Flat tracks, three-year avg. fin

With its three dissimilar corners, Pocono Raceway is one of the most unique tracks on the circuit, but that doesn't mean that it is without comparatives.

Flat tracks require a distinctive set of skills. Drivers have to show patience entering the corners and be prepared to drive like a maniac from the center outward. To help make this week's decision on who to start at Pocono, fantasy owners will find a ton of inspiration from NASCAR's four other flat tracks of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway and Martinsville Speedway.

The proof of how well these tracks compare to one another can be found in a driver's consistency. Last year, one racer swept the top 10 in the nine races held on those tracks and two others failed to finish that well only a single time. Jimmie Johnson was the perfect driver; in his nine attempts, he won four times—once each at Indy and Martinsville, plus a season sweep at Phoenix—and in those races, he averaged a result of 3.1. The No. 48 team carried that momentum forward and won this spring at Martinsville before finishing fourth at Phoenix.

Denny Hamlin was nearly perfect. He finished in the top 10 in all but one flat track race last year, and that exception came because of a miscalculation in the pits. On an alternate pit strategy, he got stranded 23rd in Pocono's fall race, or else he would most likely have been challenging the leaders when the checkers waved. Fantasy owners will be interested in knowing that Hamlin's three-year average finish on this track type is 6.3 compared to Johnson's 7.6 during that same span.

Carl Edwards is the final driver to nearly sweep the top 10. He finished 17th in the first New Hampshire race, but was perfect otherwise. Better still, after that single bobble, he swept the top five in the last five flat track events. This streak was highlighted by a victory in the fall Pocono race, which makes him a driver to watch closely this weekend. Unfortunately, he's been a little more uneven this season and finished 26th at Martinsville earlier in the spring.

Flat track average finish, last three years

Driver	Avg Finish	Attempts
Denny Hamlin	6.30	27
Jimmie Johnson	7.59	27
Jeff Gordon	9.30	27
Mark Martin	9.78	18
Tony Stewart	10.41	27
Jeff Burton	11.56	27
Kevin Harvick	12.15	27
Carl Edwards	13.22	27
Matt Kenseth	14.67	27
Dale Earnhardt Jr	15.74	27
Martin Truex Jr	16.52	27
Clint Bowyer	16.93	27
Greg Biffle	17.00	27
Kurt Busch	17.15	27
Kyle Busch	17.67	27
Ryan Newman	18.04	27
Kasey Kahne	20.15	27
Juan Montoya	20.80	20
Bobby Labonte	21.22	27
Casey Mears	21.26	27
Jamie McMurray	22.33	27
David Ragan	22.33	21
Marcos Ambrose	22.60	5
Reed Sorenson	24.93	27
David Stremme	25.28	18
Brian Vickers	25.56	27
Elliott Sadler	27.48	27
David Reutimann	27.95	20
Paul Menard	28.24	21
Joey Logano	28.33	3
Regan Smith	28.46	13
Sterling Marlin	28.64	14
Dave Blaney	28.96	27
David Gilliland	29.48	23
Patrick Carpentier	29.57	7
Robby Gordon	30.65	27
Sam Hornish Jr	31.07	14
A J Allmendinger	31.83	18
Joe Nemechek	32.85	26
Michael Waltrip	33.58	26
Scott Speed	35.75	4
John Andretti	42.22	9
Derrike Cope	47.00	7