The Pit Stop is the essential guide to setting your Fantasy Racing lineup for the upcoming week. We provide you with pertinent news and roster management advice during every race week. Darlington Raceway, the circuit's oldest track, is what NASCAR tradition used to be about. I say used to because NASCAR has become a lot more corporate in recent years and tradition has definitely taken a back seat to business.
Darlington used to have two races per year, now reduced to just this one on Saturday night ahead of Mothers' Day. The first race was run at Darlington on Labor Day weekend in 1950 when it was known as the Southern 500. The event was held on the same weekend --- talk about tradition -- for 54 straight years until 2004 when the 500 was moved to California. It was the first 500-mile race in NASCAR history and the first on asphalt.
This narrow, egg-shaped track has a reputation of being one of the toughest and most difficult to negotiate on the NASCAR circuit. Its nickname "The Track Too Tough to Tame" says it all about the difficulty of handling the slick and worn out surface.
Darlington also featured one of the closest finishes in history when Ricky Craven edged Kurt Busch by 0.002 seconds on March 13, 2003 -- the smallest margin of victory since NASCAR started using electronic timing in the early 1990s.
Jeff Gordon won last year's event when the Car of Tomorrow was used. Gordon led 22 laps and won for the seventh time at Darlington. That gives Hendrick Motorsports 12 wins at the track, more than any other team. Gordon also has finished in the top three for three straight years and the last four races.
Denny Hamlin had the dominant car, leading 178 laps before settling for a runner-up finish. Jimmie Johnson was in front for 45 laps, Ryan Newman for 39 and Carl Edwards for 33 laps as all top five finishers led at one point or another during the race.
Hamlin also is coming off a tough race to swallow at Richmond, his home track. He had victory in his sights after leading 381 of 400 laps scheduled after starting from the pole. But a flat tire with 20 laps to run took him out of contention.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. was next to see the finish line down the stretch, only to get involved in an accident with Kyle Busch with three laps to go. Junior finished 15th and is now winless in 72 races and counting. That's more than two years without making it to Victory Lane.
After all the late events, it was Clint Bowyer who benefited the most and took the checkered flag for his second career Cup win. Yes, Bowyer was fortunate, but also give him credit, considering he started 31st and managed to avoid trouble late in the race.
Driver Stockwatch
Here's a list of drivers expected to produce better or worse than their salaries indicate on the coming track. Prices are derived from the
CBS Sports.com Fantasy Racing Challenge: Best value
Carl Edwards, $257,500: He rounded out the top five finishers last season; it was his first such finish at the track. Let's say Edwards has the surface and track figured out and with three other top 10s, he might be worth a Fantasy shot this week. His career average finish is 15th.
Greg Biffle, $242,250: He can be considered a pretty reliable driver at Darlington where he has a pair of wins and three top 10 finishes. Biffle averages a 10.7 finish at this track.
Jeff Gordon, $214,000: Darlington is one of his best tracks. That's seven career wins, including last year, 15 scores in the first five and 18 in the top 10. His career average finish is 11th. The price for him for this week and at this track is almost too good to pass up.
Jimmie Johnson, $254,500: Based on his 11.9 average finish, Johnson could be a good bet for a top 10 at Darlington on Saturday night. He swept the races in 2004 and has also posted finishes in the top 10 six other times. His lowest finish at Darlington was 27th.
Denny Hamlin, $262,250: He will bounce back from his disappointing finish at Richmond. Hamlin is too good not to. He was second last year after really dominating for most of the race. Anticipate a similar result once again. He has recorded two top fives and four top 10s at Darlington in his career.
Kasey Kahne, $215,500: Started from the pole on three occasions at Darlington and has also finished in the top five twice. Given his average finish of 12th at the track, Kahne seems to manage pretty well at this otherwise tough track to negotiate.
Dale Earnhardt Jr., $272,750: He continues to look for that elusive win. It's going to happen sooner or later. Darlington is a track where Junior has some pretty decent results, with two top fives and six in the first 10 finishers. No wins at the track, but he averages a finish of 15th. Definitely worth some consideration this week.
Overpriced value
Kyle Busch, $298,750: Sure, he is one of the hottest drivers in the series right now, but Darlington is a week to closely analyze the salaries. While he does have a seventh place in 2006, his two other results are 23rd and 37th.
Kevin Harvick, $262,500: That's a lot of money for no more than mediocre results at Darlington. Go for it if you like Harvick, but not if you look at his 19th average finish at the raceway. In the last four races he has not finished better than 14th, and he has placed 32nd or lower four times.
Brian Vickers, $193,250: That is rather pricey for Vickers when it comes to Darlington. The order of finishes in five career starts are 23rd, 21st, 16th, 41st and 43rd (last year). He is still looking for his first top 15th finish before actually breaking into the top 10.
Elliott Sadler, $158,750: A fairly steep price to invest for a driver who has finished no better than 20th in the last four visits at Darlington. Let's give him props for at least consistently finishing in the 20s in those races (21st, 29th, 20th, 23rd). If that's the type of finish one needs for his Fantasy lineup, then by all means give him a try.
Michael Waltrip, $115,000: Use this money for another driver this week. Waltrip failed to make last year's race at Darlington, and when he did participate the previous five times, he placed 35th, 34th, 33rd, 35th and 37th.
Casey Mears, $160,500: It's tough to give Mears much hope for a good result at Darlington this week. He averages a career finish of 28.7 in seven races, with five results of 26th or lower.
David Stremme, $135,000: Finishes of 25th and 34th does not justify his monetary value. Those are his only two career starts at Darlington, but they do not show much promise for improvement. Let's see if he can prove otherwise this year.
| T H E P I T S T O P S T A R T I N G F I V E |
| Beat the Expert! Staying within the $1,000,000 parameters set in the 2008 CBS Sports.com Fantasy Racing Challenge, here are the picks for this week's best lineup for the money: |
| Driver | 2007 Darlington finish | Salary |
| Greg Biffle (No. 16, Ford) | 15th | $242,250 |
| Kurt Busch (No. 2, Dodge) | 12th | $160,000 |
| Jeff Gordon (No. 24, Chevrolet) | 1st | $214,000 |
| Ryan Newman (No. 12, Dodge) | 4th | $234,250 |
| Jamie McMurray (No. 26, Ford) | 16th | $149,250 |
| Total salaries | $999,750 |
Next race: Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway -- May 25
