Pocono Fantasy Racing Preview

Driver Averages | Laps Led Leaders | Driver Ratings | Past Winners

Detailed driver notes and statistics to help set your fantasy racing lineup for Sunday’s Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pocono 400 at Pocono Raceway.

Who’s HOT at Pocono

• Martin Truex Jr., who won this event last year, has posted an average finish of 6.2 in his last four starts.
• Kyle Busch has led 240 laps and posted an average finish of 4.6 in his last five starts, including wins in the last two races in July.
• Kevin Harvick has finished ninth or better in eight of the last nine races, including four runner-up finishes.
• Brad Keselowski has finished in the top five in six of the last seven races.
• Ryan Blaney finished sixth from the pole in this event last year and is the 2017 winner of this race.
• Chase Elliott has finished in the top 10 in five of his six starts.

Keep an Eye On at Pocono

• Joey Logano leads all drivers in average finish (7.4) in the five races (not including Talladega) with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package. Almirola (9.2), Denny Hamlin (10.2), Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (10.4) and Kurt Busch (10.8) each rank in the top 10.
• Kyle Larson has finished 11th or better (6.6 average finish) in the last five June Pocono races, including a second-place finish last year.
• Jimmie Johnson is the only driver that has finished in the top 10 in the last three races this season with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, excluding Talladega.
• Alex Bowman has a series leading 3.2 average finish in the last four races this season.
• Erik Jones has the fifth-best driver rating and three top 10s in four starts at Pocono.
• Clint Bowyer, who is tied for fourth in stage points earned at Pocono, has two top fives in the last three races with the 550 horsepower package.
• Daniel Suarez and William Byron each have an 11.7 average finish in the last three races with the 550 horsepower rules package and both finished second and sixth, respectively, last July at Pocono.

Notes: Excluding Talladega, Pocono will mark the sixth race of the season with the 550 horsepower rules package with aero ducts…Atlanta featured the 550 package, but with no aero ducts…Teams will be running a new tire combination this weekend…Xfinity teams will have the same tire combination and Austin Dillon and Ryan Preece will be competing in that race…The pole position has produced the most race winners (16) at Pocono with Kyle Busch the last to win from the No. 1 spot…Martin Truex Jr. won this event last year from the fourth position and Fifty-nine percent of the race winners have come from a top-five starting spot…Two of the last five races at Pocono have produced a first-time Cup winner with Ryan Blaney being the most recent in the June 2017 race…Kevin Harvick (10.1) and Brad Keselowski (10.4) have the best average finishes among drivers that have competed in all 14 races since Pocono was repaved.

Best Average Finish at Pocono

Laps Led Leaders at Pocono

Click Here to view all laps led leaders at Pocono over the past 10 races.

Pocono Loop Data Stat Leaders (Last Six Races)

Top 10 Stage Points Earned at Pocono
Four Races 

2018 June Pocono Race Stage Finishes

Top Five in Stage Points Earned in 2019 (13 Races)

View All Drivers

MRN.com Staff Picks

Jeff Wackerlin: Chase Elliott
Pete Pistone: Kevin Harvick
Tyler Burnett: Kevin Harvick
Kenneth Lee: Denny Hamlin

Driver Notes – Ordered by Average Finish (Top 15) in the Last Five Races at Pocono

Kevin Harvick has finished in the top five in the last five races at Pocono, including two runner-up finishes. He led 89 laps in this event last year en route to a fourth-place finish. Harvick leads all drivers with 62 stage points at Pocono and scored stage 2 wins in both races last season. Excluding Talladega, Harvick has posted the second-best average finish (7.8) in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package.

Kyle Busch has finished in the top 10 in the last five races at Pocono, including a pair of wins in the last two July races. Busch combined to lead 240 laps in those five races to lead all drivers. He ranks second in stage points with a pair of stage wins in the first stage in both races in 2017. Excluding Talladega, Busch has finished third or better in three of the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package that includes a win at Auto Club Speedway.

Brad Keselowski has finished in the top five in six of the last seven races at Pocono. He led 10 laps in this event last year and finished fifth for the third consecutive time. Keselowski is the only driver that has recorded stage points in each of the last four races at Pocono. Last July, Keselowski finished 38th after an accident when he blew a right-rear tire in the final stage while contending for 12th. Excluding Talladega, Keselowski has three top-three finishes in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including a win at Kansas Speedway.

Kurt Busch has finished in the top 10 in four of the last six races at Pocono, including a win in this event in 2016. This season with Chip Ganassi Racing, Busch has posted four top 10s in the five races at 1.5/2-mile tracks with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package.

Erik Jones has finished in the top 10 in three of his four starts at Pocono, including a third in this event in 2017. Excluding Talladega, Jones has posted a 15.8 average finish in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including top fives at Texas and Kansas.

Daniel Suarez won the pole last July and finished second for his second top 10 in four starts at Pocono. Excluding Talladega, Suarez has posted a 13.0 average finish in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, which includes a third-place finish at Texas.

William Byron finished sixth last July for his first top 10 in two starts at Pocono. Excluding Talladega, Byron has posted a 13.2 average finish in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including top 10s at Texas and Charlotte (won the pole).

Ryan Blaney won the pole and finished sixth last year in this event in his first Pocono race as a member of Team Penske. He won the 2017 June race with the Wood Brothers. Blaney, who has finished 12th or better in five of his six Pocono starts, saw his only top 10 (fifth) with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package come at Auto Club.

Martin Truex Jr. won this event at Pocono for the second time last season. His 6.2 average finish in the last four Pocono races ranks third among all drivers. Excluding Talladega, Truex has posted a 9.6 average finish in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including a win last weekend at Charlotte.

Chase Elliott has finished in the top 10 in his last four starts at Pocono. Excluding Talladega, Elliott has the third-best average finish (8.2) in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including top fives in the last two races at Kansas and Charlotte.

Denny Hamlin is coming off his 16th top 10 in 26 starts at Pocono. He scored his last of four wins at the track came prior to the 2012 repave in this event in 2010. Excluding Talladega, Hamlin has posted three top 10s in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including a win at Texas.

Kyle Larson has finished 11th or better in each of his five starts in the June Pocono race, including a runner-up finish last season. Larson’s only top 10 in the five races at 1.5/2-mile tracks with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package came at Kansas (eighth).

Austin Dillon finished 12th last year in this event for his best finish in 10 starts at Pocono. Excluding Talladega, Dillon has posted a 19.0 average finish in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including a 10th-place finish at Auto Club where he started from the pole.

Ryan Newman has finished 14th or better in five of the last six races at Pocono. His lone win came back in 2003 with Team Penske. Excluding Talladega, Newman has posted a 19.2 average finish in the five races with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package.

Alex Bowman finished third last July for his first top 10 in his second start at Pocono with Hendrick Motorsports and sixth overall. Bowman has posted an 11.8 average finish in the five races at 1.5/2-mile tracks with the 550 horsepower/aero ducts rules package, including a second-place finish at Kansas.