This week brings the Brickyard to the NASCAR Schedule with the annual race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It also brings Jeff Gordon back to the track in the much-discussed sub-in for the concussed Dale Earnhardt Jr. I have included both of Gordon’s numbers as well as Jr.’s since Gordon will be driving the 88-car and not his standard 24. Laps led dominators will not be in effect this week as the last two races have seen several drivers lead 30 or more laps on the 2.5-mile circuit. Passing should be prevalent this week as there are several drivers with better than +8 in the positional differential category.
Let’s take a look at the data.
| Avg. | Avg. | Laps | High | Low | Avg. | Diff. | Laps Led | Laps Led | ||||||||
| Driver | Start | Finish | Races | Wins | Top 5's | Top 10's | Top 20's | Led | Poles | Finish | Finish | DNF | Rating | Pts. | Pts. | Pts./race |
| Kyle Busch | 10.5 | 1.5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 124.1 | 9.0 | 4.75 | 2.38 |
| Jeff Gordon | 10.5 | 21.5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 40 | 0 | 1 | 42 | 0 | 88.1 | -11.0 | 10.00 | 5.00 |
| Joey Logano | 5.5 | 3.5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 38 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 113.5 | 2.0 | 9.50 | 4.75 |
| Denny Hamlin | 22.0 | 4.0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 103.2 | 18.0 | 4.50 | 2.25 |
| Kevin Harvick | 3.5 | 5.5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 87 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 125.1 | -2.0 | 21.75 | 10.88 |
| Matt Kenseth | 18.0 | 5.5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 102.4 | 12.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 19.0 | 14.5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 25 | 0 | 85.1 | 4.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Kyle Larson | 10.0 | 8.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 103.6 | 2.0 | 1.25 | 0.63 |
| Brad Keselowski | 17.0 | 11.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 17 | 0 | 10 | 12 | 0 | 94.1 | 6.0 | 4.25 | 2.13 |
| Clint Bowyer | 11.5 | 11.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 0 | 87.7 | 0.5 | 0.75 | 0.38 |
| Kasey Kahne | 18.5 | 15.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 70 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 0 | 101.6 | 3.5 | 17.50 | 8.75 |
| Austin Dillon | 21.0 | 17.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 25 | 0 | 74.9 | 3.5 | 0.25 | 0.13 |
| Kurt Busch | 10.5 | 18.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 28 | 0 | 80.7 | -7.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 15.5 | 15.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 22 | 0 | 80.5 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Carl Edwards | 9.5 | 14.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 20 | 1 | 13 | 15 | 0 | 97.8 | -4.5 | 5.00 | 2.50 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 11.5 | 14.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 15 | 0 | 91.5 | -3.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Ryan Newman | 23.5 | 11.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 81.3 | 12.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Jamie McMurray | 17.0 | 18.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 20 | 0 | 73.4 | -1.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Greg Biffle | 19.5 | 16.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 19 | 0 | 71.1 | 3.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Tony Stewart | 5.0 | 22.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 28 | 0 | 88.3 | -17.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Ryan Blaney | 30.0 | 12.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 0 | 74.2 | 18.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Chase Elliott | 28.0 | 18.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 66.0 | 10.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Paul Menard | 20.0 | 24.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 34 | 0 | 63.3 | -4.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| A.J. Allmendinger | 31.0 | 20.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 23 | 0 | 58.4 | 10.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Casey Mears | 21.0 | 26.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 33 | 0 | 50.4 | -5.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| David Ragan | 20.5 | 28.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 21 | 35 | 0 | 61.3 | -7.5 | 1.25 | 0.63 |
| Michael Annett | 33.5 | 30.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 31 | 0 | 45.5 | 3.0 | 0.25 | 0.13 |
| Danica Patrick | 14.5 | 34.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 42 | 1 | 71.5 | -20.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Aric Almirola | 31.5 | 29.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 38 | 0 | 62.4 | 2.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | 25.0 | 29.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 35 | 0 | 54.0 | -4.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Landon Cassill | 30.5 | 28.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 30 | 0 | 49.2 | 2.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Michael McDowell | 30.0 | 28.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 31 | 0 | 47.8 | 1.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Brian Scott | 36.0 | 36.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 36 | 0 | 46.8 | 0.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Josh Wise | 30.0 | 29.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 29 | 0 | 44.2 | 1.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Trevor Bayne | 26.5 | 41.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 43 | 2 | 40.1 | -15.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| David Gilliland | 35.5 | 32.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 36 | 0 | 39.5 | 3.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Cole Whitt | 40.0 | 32.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 33 | 0 | 37.3 | 7.5 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Matt DiBenedetto | 40.0 | 32.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 32 | 0 | 34.0 | 8.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Reed Sorenson | 42.0 | 38.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 38 | 0 | 29.9 | 4.0 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
Key Drivers on 2.5 Mile Tracks
| Avg. | Avg. | Laps | High | Low | Diff | Laps Led | Laps Led | |||||||||
| Driver | Start | Finish | Races | Wins | Top 5's | Top 10's | Top 20's | Led | Poles | Finish | Finish | DNF | Rating | Pts. | Pts. | Pts./race |
| Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 13.0 | 7.14 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 29 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 0 | 102.2 | 5.86 | 7.25 | 1.04 |
| Kurt Busch | 6.1 | 13.57 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 80 | 1 | 1 | 37 | 0 | 104.3 | -7.47 | 20.00 | 2.86 |
| Matt Kenseth | 15.6 | 12.57 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 36 | 0 | 1 | 38 | 1 | 95.3 | 3.03 | 9.00 | 1.29 |
| Jeff Gordon | 7.5 | 12.33 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 108 | 0 | 1 | 42 | 0 | 101.4 | -4.83 | 27.00 | 4.50 |
| Martin Truex Jr. | 15.3 | 15.57 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 103 | 0 | 1 | 32 | 0 | 90.2 | -0.27 | 25.75 | 3.68 |
| Kyle Busch | 8.1 | 16.86 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 41 | 1 | 1 | 42 | 1 | 94.3 | -8.76 | 10.25 | 1.46 |
| Joey Logano | 5.1 | 11.29 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 182 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 1 | 106.6 | -6.19 | 45.50 | 6.50 |
| Kevin Harvick | 4.0 | 11.43 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 143 | 1 | 2 | 42 | 1 | 108.8 | -7.43 | 35.75 | 5.11 |
| Denny Hamlin | 12.4 | 9.57 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 24 | 1 | 3 | 22 | 0 | 98.2 | 2.83 | 6.00 | 0.86 |
| Brad Keselowski | 8.1 | 9.86 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 115 | 1 | 2 | 23 | 0 | 98.7 | -1.76 | 28.75 | 4.11 |
| Greg Biffle | 20.6 | 13.71 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 5 | 26 | 0 | 75.7 | 6.89 | 3.25 | 0.46 |
| Kyle Larson | 14.0 | 9.00 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 25 | 1 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 95.0 | 5.00 | 6.25 | 0.89 |
| Clint Bowyer | 17.3 | 12.14 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 22 | 0 | 83.9 | 5.16 | 0.75 | 0.11 |
| Jimmie Johnson | 12.6 | 16.86 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 39 | 2 | 94.4 | -4.26 | 1.25 | 0.18 |
| Chase Elliott | 20.5 | 11.00 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 51 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 0 | 98.5 | 9.50 | 12.75 | 6.38 |
Drivers to watch this week:
Kyle Busch: Kyle is coming off a dominant performance at New Hampshire a week ago despite ultimately finishing eighth when all was said and done and now he heads to Indy where he has the best average finish in the field. He has a win, and two top-fives in the last two years including a runner-up aside from the win. He has only led 19 total laps at the world famous track, which is fifth best. He is the second most expensive man in a fire suit this Sunday but clearly for good reason.
Jeff Gordon: He’s back. You either love or hate Jeff Gordon, but either way you can’t deny his ability to drive a racecar incredibly well. He has five victories at IMS with one coming in the last two years. However there is a chance he’s rusty after eight months out of the car and not having the built-in communication that he had with his crew chief, as he’ll be using Jr.’s. That being said it’s a Hendrick Chevy and Gordon at the wheel making him worth the chance at $8,800 but strictly in GPP lineups.
Tony Stewart: Tony Stewart’s final race week at Indy has been a bit overshadowed with all of the Dale Jr./Jeff Gordon news but that’s all the better for Stewart to sneak up on people with. He has been only a mid-tier driver the last two years with a 17th and 28th place finish to his credit but he has things rolling this week heading into his home track being an Indiana boy. Smoke will set you back $8,400 this Sunday but taking a chance on him could pay off big at that price point.
Joey Logano: Logano has the second-highest average finish at 3.5 in the last two races, a second place and a fifth in that span. He is also the third-highest rated driver on the track. Aside from a -30 at the Quaker State 400, two weeks ago, he has posted 39 points or better in every race dating back to the Coke Zero 600 including a 106-point performance as well. $10,100 this week for the #22-car makes him the fourth-most expensive but consistency should rule the day again.
Matt Kenseth: Kenseth owns one of the best positional differential marks at Indy moving up from 18th to 5.5 in the last two races and is one of the strongest drivers regularly at the 2.5-mile circuits. There is a downside to him as he hasn’t led a single lap at IMS recently. He is also coming off two very solid races including a 100+ point showing in the race for the lobster last Sunday in Loudon. Kenseth has been more of a GPP play this season but with his high possibility for position points, a cash play wouldn’t be out of the realm of realistic either.
Kasey Kahne: Kahne has been lost in the shuffle at Hendrick Motorsports this week but is capable of putting up a very good point total at Indianapolis in his own right. He has led the second-most laps there in the last two years (70) and has a top-10 finish. The driver of the number 5 Chevy has been up and down in the last few weeks but between the Toyota Owners 400 and the Toyota/Save Mart 350 he put up six 40+-point weeks. At $7,700 he is worth the price to get a lap leader and someone capable of posting a 50-point week.