Fantasy NASCAR Preview: Atlanta

11. Tony Stewart, #20 Home Depot Toyota, Gibbs Racing

Stewart is coming off of two tough crashes in Las Vegas last weekend; one in the Nationwide Series and the other in the Cup event. Last season, he was 7th in Vegas, 2nd in Atlanta, won at Chicago, and finished 7th in Charlotte. Still, with a class A group this stacked, save Smoke for when he gets hot later in the summer.

12. Kevin Harvick, #29 Shell/Reeses/GM Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing

Harvick was 4th in Las Vegas and 8th in Fontana, and it is possible after this weekend that his 2007 woes on the 1.5 mile tracks are behind him. He has won at both Chicago and Atlanta, but he's still a little too risky to choose considering he's a class A driver on Yahoo.

13. Kasey Kahne, #9 Budweiser Dodge, Gillett-Evernham Motorsports

Kahne was 9th in Atlanta in the fall and after a 6th place finish in Atlanta, he has begun 2008 with 3 straight top 10 finishes. He is a strong class B choice for this weekend.

14. Martin Truex, Jr., #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt Inc

Truex is a guy who is ranked based more on what he did last year than this year. He did nothing to separate himself from the class B pack last weekend in finishing 15th, but his 6th place finish in Fontana and overall strength in 2007 on the 1.5 mile tracks (3rd in Texas after leading 16 laps, 135 laps led in Atlanta before being involved in a crash) lead me to believe he will perform this weekend.

15. Mark Martin, #8 Army Chevrolet, Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Martin will be piloting the 8 car again this weekend for DEI and coming off a top 10 finish in Atlanta, he should again be considered for your class B roster. Martin has 2 wins and 22 top 10's in Atlanta in 44 career starts. He is a low risk pick that can net you a nice reward.

16. Casey Mears, #5 Kellogg's/Carquest Chevrolet, Hendrick Motorsports

Mears is almost an afterthought in the class B group, but a closer look reveals he may be capable of a top 5 this weekend. Nobody knows how he would have run in Fontana had he avoided trouble, but he ran a solid 13th last weekend. Last year, he won at Charlotte, finished 5th in Chicago, and was 4th in Kansas. He is a plausible class B selection this week.

17. Elliott Sadler, #19 Dodge Dealers Dodge, Gillett-Evernham Motorsports

Sadler had a solid 12th place run in Las Vegas last week, catapulting him onto the board of possible class B selections. He has had great success on the 1.5 mile tracks in the past few years, including a win at Texas, but the cars he was driving last season were not capable of that. Now, it appears he and teammate Kasey Kahne have a better chance to compete and fantasy players should make use of him occasionally.

18. Ryan Newman, #12 ALLTEL Dodge, Penske Racing South

Newman continued his solid start to the season with a 14th place finish in Las Vegas. He finished 10th in Fontana and had a couple of solid runs on the 1.5 mile tracks last year. That said, he is best used elsewhere.

19. Clint Bowyer, #07 Jack Daniel's Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing

Bowyer's 28th place finish in Las Vegas dropped him out of the running for a class A roster slot. However, last season he was 6th in Atlanta, 10th in Chicago, 2nd in Kansas (and should have won), 2nd at Charlotte, and 6th in the second race at Atlanta.

20. David Ragan, #6 AAA Ford, Roush-Fenway Racing

After last weekend, anyone in a Roush car deserves a look for Atlanta. Ragan finished 7th in Vegas a week after finishing 14th in Fontana and is a borderline class B choice this weekend.