Fantasy Report: Chevy Rock & Roll 400

Saturday night will determine those who make the Chase. You can bet that those right outside the top 12 will be on a mission. Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Burton have already clinched a spot in the Chase. It will be interesting to see how far some, specifically Clint Bowyer, David Ragan and Kasey Kahne, will be willing to push it to get a shot at a championship. Our picks:

Brandon’s picks:
Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards✔, David Ragan✔, Greg Biffle✔, Mark Martin, Ryan Newman, AJ Allmendinger✔ and Joey Logano.

Erik’s picks:
Jimmie Johnson✔, Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle✔, Jamie McMurray✔, Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman, Travis Kvapil✔ and Scott Riggs.

Good finishers: Busch has the best overall finish of any driver at Richmond — you can bet that he'll be one to watch Saturday even though he's never been to victory lane here. Johnson, who swept both races last year, and Denny Hamlin, who led most of the laps this spring and has 2 wins here, could really give Kyle a run for his money. Don't forget how well Carl Edwards has done this year. Jeff Gordon has 3 wins here but I'm reluctant to put him in these days. He's had 5 poles and 2 wins here in the past but has been awfully unpredictable this year. Don't forget that you can put Martin in this weekend. He's had lots of success at Richmond.

Play it safe: Don't forget that we're getting closer and closer to the end of the season. Don't take any wild chances at this point unless you're like the first place guy in our league and have a commanding lead. The only chance I'm taking is possibly putting Ragan in. He's a young relative-newcomer and trying desperately to get into the Chase. However, he seems seasoned beyond his years and I think that he can handle the pressure ... assuming he doesn't start racing with Bowyer, who won in the spring.

Of note: The Chevy Rock & Roll 400 will mark Joey Logano's first Cup race — assuming he qualifies. I didn't notice him when first picking my drivers because he was at the very bottom of the C list. I decided to replace Reutimann with him. There's no telling how he'll do but if he qualifies well I'm going to give him a shot. This goes against my idea of 'playing it safe' but this kid has proven himself in other series. Keep an eye out for Joey in the #02 Home Depot car to shake things up.

Good luck and stay out of the wall!

Fantasy Report: The Dan Lowry 400

With Talladega behind us and everything here at the Star back to normal it's time to look ahead to Virginia for your NASCAR fix this weekend. The second Saturday night race of the season, the Crown Royal Presents The Dan Lowry 400, is sure to be exciting. Richmond is favored by many of the drivers because the ¾-mile short track is similar to superspeedways due to the speeds and track configuration.

Here are our drivers:

Brandon's picks: Jimmie Johnson, Denny Hamlin✔, Kyle Busch✔, Mark Martin✔, Ryan Newman, David Ragan, Brian Vickers and Michael Waltrip✔.

Erik's picks: Jimmie Johnson✔, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch✔, Kasey Kahne✔, Greg Biffle, Eliott Sadler, Paul Menard✔ and Travis Kvapil.

Heavy hitters: Jimmie Johnson tops the list. You might say, "Brandon, you mention him every week and he's only won one race." I would retort: "While that is true, his season is turning around and he won both Richmond races last year." One of those wins was from the pole as well. He definitely knows his way around this track and barring unforeseen circumstances you can bet he'll be a big factor. Another driver that comes to mind is Denny Hamlin. This kid was built for tracks like these — and he's shown it with an average finish of 4.5 last year. Just the fact that he's a Virginian can guarantee he'll be more than eager to take the checkered flag. If you haven't used Hamlin much this year consider him this weekend. It was tough for me to choose between him and his teammate Tony Stewart (who has 3 wins at Richmond) but I'll know soon enough if I picked the right Toyota. Of course I'll have the gut-wrenching decision of whether to put Johnson or Hamlin in this weekend — I'm leaning toward whoever has the best qualifying time. However, that can be very deceiving. Finally, keep an eye on Kyle Busch. Need I say more?

Sleepers: Mark Martin and Ryan Newman could also be decent picks. Both have set the pole here and while only Newman has a win there Martin has had 6 top 5 finishes. Sometimes you have to know when to not go for the wins every week and put someone in you haven't used much and hope for a decent finish. That is what I have in mind with Martin. It is hard to avoid putting in the really big names each week but you need to save a few of those starts for later in the season.

Note: Don't forget that this is an impound race. They're racing with what they qualify with just as they did last weekend.