Think about the best road-course racers in NASCAR, off the top of your head: Tony Stewart, right? Yep. Marcos Ambrose? Sure. Jeff Gordon? Of course.
Sonoma: Which Road-Course Experts Are Really The Best?
All of those drivers are in the top 10 for NASCAR’s driver rating statistic at Sonoma.
But the formula reveals some surprising names near the top as well.
For example, who knew Ryan Newman had a better driver rating at Sonoma than Gordon? And that Kurt Busch was better than Ambrose?
There are some eye-openers among the traditional “favorites” as well: Robby Gordon is 12th, below even Carl Edwards and Denny Hamlin.
Consult the stats below for your fantasy picks; this could be one week where it really helps you.
Toyota/Save Mart 350 Pre-RaceFor point-paying races in current and past four years, at this track.Infineon RacewaySunday, June 20, 2010Driver RatingFormula combining the following categories: Wins, Finishes, Top-15 Finishes, Average Running Position While on Lead Lap, Average Speed Under Green, Fastest Lap, Led Most Laps, Lead-Lap Finish. Maximum: 150 points per race.Number of Races: 5
Rank Car Driver Avg Finish High AVG DRIVER RATING1 14 Tony Stewart 9.4 142.7 113.22 42 Juan Montoya 4.3 115.3 111.33 18 Kyle Busch 16.4 147.6 101.94 2 Kurt Busch 15.4 121.8 101.45 47 Marcos Ambrose 22.5 113.6 99.66 39 Ryan Newman 11.0 127.8 98.87 24 Jeff Gordon 10.6 137.0 97.18 26 Jamie McMurray 20.0 110.5 89.69 08 Boris Said 20.0 107.7 88.810 11 Denny Hamlin 13.5 119.2 87.111 99 Carl Edwards 16.8 107.5 86.812 7 Robby Gordon 28.8 110.9 86.413 31 Jeff Burton 17.4 114.1 86.414 20 Joey Logano 19.0 86.2 86.215 19 Elliott Sadler 11.4 94.5 85.916 16 Greg Biffle 12.4 113.5 82.217 33 Clint Bowyer 8.0 89.9 81.418 48 Jimmie Johnson 16.4 101.1 80.419 5 Mark Martin 21.0 93.4 77.420 29 Kevin Harvick 24.4 109.0 76.221 17 Matt Kenseth 17.6 90.6 75.322 9 Kasey Kahne 25.8 132.4 73.523 83 Brian Vickers 19.5 92.6 69.224 88 D Earnhardt Jr. 23.8 96.4 67.425 21 Bill Elliott 19.0 66.6 66.626 1 M Truex Jr. 20.0 75.2 64.027 44 AJ Allmendinger 22.0 88.7 63.928 07 Casey Mears 19.0 87.6 59.329 96 Bobby Labonte 29.0 72.5 57.230 13 Max Papis 23.5 75.4 54.631 78 Joe Nemechek 28.0 73.5 54.232 18 J.J. Yeley 27.0 58.9 54.133 71 David Gilliland 22.8 99.4 53.334 00 M McDowell 21.0 52.3 52.335 34 Brian Simo 26.5 77.2 52.136 04 P.J. Jones 30.8 71.0 51.637 6 David Ragan 28.7 59.9 51.338 55 Michael Waltrip 23.3 59.2 50.839 66 Dave Blaney 32.2 65.0 48.040 98 Paul Menard 27.5 52.9 47.741 10 Scott Riggs 25.5 56.5 47.342 28 Travis Kvapil 21.5 49.8 47.043 77 Sam Hornish Jr. 34.5 52.3 46.844 12 David Stremme 35.5 49.5 42.645 43 Reed Sorenson 36.3 49.5 41.346 01 Regan Smith 30.0 41.2 41.247 34 John Andretti 30.0 40.2 40.248 8 Aric Almirola 28.0 40.1 40.149 70 Johnny Sauter 31.0 37.6 37.650 87 Scott Speed 37.0 32.6 32.651 00 David Reutimann 35.5 35.5 30.752 02 Brandon Ash 39.5 32.2 30.153 0 Mike Bliss 39.0 26.9 26.9
See More:
