Competition caution coming

After last night's tire killing Camping World Truck Series race, NASCAR has decided to throw a competition caution at lap 30 of the Cup race, according to a tweet from @BobPockrass.

Our View: We can't remember the last time they had to do this during all three races during the weekend. Dover has been concrete for a long while, but for some reason it is not taking to the current tire compound. As with Nationwide, this will allow teams to make a final adjustment - and expect Jeff Gordon to jump up 10 - 15 spots during it.

Dover pit stall selections

The pit stall selections have been published at Jayski.com.

Our View: As expected, David Reutimann has the first stall at the turn one end of pit road. Jimmie Johnson took the last stall in turn four and it will be interesting to see if this provides a benefit.

Trucks: Dover Results

It's always great to see a first time winner. Brian Scott rolled the dice and stayed out on old rubber while those around him cut their tires and slammed the wall. Dennis Setzer also stayed out on old tires, but could not quite make the pass for the lead.

Two of the drivers snake bit by a blown tire were Kyle Busch and Colin Braun, who were running first and second at the time and who slapped the wall within seconds of one another. Braun would not recover and he retired 16 laps from the end of the race. Busch charged from 15th to ninth, but was unable to crack the top-five again.

It was a rough day for the point leader Ron Hornaday Jr. After starting from the pole, he cut a tire early and did major damage to his truck. The No. 33 crew made a valiant effort to get back on track, but Hornaday retired with crash damage after completing only 43 laps. About the only good news is that he managed to retain the point lead by a mere 27 markers over Mike Skinner and 29 points over Matt Crafton.

Results, with Avg. finish

Finish	Start	Driver	Laps	Laps Led	Status	Avg Fin
1	3	Brian Scott	200	14	Running	16.50
2	25	Dennis Setzer	200		Running	13.20
3	14	David Starr	200	3	Running	8.50
4	13	Jason White	200		Running	23.00
5	4	Johnny Sauter	200		Running	5.00
6	23	Matt Crafton	200		Running	16.44
7	5	Chad McCumbee	200		Running	13.75
8	11	Mike Skinner	200	5	Running	9.67
9	10	Kyle Busch	200	133	Running	11.80
10	6	Terry Cook	200		Running	12.50
11	16	J R Fitzpatrick	200		Running	11.00
12	20	Tayler Malsam	200		Running	12.00
13	12	Stacy Compton	200		Running	11.00
14	26	Chris Fontaine	200	5	Running	14.00
15	36	Tim Bainey Jr	200	1	Running	15.00
16	22	Max Papis	199		Running	16.00
17	19	Timothy Peters	198		Running	12.33
18	8	Todd Bodine	197		Running	17.80
19	18	Rick Crawford	197		Running	10.00
20	7	Johnny Benson Jr	195	23	Engine	14.80
21	24	Scott Wimmer	192		Running	21.00
22	2	Colin Braun	184	4	Accident	15.00
23	15	T J Bell	171		Running	21.67
24	17	James Buescher	160		Running	24.00
25	9	Brian Ickler	65		Accident	25.00
26	1	Ron Hornaday Jr	43	12	Accident	8.20
27	27	Dexter Bean	38		Handling	27.00
28	29	Andy Ponstein	31		Alternator	28.00
29	21	Ryan Hackett	26		Engine	29.00
30	33	Norm Benning	26		Vibration	30.00
31	28	Johnny Chapman	23		Overheating	32.50
32	35	Wayne Edwards	18		Oil	29.33
33	31	Kevin Lepage	15		Brakes	26.67
34	34	Brandon Knupp	12		Transmission	34.00
35	32	Brent Raymer	10		Vibration	35.00
36	30	Mario Gosselin	7		Accident	36.00

N'Wide: Dover Results

Once again, Kyle Busch led the most laps at a race and failed to win. This time his disappointment was intensified by the fact that it was his teammate Joey Logano who helped ruin his day. Busch may have had a tire going down on the final restart, but he failed to get up to speed quickly enough to keep from being run into from behind by the No. 20. One way or the other, Logano proved that he is hungry for victory. He wound up second.

Brad Keselowski was in the right place to take advantage of the contact, and he won his third Nationwide Series race. The No. 88 has been a consistently strong contender in the second series, so chances are good that you were rooting for him at the end.

Clint Bowyer, Brian Vickers and Carl Edwards round out the top 10.

Results, with career average finish

Finish	Start	Driver	Laps	Laps Led	Status	Avg Fin
1	12	Brad Keselowski	200	2	Running	8.40
2	1	Joey Logano	200	87	Running	7.33
3	17	Clint Bowyer	200		Running	6.86
4	7	Brian Vickers	200		Running	6.20
5	8	Carl Edwards	200		Running	9.67
6	10	Paul Menard	200		Running	21.71
7	4	Scott Speed	200		Running	7.00
8	23	Jason Leffler	200		Running	15.08
9	13	Jason Keller	200		Running	13.17
10	21	Justin Allgaier	200		Running	10.00
11	29	Michael McDowell	200		Running	11.00
12	9	Brendan Gaughan	200		Running	12.00
13	5	Kevin Harvick	200		Running	12.57
14	16	Mike Bliss	200		Running	10.89
15	30	Bobby Hamilton Jr	200		Running	14.87
16	39	Brian Keselowski	200		Running	16.00
17	3	Kyle Busch	200	108	Running	16.10
18	14	Scott Wimmer	199		Running	11.15
19	40	Michael Annett	198	1	Running	19.00
20	31	Brandon Whitt	198		Running	21.50
21	38	Danny O'Quinn Jr	196		Running	22.50
22	34	Morgan Shepherd	196		Running	24.00
23	18	Eric McClure	196		Running	25.40
24	41	Kevin Conway	194		Running	27.00
25	11	Greg Biffle	191		Running	9.60
26	42	Mike Harmon	175		Black Flagged Too Slow	36.56
27	33	Scott Lagasse Jr	158		Accident	33.33
28	37	Tony Raines	151		Running	17.38
29	20	Steve Wallace	145		Accident	23.00
30	2	David Ragan	145		Accident	25.00
31	25	Peyton Sellers	128		Running	31.00
32	6	Ryan Newman	126		Accident	18.00
33	28	Kenny Wallace	97	2	Engine	14.85
34	22	Marc Davis	83		Accident	34.00
35	35	Kevin Lepage	65		Accident	24.86
36	43	Kertus Davis	43		Overheating	33.20
37	36	Ken Butler III	26		Accident	37.00
38	27	John Wes Townley	26		Accident	34.00
39	19	Mark Green	14		Quit	26.00
40	26	Johnny Chapman	13		Quit	38.00
41	15	Terry Cook	11		Quit	41.00
42	24	Dennis Setzer	8		Quit	26.89
43	32	Casey Atwood	8		Quit	22.00
44		Jeffrey Earnhardt	0		Did Not Qualify

IRL: Milwaukee Lineup

The lineup is set for Sunday's ABC Supply Co. 225 and Ryan Briscoe is picking up where he left off last year—at the front of the pack. This track has not always been kind to him with a 22nd in 2005 and an 18th in 2006, but after taking 2007 off, he won last year.

Graham Rahal will start to his outside, which is the same position he started last year. Unfortunately, he ran into trouble in that race and finished 25th.

The driver with the best five-year average finish will start in third. Tony Kanaan has won twice and finished fourth or better at Milwaukee since 2004, so he has to be considered a favorite for your fantasy roster.

Lineup

Start	Driver	Avg. Fin	Avg. Start	Attempts
1	Ryan Briscoe	9.50	14.00	2
2	Graham Rahal	25.00	2.00	1
3	Tony Kanaan	2.60	4.80	5
4	Scott Dixon	7.25	8.00	4
5	Mario Moraes	23.00	23.00	1
6	Hideki Mutoh	12.00	14.00	1
7	Danica Patrick	10.00	12.50	4
8	Dario Franchitti	2.75	9.25	4
9	Raphael Matos
10	Tomas Scheckter	11.00	8.00	4
11	Mike Conway
12	Robert Doornbos
13	Marco Andretti	13.67	6.00	3
14	Dan Wheldon	7.60	9.40	5
15	Justin Wilson	7.00	22.00	1
16	Paul Tracy
17	E J Viso	8.00	10.00	1
18	Ryan Hunter-Reay	15.00	12.00	1
19	Ed Carpenter	13.20	12.40	5
20	Helio Castroneves	12.60	2.80	5
DNQ	Stanton Barrett

Trucks: Scott records first win at Dover

Brian Scott and crew chief Jeff Hensley made a gutsy call to stay out on old tires and held off Dennis Setzer and the field to win his career first Camping World Truck Series race.

Our View: This race has been full of surprises—and it's been hard on Truck regulars. Ron Hornaday and Todd Bodine had big problems early, which made this anyone's race.

IRL: Briscoe on Milwaukee pole

Ryan Briscoe will lead the field to green at the Milwaukee Mile after posting a four-lap average speed of 168.394.

Our View: In three previous starts, Briscoe has an average finish of only 13.7, but fantasy owners should be more concerned with the fact that he's the defending winner of this race.

Complete Lineup

N'Wide: Keselowski wins after Logano (nearly) spins Busch

Brad Keselowski inherited the lead of the Heluva Good! 200 at Dover after first-place Kyle Busch got nudge by second-place Joey Logano.

Our View: Busch had a flat, but it is unclear if that came before or after the contact. One thing is certain; the teenager showed he was hungry for the win. In typical fashion, Busch stormed off without comment, so we are left to speculate.

Indy Lights: Romancini on Milwaukee pole

Mario Romancini won the pole for the Husar's House of Fine Diamonds 100, according to a tweet from @IndyCarPR. He broke Pablo Donoso's qualifying record set last year.

Our View: The advancement from Indy Lights to IRL (and the crossover) is a little slower than Nationwide to Cup, but this is still the most likely road to the major leagues.

N'Wide: Four drivers do double duty

Four drivers in the Nationwide Heluva Good! 200 will also run in the AAA Insurance 200. They are Mike Bliss, Kyle Busch, Terry Cook and Scott Wimmer.

Our View: Practice makes perfect—and Busch will actually run the triple header with Sunday's Cup Autism Speaks 400.

Kasey Kahne on Dover

Here are some excerpts from an interview after Saturday's practice sessions for the Autism Speaks 400.

YOU WERE SECOND IN PRACTICE TODAY, HOW WAS YOUR CAR? “So far, so good. Our Budweiser Dodge feels really strong again today. Kenny (Francis, crew-chief) really seems happy with the car, so we just tried to fine-tune our package a bit to stay with the race track. It’s a long race tomorrow and our (race) package has to be right when we get the green flag to go racing. We’re fairly close, but we’re really fast too.”

HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO RUN IN TRAFFIC ENOUGH TO GET A FEEL FOR HOW THE R6 ENGINE PERFORMS WITH OTHER CARS AROUND YOU? “Not really. I was pretty much by myself all practice. It’s kind of how practice is at Dover. Everybody is heading into the pits to make changes and you don’t really have the traffic you look for in practice.”

DOVER HASN’T BEEN TOO FRIENDLY TO YOU IN RECENT YEARS. HOW NICE IS IT TO START UP FRONT TOMORROW? “No kidding. I’ve been in a lot of little deals (wrecks) that were never really our fault. When you hit oil or get involved in wrecks just driving down the straighaways and get collected, it’s tough to swallow sometimes. Dover’s been a rough place for us recently, but I think we have as good a race car as we’ve brought here in recent years. I’m excited for tomorrow.”

HOW PHYSICALLY DEMANDING OF A RACE WILL TOMORROW BE? “It certainly gets your attention. You can run pretty hard here and the track is pretty rough. The concrete is pretty rough and you get bouncing around like you’re on really, really hard tires. It’s a little bit physical compared to some of the other tracks, but nothing too out of control.”

THIRTY-SEVEN RACES HAVE BEEN WON INSIDE THE TOP-THREE STARTING SPOTS. YOU START IN SECOND POSITION, HOW MUCH CONFIDENCE DOES THAT GIVE YOU HEADING INTO TOMORROW? “Qualifying is a big part of your race day success at Dover. We’ve got a great starting position and a great pit stall, so that’s a nice advantage. Just as important is the fact that our race car was strong in race trim all day today. We unloaded fast and have been fast all weekend.”

IRL: Barrett going home

According to a tweet from @IndyCarPR, Stanton Barrett has loaded up and is going home from Milwaukee after crashing in practice.

Our View: That certainly won't help his campaign to win rookie honors, but the team says they will be ready for the next race at Texas Motor Speedway

Hamlin post single fast lap in Dover Happy Hour

Denny Hamlin posted the single fastest lap in Dover's Happy Hour with a speed of 151.286 mph.

Our View: His average speed of 146.188 mph during 71 laps was among the worst, however. Given his recent struggles at Dover, we recommend parking him until next week's Pocono race.

Kahne wins Dover Happy Hour

Kasey Kahne posted the quickest average speed in Dover Happy Hour at 147.875 mph during 27 laps.

Our View: Kahne had one of the strongest cars last week at Lowe's, and he has something to prove this week. Start him with confidence.

N'Wide: Competition caution coming

According to a tweet from @BobPockrass, NASCAR will throw a competition caution at lap 35 to allow drivers to assess their tire wear.

Our View: Safety should come first, but this also allows veteran teams to make a final adjustment before the race truly gets underway.

Ky Busch fastest in Dover practice 2

Kyle Busch posted the fastest single lap in the Saturday morning practice session with a speed of 153.512 mph.

Our View: His average speed of 148.829 mph was only eighth best, but that is still a great combination of top end speed and durability.

Reutimann wins Dover practice 2

David Reutimann continues to hold the hot hand in NASCAR. He posted the quickest average speed of 149.618 during 27 laps.

Our View: His fastest single lap wasn't bad either. With a speed of 152.983 mph, he was third best behind Kyle Busch and Kasey Kahne.

USAC racer dies in crash

Chad McDaniel died Friday night due to injuries sustained in a crash at Knoxville Raceway in Iowa, according to ThatsRacin.com.

Our View: Dirt and short track racing is where the major league stars cut their teeth, but most importantly, they do this because they love it. Fans of auto racing send their sympathies and appreciate the passion of drivers like McDaniel.

N'Wide: Logano wins Dover pole

On the one-year anniversary of his first Nationwide start, Joey Logano won the pole for the Heluva Good 200 at Dover with a speed of 155.959 mph.

Our View: Nine of the top-10 qualifiers are Cup regulars. Only Brendan Gaughan in ninth does not have a fulltime ride.

Complete Lineup

Yahoo! Qualification Story

Starting up front is important on a rhythm track. Check out this five-page summary (.pdf) of who's hot at Dover after qualification for the Autism Speaks 400.

N'Wide: Dover's last five races

If you're wondering why Roush-Fenway Racing has been so strong on Sundays lately, it's because they've been warming up on Saturday. Matt Kenseth didn't run either race last year, but his position atop the last five races average grid is significant nonetheless because it highlights the strength of the organization. Look a little further down the list and you will find Carl Edwards, who despite a 26th in fall 2006, still has a better than 10th-place average finish on the strength of one victory, a runner-up finish and four consecutive results of sixth or better. Cross reference that with his five consecutive top-fives in Cup, and you have found your favorite this week.

Clint Bowyer also swept the top-10 in Nationwide competition last year, and will be one of the strongest Cup "Claim Jumpers" in the field.

Mike Bliss was in the right place at the right time last week to win the rain-shortened Carquest Auto Parts 300, but he's been hovering around the head of the pack on a weekly basis. And he's likely to do so again with a second last fall and three top-10s in his last four starts at Dover. If he does not take top honors among the Nationwide regulars, chances are good that Brad Keselowski will. He's finished seventh or better in his last three starts on the concrete high banks in Delaware.

Results, last five years

Driver	Avg Finish	2008.2	2008.1	2007.2	2007.1	2006.2
Matt Kenseth	3.33			3	5	2
Casey Mears	4.00				4
Clint Bowyer	6.67	10	9			1
David Stremme	7.00	11	3
Carl Edwards	8.00	5	2	6	1	26
Mike Bliss	8.25	2	18	4	9
Denny Hamlin	10.00	6	1	1	2	40
Joey Logano	10.00	14	6
Greg Biffle	10.00		5	9	18	8
Michael Waltrip	10.00					10
Brad Keselowski	10.25	3	7	7	24
Kasey Kahne	11.00		10		12
Bobby Labonte	11.00			11
David Reutimann	11.50	17	4	10	15
Scott Wimmer	11.80	4	12	29	3	11
Kyle Busch	12.00	1	28			7
Scott Riggs	12.00					12
Reed Sorenson	12.67			5	27	6
Bobby Hamilton Jr	12.75	15	14	12	10
Todd Kluever	13.00					13
Kevin Harvick	13.75	28	17		7	3
Jason Keller	14.00	19	16	8	13
Juan Montoya	14.00				14
Dario Franchitti	15.00		15
Ken Schrader	15.00					15
Sterling Marlin	15.00			15
Jason Leffler	16.00	7	27	30	11	5
Josh Wise	16.00	13	19
Martin Truex Jr	16.00			2		30
Martin Truex Jr	16.00			2		30
Chase Miller	16.00			16
Ward Burton	17.00				17
J J Yeley	17.00				25	9
Mike Wallace	17.60	12	8	13	33	22
Jamie McMurray	18.00	8		40	20	4
Marcos Ambrose	18.00	16	30	20	6
Dave Blaney	18.33			23	16	16
Steve Wallace	18.80	18	11	22	22	21
Jeff Burton	19.00				19
John Andretti	19.00					19
Patrick Carpentier	20.00	20
Stacy Compton	20.00					20
Kevin Hamlin	21.00	21
Kenny Wallace	21.00	29	20			14
A J Allmendinger	21.00			21
Tony Raines	21.50			35	8
Casey Atwood	21.50			14		29
Regan Smith	21.50				26	17
Kelly Bires	22.00	34	13	19
Landon Cassill	22.67	25	25	18
Brandon Whitt	23.00	23
Sam Hornish Jr	23.00		23
D J Kennington	23.00				23
David Ragan	24.00	9	29	32	32	18
Tim McCreadie	24.00			24
Stanton Barrett	24.25	27	21	17		32
Ashton Lewis	25.00					25
Eric McClure	26.00	24	26	26	28
Auggie Vidovich	27.00					27
Kyle Krisiloff	27.50			34	21
Richard Johns	28.00			28
Tim Sauter	28.00					28
David Gilliland	29.00				29
Derrike Cope	29.67	32	24			33
Morgan Shepherd	30.00	22	22	38	38
John Wes Townley	30.00	30
Kevin Conway	30.00				30
Danny Efland	31.00	26		36
Scott Lagasse Jr	31.00	31
Jay Sauter	31.00					31
Travis Kvapil	31.00				31
Robby Gordon	31.00			31
Robert Richardson	31.50			27	36
Bryan Clauson	32.00	33	31
Johnny Sauter	32.00	40				24
Stephen Leicht	32.67			41	34	23
Brett Rowe	33.00		33
Carl Long	33.00			33
Donnie Neuenberger	35.00	43	34	25	39	34
Shane Hall	35.00					35
Larry Gunselman	36.00	36
Shane Huffman	36.50				37	36
Brad Coleman	37.00		32	42
Paul Menard	37.00					37
Marc Mitchell	37.00			37
Kertus Davis	38.00	37	36			41
Kevin Lepage	38.00	39	35		40
J C Stout	38.00		38
Jon Wood	38.00					38
Johnny Chapman	38.50	38	39
Burney Lamar	38.67	35	42			39
Brent Sherman	39.00			43	35
Brad Teague	39.50		37		42
Kenny Hendrick	40.50	41	40
Terry Cook	41.00		41
Mike Harmon	41.00		43	39
Jerick Johnson	41.00				41
Justin Hobgood	42.00	42
Sean Caisse	42.00					42
Chris Wimmer	43.00					43
Randy MacDonald	43.00				43
Dominick Casola	44.00		44

Four go home from Dover

Four drivers failed to qualify at Dover for the Autism Speaks 400. They are Brad Keselowski, Max Papis, Derrike Cope and David Starr.

Our View: That's a bit of a shocker were Keselowski and Papis are concerned. This is the first race in 2009 that the No. 13 has failed to make.

Reutimann on Dover Cup pole

David Reutimann picked up where he left off last week—at the head of the field. The No. 00 won the pole with a speed of 156.794 mph.

Our View: No one can say that he backed into this result. Starting up front is crucial at Dover, so this gives him good odds to finish in the top 10.

Gordon crashes in quals

Jeff Gordon has crashed in qualification and will likely have to roll out a backup car.

Our View: Last year, Jimmie Johnson overcame a crash in practice, so it can be done. In fact, with the new pit road – it should be slightly easier.

Charlotte was final straw for Hendrick/Jr.

According Brian Whitesell, Charlotte's disappointing result was the final straw for Rick Hendrick in his decision to replace Tony Eury Jr. In a press conference this week, he said: “The race at Charlotte [was the final straw], we did not get the result there that we were looking for. The decision was made by Mr. Hendrick that it was time for a change and that’s the reason it happened this week."

Our View: His 40th-place finish was bad enough, but worse still, the No. 88 was never in contention.

N'Wide: McDowell admits "monster" is scary

Heading into the weekend's Nationwide race, Michael McDowell admits that Dover International Speedway can be a little intimidating, saying "“The ‘Monster Mile’ is a bit more scary than the monster statue out front, for sure. I was a little intimidated the first time I came here in the Cup car. We ran decent, but most importantly, I learned a lot about racing the track and being comfortable in the seat. Dover is most like a high speed rollercoaster ride.”

Our View: This will be McDowell's first Nationwide start and he hasn't been overly impressive in Cup with a best of 29th in two starts.

Trucks: Hornaday on Dover pole

Ron Hornaday Jr. bettered a field of 36 cars to win the pole for the AAA Insurance 200. His top speed was 155.541 mph.

Our View: Hornaday was already considered a favorite this week, but you may want to take a look at the outside of the front row. Colin Braun in a Roush-Fenway Ford F-150 starts there and this organization is strong in all divisions.

Starting Lineup (on Fox Sports)
Avg. Finish, last five races

Digger not to blame for Fox decline

According to Fox Sports chairman David Hill, "Digger" is not to blame for the declining ratings for NASCAR.

Our View: Perhaps it's a combination of things: Fox's broadcast style that that features "entertainment" over reporting the race, an overabundance of commercials and refusal to implement the same kind of side by coverage that IRL fans love—and yes, that stupid gopher is the face of their frivolousness.

N'Wide: Leffler to make 200th start

Jason Leffler is scheduled to make his 200th career Nationwide start this week at Dover, according to NASCAR.com.

Our View: In his first 199 starts, Leffler has 57 top-10s, 29 top-fives and two victories. With the way he's run in this series this year, he could start his third hundred run with a third victory.

Reutimann fastest in Dover's first practice

David Reutimann posted the fastest single lap in Friday's practice session, with a speed of 157.467 mph.

Our View: Drivers typically work on qualification trim in this session, so Reutimann is a good bet to start up front for Sunday's race.

IRL: Scheckter to run at Milwaukee

Tomas Scheckter will race for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing this week, according to IndyCar.com.

Our View: Scheckter has some strong runs there with third-place finishes in 2005 and 2006, but his last attempt was a little more what fantasy owners can expect this week. In his most recent outing in 2007, he finished 17th.

Last Five Races Average Finish

Mayfield also withdrawn

Jeremy Mayfield has withdrawn his entry for J.J. Yeley from the Dover race, according to ESPN.com.

Our View: Along with Todd Bodine's withdrawal, this makes the entry list 47 cars. That should make it a little easier for your favorite "go-or-go-home" driver make the show.

Gunselman withdraws from Dover, seeks driver

Todd Bodine has decided to step down as driver of the No. 64 Larry Gunselman Toyota, which has caused them to withdraw their Dover effort and seek a new driver, according to the team.

Our View: Fans of dark horses have to pull for every independent team, but the chances of the No. 64 making the show in the next few months are slim with any driver behind the wheel.

Busch bangs Starr in practice

A much faster Kyle Busch banged into David Starr in the early stages of the first practice session and made slight damage.

Our View: Starr refused to make room for Busch, which is one of the perils of this tight track.

Ky Busch weighs in on Jr.

Kyle Busch has added his two cents to the Dale Earnhardt Jr. crew chief change, according to RacingOne.com.

Our View: "You got to make the most popular driver in the sport competitive -- so you got to do what you got to do, I guess," Busch said. There is a little bitterness to that statement, considering that Busch was the driver moved out of his ride to make room for Earnhardt.

Trucks: Dover's last five races

There is a long history of part time drivers finding success in the Camping World Truck Series at Dover. From last year's winner Scott Speed, to Tony Stewart who finished second in 2005, Cup and Nationwide drivers have used this race to get the rhythm of the week started.

Partly due to their success, Truck regulars have not dominated the top of the average finish grid. Only Ron Hornaday Jr. and Johnny Benson Jr. enter the weekend with at least three consecutive top-10s, which makes them best bets to highlight your roster. That also leaves the field wide open for the remaining spots—and given the strength of interlopers, this might be a good week to gamble on Max Papis.

Notably, this track has not been kind to Kyle Busch. He won there in 2005, but has slowly been sliding down the grid since until he bottomed out with a 27th-place finish last year. In the Cup series, he's also been hit or miss with a victory last spring, but two 40-something finishes in his last five starts.

Results, last five years

Driver	Avg Fin	2008	2007	2006	2005	2004
Scott Speed	1.00	1
Tony Stewart	2.00				2
Hank Parker Jr	3.00					3
Mark Martin	3.50		6	1
Ron Hornaday Jr	3.75	3	1	7	4
Mike Bliss	4.50		5	4
Dave Blaney	6.00					6
Ricky Craven	7.00				7
Andy Houston	7.00					7
Travis Kvapil	7.67	4	3			16
Colin Braun	8.00	8
Carl Edwards	8.00			2		14
A J Allmendinger	9.00		9
David Reutimann	9.00			5	5	17
Mike Skinner	10.00	7	7	22	10	4
Aaron Fike	10.00		10
Timothy Peters	10.00			14	6
Rick Crawford	10.60	9	23	8	11	2
David Starr	11.60	6	25	11	8	8
Terry Cook	12.00	13	8	16	3	20
Deborah Renshaw	12.00				12
Aric Almirola	12.00			12
Jon Wood	12.50	15				10
Stacy Compton	12.50	23	2
Kyle Busch	12.50	27	12	10	1
Bobby Hamilton Jr	13.00			13
Johnny Benson Jr	13.50	10	4	6	34
Willie Allen	14.00		14
Shane Sieg	14.50	14				15
Chad Chaffin	15.00	21			23	1
Ryan Matthews	15.00		15
Jack Sprague	15.40	2	28	9	29	9
Ted Musgrave Sr	15.60	11	20	18	17	12
Chad McCumbee	16.00	12	13	23
Justin Marks	16.00	16
Blake Bjorkland	16.00		16
Matt Crafton	16.80	5	26	15	9	29
Donny Lia	17.00	17
Tim Sauter	17.00		17
Bobby East	17.00			17
Ken Schrader	17.33		33		14	5
Dennis Setzer	17.60	18	19	20	13	18
Todd Bodine	17.75	29	11	3	28
Shelby Howard	19.00	19
Bobby Hamilton Sr	20.00				21	19
Todd Kluever	20.00				20
Andy Lally	22.00	22
Ken Weaver	22.00					22
Regan Smith	22.00				22
Brad Keselowski	22.50				15	30
Erik Darnell	22.67	25	18	25
Brendan Gaughan	22.75	20	36	19	16
Robert Huffman	23.00				35	11
Shane Hmiel	23.00					23
Chase Montgomery	23.00				18	28
Tracy Hines	23.00				25	21
Steve Park	23.33			21	36	13
Kevin Lepage	23.50			28	19
Landon Cassill	24.00	24
Shane Huffman	24.00		24
Erin Crocker	24.00			24
Jimmy Spencer Sr	24.00				24
Kevin Love	24.00					24
Jason White	26.00	30	22
Robert Pressley	26.00				26
Derrick Kelley	26.00					26
Marcos Ambrose	26.00			26
Scott Lynch	27.00		27
Rich Bickle	27.00				27
Kyle Krisiloff	27.00			27
Scott Lagasse Jr	27.33	26	21	35
Morgan Shepherd	29.00		29
Kerry Earnhardt	29.00			29
T J Bell	30.00		30
Bill Lester	30.00		35	30	30	25
J C Stout	31.00	31
Kraig Kinser	31.00		31	31
Kelly Sutton	31.33			36	31	27
Brandon Whitt	31.50				32	31
Brian Scott	32.00	32
Dana White	32.00		32
Jerry Hill	32.00					32
Joey Miller	32.00			32
Ryan Seaman	33.00	33
Wayne Edwards	33.00				33
Boston Reid	33.00			33
Lance Hooper	33.00					33
Larry Gunselman	34.00	34
Clint Bowyer	34.00		34
Phil Bonifield	34.00					34
Johnny Chapman	34.00			34
Nick Tucker	35.00	35
Mark McFarland	35.00					35
Butch Miller	36.00	36
Robert Richardson	37.00			37
Ryan Moore	38.00			38

Monster Slayers

Event Day Games Preview: Drivers have been in survival mode lately. From the track Too Tough to Tame, to NASCAR's version of Noah's Ark last week in Charlotte, to the Monster Mile, it just keeps getting rougher.

Dover is one of the toughest tracks on the circuit. Concrete high-banked courses require drivers to pull heavy G-loads in the corners, and this track is nearly as much turn as it is straightaway. The groove at exit is narrow, since all of that momentum pushes a car from the bottom of the course to the outside wall and track blocking, "Big One" crashes are nearly as prevalent at Dover as on one of the restrictor-plate superspeedways.

It’s a rhythm track, however, and once a driver learns the secrets to conquering the Monster, they can often string together some incredibly long streaks. Carl Edwards enters the weekend with five consecutive results of third or better, and this could very well be the week he snaps out of his early-season funk.

Roush-Fenway teammates Greg Biffle and Matt Kenseth are two other drivers who swept the top-five last year and in the fall, three of the Cat in the Hat's men finished first, second and third. If you think you see a pattern emerging, jump on it.

Expect Hendrick Motorsports to be in their mirrors. Last fall, Mark Martin and Jimmie Johnson finished fourth and fifth on the Roushketeers' bumpers and Jeff Gordon came home just a couple of spots further back in seventh.

Join us at http://www.eventdaygames.com/ this week to play along with our unique fantasy game.

Earnhardt gets new chief

Beginning this week, Dale Earnhardt Jr. will have a new crew chief, according to SceneDaily.com. At Dover, Brian Whitesell will take over the duties for one week, while Lance McGrew will take over the permanent post next week at Pocono. Meanwhile, Tony Eury Jr. is being put to pasture in the research and development department.

Our View: Fantasy owners can reasonably expect short term benefits, but Earnhardt still has a way to go before he's going to be recommended for your roster.

Week 22 Unified Power Rankings

The three major auto racing series ran one of the biggest races of their season last week when Formula 1 took to the streets of Monaco, the NASCAR Cup series ran the "Coke 341," and the IRL ran the granddaddy of them all: the Indy 500.

Each of those races carry bonus points. Instead of 110 points for a first-place finish, drivers receive 125, but we had to make some adjustments for the Cup race. Since several drivers remained on track and received better results than they earned through the strength of their cars, we based the Power Point system on average running position for this week.

No matter how count them, Jenson Button continues to be the hottest driver in auto racing having won his fifth Grand Prix in six starts. The twisty streets of Monaco make passing a near impossibility, so no one was surprised that he took the checkers after sitting on the pole. Rubens Barrichello continues to be his wing man and finished second in Formula 1 competition for the third time this season. He's going to be hard to dislodge from that spot, in fact, because he's swept the top-five alongside Button.

Tony Stewart had flashes of brilliance last week in the rain-shortened "Coke 341," but when the field was shuffled by the final rain storm he found his No. 14 Chevy stranded in 19th. Five top-fives in the previous six races, however, gave him enough momentum to stay third on the grid and first among Cup regulars.

Nationwide regular Jason Leffler ran a smart race in the Carquest Auto Parts 300 to finish sixth. That helped elevate him into the top 10 on the Unified Power Rankings scale since it was his sixth consecutive top-10 in recent races.

The Indy Racing League finally ran enough races to include them in this formula and despite winning the Indy 500, Helio Castroneves does not top their chart. There a reason for that; even though the series has run enough times, the driver has not since he was forced to sit out the Honda Grand Prix of St Petersburg while being his trial for tax evasion was going on.

Dario Franchitti gets that honor. After winning the Grand Prix of Long Beach and finishing in the top 10 in three of the first four IRL races this year, he's the best of class. He shouldn't get too used to the position, however; unless Castroneves crashes early next week at Milwaukee, he is virtually guaranteed to dislodge the Scotsman.

Unified Power Rankings

Rank	Driver	Points	Last week	+/-
1	Jenson Button	110.67	1	0
2	Rubens Barrichello	99.83	2	0
3	Tony Stewart	91.67	3	0
4	Jason Leffler	88.50	7	3
5	Kurt Busch	88.45	5	0
6	Ryan Newman	85.93	10	4
7	Jimmie Johnson	85.91	8	1
8	Jeff Gordon	85.45	4	-4
9	Denny Hamlin	85.08	6	-3
10	Ron Hornaday Jr	83.75	11	1
11	Dario Franchitti	83.50	NR
12	Ryan Briscoe	83.50	NR
13	Mark Webber	82.00	14	1
14	Tony Kanaan	81.25	NR
15	Danica Patrick	81.00	NR
16	Dan Wheldon	80.75	NR
17	Jeff Burton	79.75	12	-5
18	Mark Martin	79.75	20	2
19	Kyle Busch	79.59	13	-6
20	Timo Glock	79.50	9	-11
21	Brad Keselowski	79.23	23	2
22	Carl Edwards	77.37	15	-7
23	Greg Biffle	76.54	16	-7
24	Fernando Alonso	76.17	21	-3
25	Joey Logano	74.89	31	6
26	Kasey Kahne	74.36	29	3
27	Matt Kenseth	74.19	18	-9
28	Scott Dixon	74.00	NR
29	Matt Crafton	73.75	27	-2
30	Juan Montoya	72.00	19	-11
31	Dale Earnhardt Jr	71.79	26	-5
32	Nico Rosberg	70.00	37	5
33	Brian Vickers	69.50	24	-9
34	Mike Skinner	69.50	32	-2
35	Johnny Benson Jr	68.75	34	-1
36	Jason Keller	68.25	30	-6
37	Scott Lagasse Jr	68.25	42	5
38	David Reutimann	68.23	28	-10
39	Sebastian Vettel	67.50	17	-22
40	Steve Wallace	67.38	43	3
41	Kevin Harvick	66.76	25	-16
42	Justin Allgaier	66.75	45	3
43	Clint Bowyer	65.92	22	-21
44	Jamie McMurray	65.91	46	2
45	Martin Truex Jr	64.00	38	-7
46	Rick Crawford	63.75	56	10
47	Lewis Hamilton	63.67	36	-11
48	Stacy Compton	63.00	53	5
49	James Buescher	62.00	62	13
50	Marcos Ambrose	61.91	35	-15

Dover Yahoo! preview

At one-mile in length with high banks and a rough, concrete surface, Dover is one of the most challenging tracks on the circuit. It's a rhythm track where drivers post long streaks of top-10 finishes. Check out this week's Yahoo! Fantasy Preview (.pdf) for a sneak peak at who'll be strong.

Johnson has Darlington chassis

This week at Dover, Jimmie Johnson will run the same chassis that he took from 42nd to second at Darlington two weeks ago, according to a team press release.

Our View: Don't worry overly if something happens to this car. His backup chassis is the same one he started and finished third at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Edwards finds success in the corners

Carl Edwards attributes success in the corners at Dover to success on the track, according to a team press release.

"Dover is pretty much a one-groove track so you need to handle well through the center of the corners in order to keep your position. We won this race in 2007, and we had two strong races there in 2008. My Aflac team is working hard and making some improvements."

Our View: If Edwards is going to turn his season around, this is a great place to do so. His last five efforts at Dover ended in finishes of third or better.

Kenseth's strong at Dover

It took a while for Matt Kenseth to get a hang of this track, according to a team press release, but once he did, the No. 17 has been one of the best cars on the track.

Our View: According to the team, Kenseth did not lead a single lap in his first nine starts at Dover, but he's been up front in seven of his last 11 attempts. He's turned that into five top-10s in his last six races.

IRL: New tire for Milwaukee

Firestone will bring a new tire to the Milwaukee Mile in an attempt to get rid of the tight condition that plagued teams last year, according to a press release from the company.

Our View: All cars will be on the same tire, which levels the playing field, but veterans usually adjust to new circumstances faster than Young Guns.

Gordon Dover preview

"Getting the car balanced right to maximize grip is pretty tricky here," said Jeff Gordon in this week's preview press release. "It's a one-mile track that is high-banked, fast and action-packed. And you're in the corners a lot here."

Our View: Gordon has been one of the strongest drivers on this concrete course during his career, but he has not posted a victory there since 2001. This is one of the most important tracks on his personal schedule, since sponsor DuPont is headquartered just up the road.