de la BASTIDE: Time to put on thinking caps

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January 19, 2010

It’s almost time for fantasy racing

By Ken de la Bastide The Kokomo Tribune Tue Jan 19, 2010, 11:07 PM EST

With the opening race for the Sprint Cup teams less than a month away, the NHI newspapers in Indiana are gearing up for the 2010 fantasy racing league season.

During the years I have found some success in the Anderson Herald Bulletin’s employee contest, but the past few years I have been mired in mid-pack.

Shortly, the Indiana papers will be publishing the official entry form, but here is a sneak peak at the groups. By now most people know the rules — pick a driver from each group and hope they have a successful season. Changes to individual teams can be made, but there is a fee involved.

For those participating, it’s time to begin the process of determining which drivers will be included on their teams. Good luck to all.

Group A: Four-time champion Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, Jeff Gordon, Kurt Busch and Denny Hamlin make up this group. Hamlin has been predicted as the driver who will end Johnson’s title reign this year. I’m sticking with Johnson to have another good year although a fifth consecutive title will be tough to capture.

Group B: The group has Tony Stewart, Greg Biffle, Juan Pablo Montoya, Ryan Newman and Kasey Kahne. Stewart had a great year in his first year as an owner/driver and Montoya is coming off his best year with NASCAR. My pick is going to be Montoya, he’s ready to contend for a championship.

Group C: This could be the toughest group to make a selection. Carl Edwards is coming off a winless season and Kyle Busch failed to make the chase. The others include Matt Kenseth, winner of the first two races of 2009, Clint Bowyer and Brian Vickers. Love him or hate him, Busch will be in the chase this year and could claim that first title.

Group D: This group contains veterans ready to return to form and several promising younger drivers. Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick are joined by David Reutimann, Marcos Ambrose and Joey Logano. Among the group, Burton appears the most likely to return to a winning form for Richard Childress Racing.

Group E: A list of drivers coming off a disappointing season or seasons with Dale Earnhardt Jr., Casey Mears, Jamie McMurray, A.J. Allmendinger and Martin Truex Jr. This could be a make or break for Junior with Hendrick Motorsports. I will probably select Truex.

Group F: This group of drivers could be a toss-up — Elliott Sadler, David Ragan, Sam Hornish Jr., Bobby Labonte and Brad Keselowski. Labonte is driving for an unproven team, Sadler has been disappointing for several years, Hornish continues to struggle in a stock car and Keselowski may or may not be competitive. Ragan has shown steady improvement with Roush-Fenway Racing, so he will be getting my nod.

There’s my selections for whatever it’s worth.

In other racing news

I was saddened to hear that Tony George has resigned from the board of directors of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. George deserves a lot of credit for bringing stock car and motorcycle racing to IMS over the years, so it will be interesting to see what direction IMS takes without him on the board.

• Ken de la Bastide may be reached at ken.delabastide@ kokomotribune.com or 765-454-8580.

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It’s almost time for fantasy racing

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