th, but I said don’t expect for him to stay there. Labonte gets top 25′s, as well as occasional top 20′s. This time, he finished 20th, which was good enough to give me 26 points.
Olsen started 42nd, and as predicted, he completed the race. He finished 33rd, gaining nine positions that helped me get 20 points.
When all that is added, my Fantasy point total came to 366 points. In a eight-person league I’m in, that was good for second place. I lost to an individual who didn’t just have Hamlin and Gordon, but had Jimmie Johnson and Brian Vickers, also. Johnson finished second and Vickers finished ninth. The funny thing is, he had Dave Blaney as a filler, but Blaney didn’t race. Luckily, all his picks were stout, because usually inserting a driver that isn’t racing affects people in points. However, Vickers was the difference as he wasn’t up front until the two-tire pit stop he received late in the race. Long story short, the winner accumulated 377 points.
I came into Loudon one point behind for the segment three lead, and because the point leader struggled, I will have a pretty comfortable cushion heading into Dover.
I guess you can say I’m competing in a Chase of my own.
