Fantasy NASCAR Preview: Richmond

Hamlin does everything but win at Richmond. He led the first 381 laps in the spring before a tire going down let Earnhardt catch him and left him with a 24th place finish. He was 3rd and 6th at RIR in 2007 and also finished 2nd to Earnhardt in 2006. He should head up your Class A roster this week.

Busch has only finished outside the top 5 once at Richmond, and has finished 2nd in two of his last three starts. He looked like he had a shot to win in the spring, but his power slide into the side of Earnhardt allowed Clint Bowyer to sneak into the lead. He is an awesome class B option this weekend, and surely wants to get a win after having Edwards pass him after he led 415 laps at Bristol.

Earnhardt was a caution flag away from his 4th career win at RIR in the spring, but as he was pulling away, Hamlin stopped on the track brought out the yellow. He has an impressive resume at Richmond and should be on your class B roster this weekend despite his recent struggles.

Johnson won both events at RIR in 2007 and has all the momentum in the world on his side heading into the Chase after a very impressive win at California. Johnson struggled terribly at RIR in the spring, but this team is ready to resume it's dominance of the sport.

Well, we finally get to the guy who actually crossed the finish line first in the spring. Bowyer should have had a solid top 5, but nothing more before the fireworks started in the spring. He wasn't strong enough to deal with Hamlin, Busch, or Earnhardt one on one, but the best car doesn't always win. He can be considered a solid class A choice, although he's definitely a step below Denny Hamlin.

The 24 team heads to RIR knowing it needs a strong finish to maintain its spot in the Chase. He was very good at Bristol a couple of weeks ago, and was 9th in the spring after he was 4th in both races last season (leading over 100 laps in each race). He is a strong pick to round out your class A roster.

Martin followed up his 5th place run at Phoenix with a 3rd place finish in RIR earlier this year (by far his best two races of the season). This may be the best place for Martin to give DEI a win, as he hung solidly in the top 5 all night. He has more top 5's and top 10's than any other active driver, and is a top class B selection.

Edwards doesn't have a particularly strong past at RIR, but he was 7th in the spring and has easily been one of the best drivers in Cup this season. He will be strong on Saturday.

The forgotten NASCAR superstar (on his own team even), Stewart should have a solid run this weekend. He was 4th in the spring, following up runs of 8th and 2nd in 2007 at RIR -- where he has 3 career victories. He's another top class A choice and is under the radar this weekend.

Harvick has an extremely strong history at RIR, and finished 8th in the spring. He finished 7th twice in 2007, leading 105 laps in the spring. He won the fall race in 2006 at RIR, and dominated the 2006 spring race as well before yielding the lead on a pit stop and not getting it back.

Newman has a win and 8 top 10's in 13 career starts at RIR after his 6th place run in the spring. He was 6th and 11th in 2007, and would be a top class B had he performed better over the past couple of months. Keep in mind that despite that performance, he did finish 6th at Bristol a few weeks ago.

Kahne has a couple of top 10's in a row at RIR after his 10th place run in the spring. He isn't the most consistent guy on the short tracks, but he has proven he can win on them and that his ceiling is higher than other class B drivers you may be considering.