Fearless Predictions - Texas

Things you won't see anytime soon include Ron Hornaday inviting Kyle Busch over for Thanksgiving dinner anyone recommending these NASCAR predictions for anything other than "entertainment purposes." Last week's forecasts went 2-2, leaving us with a season record of 45-79. But let's see which NASCAR drivers you should expect to see in the top 10 on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.

One from the front: Everyone has been talking about Tony Stewart's victory last week, and rightly so. But you shouldn't forget that Carl Edwards remains the points leader. He starts in 7th place this week in Texas, where he has won three times in his Sprint Cup career.

One from the back: The usual suspects are occupying the back 10 spaces this week, so we'll go back to last week's selection, Travis Kvapil, who starts 41st. For the reasons behind this decision, see last week's predictions.

Two from the middle: Time for a trivia question: Who got his first Sprint Cup victory in a 2000 race at Texas Motor Speedway? The answer: Dale Earnhardt Jr., who finished 9th in the April race here and starts in the 16th spot on Sunday.

For our final pick, we at the People's Pitstop would like to recognize Mark Martin. Sure, he's starting 30th on Sunday, but he has four top-six finishes in his last five races on this track. And he'll get more opportunities here, now that he's agreed to drive for Michael Waltrip Racing. I wonder if they've warned Martin not to touch whatever is being put in the engines over there.

There are still a few hours for you to get some votes in on the People's Pigskin lineup. Your votes will determine who starts this week for the Internet's favorite fantasy football team against the Arcadia Roses. Thanks. We'll be back with the results.

That Could Have Gone Better

Talladega Superspeedway didn't give us anything that could be classified a Big One on Sunday, but that doesn't mean it didn't do any damage to the People's Pitstop.

The Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team managed to score only 226 points during this week's Chase race. Our season total of 8,395 dropped us one spot in the 9beersfantasysportstavern league standings, to fifth place.

Here are all the relevant details.

Carl Edwards: Started 9th, finished 11th, 1 lap led and 80 fantasy points. The Edwards team strategy had him spending a lot of time in the back of the pack. But Edwards isn't complaining, since he retained his spot at the top of the driver standings.

Mark Martin: Started 1st, finished 20th, 2 laps led and 72 fantasy points. Martin got 10 points for winning the pole, 10 more points for leading a lap, but no points for having his car find Regan Smith's late in the race.

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Started 6th, finished 25th, 2 laps led and 52 fantasy points. This blurb from SpeedTV says it all: "When he led briefly, the crowd went wild. Then reality set in."

Bobby Labonte: Started 21st, finished 35th (15 laps behind the leaders) and 22 fantasy points. It wouldn't be the People's Pitstop without a driver limping away from a race.

Time for some honesty. At this point, winning the 9beersfantasysportstavern season title is about as likely as Tony Sparano keeping his current job through New Year's Day. But we're going to keep competing through these last four weeks, because that's what fantasy players do.

And that means it's time to turn our attention to Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway. The lineup polls are now open and will close Friday night. Please feel free to get the voting process started right now.

We'll be back with the football results.

The People's Choice - Talladega

When the people of the Internet were not busy stocking up on Halloween candy or dealing with a pile of dead leaves, they were busy helping the People's Pitstop pick a lineup for this Sunday's Chase race at Talladega Superspeedway. Here are the drivers who made it through the votes (and the qualifying session) to start for us this week.

A List: They lead the point standings, and they also led the voting in this week's poll. Carl Edwards was the winner, followed by Kevin Harvick. Edwards also beat Harvick in qualifying (9th vs. 13th) and will start for us as a result.

B List: This poll produced a two-way tie at the top between Brad Keselowski and Dale Earnhardt Jr. They were followed by Kasey Kahne and the drive he will soon replace, Mark Martin. But Martin didn't follow anyone on Saturday afternoon. He took the freaking pole, earning us 10 badly needed bonus points in the process. Earnhardt (6th) earned the other starting spot over Keselowski (16th) and Kahne (26th). Don't tell Michele Bachmann about all those sixes, though. She might make a bad joke about them.

C List: Stop me if you've heard this one before. The two top finishers in this poll were Regan Smith and Bobby Labonte. That sounds familiar. What might not sound so familiar is that Labonte (21st) qualified one spot in front of Smith and thus will start for us in his 650th NASCAR Sprint Cup race.

Thanks again for all your votes. We'll be back shortly with some predictions. In the meantime, don't forget about the fantasy football polls on your right, which are still open. The People's Pigskin is looking to halt a losing streak, and we need your help to do it.

Treading Water in Carolina

Under the circumstances, things could have gone worse for the People's Pitstop on Saturday night. They could have gone better, too.

The Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team scored only 213 points during the Chase race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Our season total of 8,169 leaves us in fourth place in the 9beersfantasysportstavern league. We are now just over 100 points away from the current leader, Dale Jr Amp National Guard 88. In other words, it's still anybody's race.

Here's how our team's weekend went.

Carl Edwards: Started 3rd, finished 3rd, 1 lap led and 99 fantasy points. Edwards maintained his spot at the top of the point standings, but he probably lost his spot on Kyle Busch's Christmas card list.

Mark Martin: Started 13th, finished 37th (47 laps behind the leaders) and 18 fantasy points. To the growing list of "phrases you never want associated with your fantasy NASCAR driver," you may add "broken wheel hub."

Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Started 15th, finished 19th (1 lap behind the leaders) and 54 fantasy points. Of course, having your driver's name next to the words "frustrate" and "disappoint" in a NASCAR.com story headline is no picnic, either.

Regan Smith: Started 21st, finished 22nd (2 laps behind the leaders) and 42 fantasy points. Smith might have known he had a better car than the results showed, but someone must have forgotten to tell his car that.

Next up for the NASCAR drivers is the fall race at Talladega Superspeedway. Qualifying is scheduled for Saturday, so our lineup polls for the People's Pitstop will close Friday night. Please feel free to get your votes in early. NASCAR has penalties for a lot of things, but voting early in a lineup poll isn't one of them.

We'll be back with the fantasy football results.

The People's Choice - Charlotte

Watching the New York Jets implode under the weight of their own hubris has been fun for the last couple of days. But fortunately, you, the Internet, have been busy making selections for the People's Pitstop. Here are the drivers who will represent the Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team during Saturday night's Chase race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

A List: This week's poll resulted in a tie between Carl Edwards, the current points leader and defending Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. Thursday evening's qualifying session put Carl Edwards in the 3rd starting spot, six points in front of Johnson and high enough to get the People's Pitstop 3 bonus points.

B List: It's a good thing we have four roster spots for this group of drivers, because we had a four-way tie involving Mark Martin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Brad Keselowski and Juan Pablo Montoya. Martin (13th) and Earnhardt (15th) will start, while Keselowski (26th) and Montoya (32nd) will watch the proceedings from the bench.

C List: Another poll, another tie. We're starting to look like John Belushi in the disciplinary hearing scene of "Animal House." This tie was between the new usual suspects, Regan Smith and Bobby Labonte. And if there could have been a tie in qualifying, these two drivers probably would have done that, too. As it turns out, Smith (21st) is one spot in front of Labonte and gets the start.

Remember that the fantasy football polls are still open and will remain open until Saturday night. The People's Pigskin needs all the help it can get in getting its season back on track. Please vote now.

We'll be back with our weekly NASCAR predictions.

Staying on Top in Tennessee

You, the Internet, were asked to help the People's Pigskin remain at the top of the charts, and you delivered like these guys.
The People's Pigskin scored 251 points at NASCAR's Saturday night Sprint Cup special at Bristol Motor Speedway. That gives us a season total of 6,532, which is good enough to increase our lead in the 9beersfantasysportstavern league. Our lead over Jeff Gordon Dupont 24 has expanded to 108 points. And we'd like it to keep growing.
Here is the Bristol breakdown.
Carl Edwards: Started 2nd, finished 9th and 79 fantasy points. Edwards came close to finding the lead several times. But he, like two fellow drivers, found something just as good Saturday night: a clinched Chase berth.
Brad Keselowski: Started 8th, finished 1st, 89 laps led and 100 fantasy points. By winning for the third time this season (only Kyle Busch has more checkered flags), Keselowski might as well have wrapped up a spot in the Chase. Even if he doesn't somehow move from 11th place into the top 10 in the driver standings, he has certainly wrapped up a wild card spot.
Mark Martin: Started 5th, finished 38th and 16 fantasy points. The only thing Martin found Saturday night was trouble.
Regan Smith: Started 12th, finished 18th and 56 fantasy points. It's never good when the press release about your driver starts with the phrase "The performance was better than the result." In the wish-it-were-dead language of PR, that means "He had a bad night, but if we don't say good things about him, no one will."
Now, let's discuss the new set of polls. And there are plenty of them.
We'll start with the three on the bottom. They will help select the People's Pitstop lineup for the Labor Day weekend race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. That race is Sunday night, and the qualifying session is on a Saturday. That means the polls will close Friday night. You know the drill.
The two polls on the top are for the Internet's favorite fantasy football team, the People's Pigskin. You have already told us to target Adrian Peterson at running back and (in a neck-related revote) Aaron Rodgers at quarterback. Now we need you to tell us which wide receiver and tight end should be in our sights. Those polls will close on Saturday night. Please vote now.

The People's Choice - Bristol

A certain portion of our fans are battening down the hatches, while others are (trying to) get the heck out of Dodge as Irene makes its way up the Atlantic Coast. But skies are sunny at Thunder Valley, aka Bristol Motor Speedway, where NASCAR has set up shop for the second time this season. And you, the Internet, picked a heck of a roster for the People's Pitstop as it tries to stay atop the 9beersfantasysportstavern league. Here are the selections.
A List: Clearly, you paid attention to what happened the last time we were at this track. The winner of this poll was Kyle Busch, followed by a whisker by Carl Edwards. But when the qualifying session came, it wasn't that close. Edwards qualified 2nd (versus 23rd for Busch) and earned himself a starting spot, along with a 5-point bonus for the People's Pitstop.
B List: The voting was close in this poll. Dale Earnhardt Jr. earned the win, followed by Brad Keselowski, Mark Martin and Clint Bowyer. The qualifying session separated the contenders from the pretenders. Martin (5th) and Keselowski (8th) earned starts, while Bowyer (16th) and Earnhardt (22nd) will watch from the bench.
C List: Life is full of surprises, and this poll provided one of them. The winner here was Regan Smith, followed by Bobby Labonte. That was the order in qualifying, too. Smith (12th) will start. Labonte (30th) will sit.
We'll be back with the predictions with this race. In the meantime, remember that the fantasy football polls are still open. Get those votes in while you can.

Picking Through the Wreckage

To put it succinctly, Saturday night stank for the People's Pitstop.
The Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team scored only 168 points at Daytona International Speedway. This was our lowest total since ... the last time we were at Daytona. Our season total is now 4,570. And the People's Pitstop has surrendered its lead in the 9beersfantasysportstavern league to Jeff Gordon Dupont 24. We sit in second place, with a 4-point edge over SteelerFan4Tony.
You might notice a theme to this breakdown of the results.
Carl Edwards: Started 14th, finished 37th, 1 lap led and 28 fantasy points. An early spin into the inside wall put him 25 laps down and kept him there the rest of the night. It also cost him his overall points lead.
Mark Martin: Started 1st, finished 33rd, 15 laps led and 46 fantasy points. Martin actually was a contender late I'm the race, until a nudge from Joey Logano on the first green-white-checkered attempt ended his night.
Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Started 6th, finished 19th, 1 lap led and 64 fantasy points. The final-lap wreck that caught Earnhardt was bad enough. His postrace question "What kind of fricking move can you make?" about what's supposed to be one of his strongest tracks was even worse.
Bobby Labonte: Started 24th, finished 31st and 30 fantasy points. Labonte took damage in a wreck on lap 5, and his car was never the same.
The good news: There's always another week in NASCAR. This one will take us to a brand new track for the Sprint Cup folks: Kentucky. The polls are now up, and they will stay up until Thursday night. (Forgive the order. The phone being used to post this won't let us click and drag.) We need your help to have a shot at redemption, so feel free to vote now.

The People's Choice - Daytona

Another week is over. Many of us are planning our fireworks viewing and cookout grilling (hopefully not in the same place), but enough of you took the trouble to vote in our polls that the People's Pitstop has a full and complete lineup for Saturday. Here are the NASCAR drivers who will represent the Internet's favorite fantasy racing team at Daytona International Speedway.
A List: Carl Edwards lapped the field in this poll, while Kevin Harvick edged out the other votegetters by virtue of the points tiebreaker. When it came time to qualify, Edwards (14th place) lapped Harvick again (31st) and earned the starting spot.
B List: Dale Earnhardt Jr. easily won this poll, outpacing runner-up Martin Truex Jr. and tiebreaker winners Mark Martin and Ryan Newman. Earnhardt has a well-earned reputation for winning with restrictor plates, and his 6th-place qualifying effort pushed Newman (11th) and Truex (34th) to the bench. But Martin just keeps on ticking; he won the pole for Saturday's race and earned 10 bonus points for the People's Pitstop.
C List: This poll ended in a dead heat between Regan Smith and Bobby Labonte. The qualifying session almost produced the same result. Labonte put up the 24th-fastest time, just four places ahead of Smith, and will start for us as a result.
We'll be back with the predictions for the Daytona night race.

Coasting Into the Summer Season

In the end, every week can't be like last week.
The People's Pitstop took its foot off the gas pedal this week at Kansas Speedway. We scored only 223 points. However, like Brad Keselowski, the Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team managed to hang on to first place with a season total of 3,683. Our lead in the 9beersfantasysportstaven league has narrowed to 112 points.
Here is the detailed scoring breakdown.
Kyle Busch: Started 3rd, finished 12th, 11 laps led and 81 fantasy points. If it weren't for Mr. Pink Car in a Pink Suit, our day would have been much worse. Busch was the only starter to lead a lap, and he was the only one to end the race on the lead lap.
A.J. Allmendinger: Started 26th, finished 27th (1 lap behind the leaders) and 38 fantasy points. Despite a paint job made famous by Richard Petty, Allmendinger didn't look much like the King. And he can't afford many more outings like this; halfway through NASCAR's regular season, Allmendinger sits 16th in driver points, and he get only four more starts for the People's Pitstop.
Mark Martin: Started 18th, finished 21st (1 lap behind the leaders) and 50 fantasy points. Martin has finished outside the top 10 in five of the last six races. Maybe he's the one who needs a new paint job.
Paul Menard: Started 9th, finished 19th (1 lap behind the leaders) and 54 fantasy points. At least his owner didn't humiliate his team by taking a cheap shot at a rival driver...oops, scratch that.
According to Yahoo Sports, the "spring" segment of the NASCAR season is over. The action now moves to the summer segment (and to TNT) with the first of two races at Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania, home to Sukanya Roy, this year's Scripps National Spelling Bee champion. We won't ask you to spell words like stromuhr, but we will ask you to pick our lineup. The qualifying session is scheduled for Saturday, so you have until Friday to vote in our polls. Invite a friend to vote, too. The more, the merrier.
We'll be back with a look at how things stand for different drivers.

The People's Choice - Kansas

This post will be brief, but we would like to thank those of you who voted on the People's Pitstop lineup this week. Here are the drivers who will represent the Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team during Sunday's race at Kansas Speedway.
A List: This week, the poll ended with a tie between two drivers who know how to win races: Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick. They both know how to qualify too: Busch earned the starting spot (and a 3-point bonus for the People's Pitstop) for qualifying 3rd, while Harvick qualified 10th.
B List: Ties are the order of the day at this blog. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Clint Bowyer tied for first place in this poll. A.J. Allmendinger was all alone in third, while Mark Martin edged out a host of drivers for the final roster spot by virtue of points. He also edged his way into a starting spot by qualifying 18th. Allmendinger go the other starting spot by qualifying 26th, just ahead of both Bowyer (27th) and Earnhardt (28th).
C List: We had a three-way tie between Paul Menard and the Regan/Ragan twins. Menard outdid them both in qualifying (9th) and gets the starting nod.
We'll be back with some predictions.

It's Official--You Rock!

You, the Internet, clearly have this whole fantasy NASCAR thing figured out.
For the second race in a row, your choices have put the People's Pitstop at the top of the 9beersfantasysportsforum standings. This week, the Internet's favorite fantasy racing team racked up 311 points at Richmond International Raceway. Our season total is now 2,622.
For those of you wondering, in the words of David Byrne, "How did we get here?," here's a look at the results.
Kyle Busch: Started 20th, finished 1st, 235 laps led and 110 fantasy points. That's right; our A List driver led more than half of the 400 laps in this race. And it turns out that he had just enough fuel to complete the 400 laps; the Victory Lane celebration was delayed because he ran out of gas on the way there.
Clint Bowyer: Started 3rd, finished 6th, 18 laps led and 93 fantasy points, including the 3 bonus points he earned from the qualifying session. A driver getting this much "when will he break through" buzz is one worthy of our continued attention, even if he is spending his down time hosting Twitter parties.
Mark Martin: Started 5th, finished 14th (1 lap behind the leaders) and 64 fantasy points. Yes, Martin, NASCAR's biggest rap fan, was in our lineup because of a mistake on our part, but it turned out to be a happy accident. He finished six spots ahead of Ryan Newman, who would have started had everything gone according to plan. But Martin's plan probably did not involve getting caught up in a Jeff Gordon wreck.
Bobby Labonte: Started 14th, finished 24th (3 laps behind the leaders) and 44 fantasy points. Labonte was another driver collected in the Gordon wreck.
Now, the People's Pitstop tries to make it three in a row as NASCAR takes its act to Darlington Raceway. This is another Saturday night race--even the Frances won't mess with Mother--with a Friday qualifying session, so this week's lineup polls will close on Thursday night. Remember that you're voting for 2 A List drivers, 4 B List drivers and 2 C List drivers. Feel free to vote now, and tell a friend.

The People's Choice - Talladega

There will be no need to update this post later; we already know who's starting for the People's Pitstop. The qualifying session at Talladega Superspeedway is over, and you won't believe how the Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team did.
A List: This poll ended in a dead heat between Jimmie Johnson and Carl Edwards. The start goes to Johnson, who qualified 2nd, or 18 places ahead of Edwards.
B List: The people who vote on this poll clearly knew that Talladega is a restrictor plate track. They gave the win in this poll to Dale Earnhardt Jr., who has a strong history on such tracks. Clint Bowyer and Ryan Newman tied for second, and Mark Martin squeaked his way into the fourth spot. But there was no squeaking when it came time to qualify. Martin (3rd) and Earnhardt (4th) earned the starting spots over Bowyer (10th) and Newman (23rd).
C List: Even the drivers from the fantasy equivalent of the discount rack found their way to the front of the pack. Paul Menard and David Ragan tied for the top spot in this poll, again. And Menard qualifed 5th, or two spots ahead of Ragan.
If you've been paying attention, you know that we got bonus points from Johnson (5), Martin (3) and Earnhardt (1). And this is definitely the first time in People's Pitstop history that all our starters come from the top five.
We will be back tomorrow with another set of predictions. In the meantime, we have a poll about the fact that NASCAR makes its drivers wear plates for this race. Jeff Gordon, who won the pole, made his thoughts clear. Now it's your turn. Feel free to vote now.
Here are the lineup poll results.
[polldaddy poll=4913685] [polldaddy poll=4913695] [polldaddy poll=4913709]

Back to the Middle

The People's Pitstop hasn't exactly reached Charlie Sheen's "winning" territory yet, but we're getting there.
The Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team racked up 329 points during Sunday's Sprint Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway. That improved our overall score to 983 and raised us 2 spots, to 7th out of 14, in the prestigious 9beersfantasysportstavern group on Yahoo Sports.
Here are scoring details.
Kyle Busch: Started 12th, finished 1st, 153 laps led and 100 fantasy points. You think it's safe to say Kyle is comfortable with Bristol, or would that be jumping the gun?
Martin Truex Jr.: Started 8th, finished 17th, 63 laps led and 68 fantasy points. Not only is Truex in the top 10 in driver points, but he's also winning awards you never knew existed.
Mark Martin: Started 9th, finished 12th and 68 fantasy points. Martin was our only starting driver who did not lead a lap.
Paul Menard: Started 4th, finished 5th, 35 laps led and 93 fantasy points. You know you're having a strong season when NASCAR.com writers are naming months after you.
Perhaps the most impressive achievement for the People's Pitstop this week was that, despite racing on one of the shortest tracks on the NASCAR circuit, all our starters managed to keep themselves on the lead lap.
Will that be the case again when NASCAR takes its act to Fontana, California? Only you, the Internet, can make that call. The polls are now open and will stay open until Thursday night. The results of the weekend poll appear below. Please feel free to exercise your voting rights now.
[polldaddy poll=4739447]

The People's Choice - Bristol

Today, instead of focusing on what's wrong with sports (we'll cover some of that territory over the weekend), we'd like to extend a special thanks to you, the Internet. You found time during your busy bracket-filling (and shredding) schedule to vote in the lineup polls for the People's Pitstop. As a result, the Internet's favorite fantasy NASCAR team has a roster for this week's Sprint Cup race at Brisol Motor Speedway.
A List: One driver ran away with this poll, and he should be familiar to longtime readers of this blog. Kyle Busch, last seen reporting "flames in my face," was the winner. He'll be joined in the roster by runner-up Tony Stewart. Whoever qualifies better Friday afternoon will get the starting nod.
B List: We another clear-cut winner here. That would be NAPA commercial co-star Martin Truex Jr. Three other drivers tied for second place: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin and Kasey Kahne.
C List: Paul Menard is threatening to become the first driver in People's Pitstop history to use up all his starts before Independence Day. He won this week's poll yet again, and he'll be joined in the roster by Trevor Bayne, who hopefully celebrated Saint Patrick's Day responsibly, seeing that he's still 20 years old and all.
Again, thanks for voting. The results appear below. A new poll about your weekend plans is now available for your consideration. We'll update this post once qualifying is complete.
UPDATED 11:30 P.M. At least Menard is earning your faith in him. He qualified 4th, earning not only a starting spot but a bonus point for the People's Pitstop. Busch (12th) edged out Stewart (13th). Truex (8th) and Martin (9th) beat out Kahne (10th) and Earnhardt (22nd).
[polldaddy poll=4730878] [polldaddy poll=4730892] [polldaddy poll=4730910]

Fearless Predictions - Version 2.0

As NASCAR fans get ready for this week's Sprint Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it's time to offer the first set of predictions for this season.
Only this time, we're going to do things a little differently.
Let's be honest; an elephant throwing darts could pick 10 drivers and get half of them into the top 10 each week. And since we're fresh out of darts, we need a new system, so here goes.
Each week for the rest of the season, the fine folks who write this blog will pick four drivers -- one starting in the top 10, one starting in the bottom 10 and two starting somewhere in between those ranges. We will not pick drivers starting for the People's Pitstop that week, but we will do our best to pick drivers who have a good shot of finishing in the top 10 for one reason or another.
Here are the picks for this week.
One from the front: This week, it's particularly challenging to make this pick, since three of the top 10 starters (Kyle Busch, A.J. Allmendinger and Ryan Newman) are in our starting lineup. We'll go instead with a driver who's in the top 10 in both today's starting grid and the Sprint Cup point standings: Mark Martin, who won Saturday's Nationwide race on this very track.
One from the back: The pickings are pretty slim back here in the land of start-and-parkers (or, in the case of Robby Gordon, start-and-perp-walkers). However, believe it or not, we have another driver currently in the top 10 in points: David Gilliland. He's as good a bet to move up the pack as anybody.
Two from the middle: The only driver in this group who is ineligible is Paul Menard. Instead, we'll go with Jeff Gordon, the driver who ended a 66-race losing streak last week, along with the driver who currently sits right behind his brother at the top of the point standings: Kurt Busch, a Las Vegas native who probably doesn't want to see your Elvis impersonation.
Enjoy the race. We'll be back with the results.

The Bristol Breakdown (and Martinsville Polls)

Bristol races are never easy to predict, but the People's Pitstop had a particularly rough week this week. The Internet's favorite fantasy racing team scored only 223 points on Sunday. No starter led a lap, so we got no bonus points for doing so. The season point total is now 1,320, good enough to be tied for 105,293rd overall and 123rd in the Fans of From the Marbles fantasy racing league.

Here's the driver-by-driver breakdown:

Mark Martin. Started 13th, finished 35th (92 laps behind the leaders), 22 fantasy points. At one point the Venerable One was threatening to take the lead in Sunday's Sprint Cup race. And then this happened.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Started 18th, finished 7th, 78 fantasy points. The good news is that Earnhardt found his way into the top 10. The bad news is that he failed to lead a lap on a track where he has a strong track record.

Matt Kenseth. Started 7th, finished 5th, 82 fantasy points. He did continued his every-week-in-the-top-10 streak. That's good.

Scott Speed. Started 29th, finished 31st (20 points behind the leaders), 30 fantasy points. He never really was a threat to do anything Sunday. That's bad.

Now it's time for you, the Internet, to turn your attention to our next race, which will take place at another fan-favorite short track, Martinsville. The polls are open and will close Thursday night, so that we can get the lineup in for Friday's qualifying session. Please vote now.