Midpack Attack:UAW-Dodge 400
Track history
The Las Vegas Motor Speedway, situated on 1600 acres northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, opened for business in 1996. The facility covers over a dozen forms of racing, including a go-kart track, a 4,000-foot drag strip, a 3/8 mile "bullring" oval, a couple of road courses, paved and dirt short tracks, motocross circuits, and a Cup Superspeedway. They are also home to several racing schools like the Richard Petty Driving Experience and the Mario Andretti Racing School. With Las Vegas food and entertainment nearby, and over 100,000 affordable hotel rooms available, LVMS is a favorite of race teams and fans alike. The speedway was opened September 15, 1996 with the Indy Racing League Las Vegas 500k, won by Richie Hearn. NASCAR Cup racing came to LVMS in 1998 with the inaugural Las Vegas 400. The superspeedway is a 1.5 mile tri-oval. The backstretch runs 1,572 feet and the front is 2,275 feet.
In 2007, the Cup drivers competed on a brand-new track configuration. The 1.5 mile track was changed to its current 20 degree banking compared to the previous 12 degrees in the turns. For the fans, pit road was relocated 150 feet closer to the grandstands and the new fan-friendly garages debuted that weekend as well.
First Cup race
Dale Jarrett ran a 168.224 mph qualifying lap in Robert Yates Racing's No. 88 Quality Care Ford to start on the pole for the March 1, 1998 Las Vegas 400. He led 40 laps but dropped out on lap 219 after losing the engine.
Mark Martin put Roush Racing's No. 6 Valvoline Ford 7th in the lineup, led 82 laps and took the inaugural victory with a race speed of 146.554 mph.
As fantasy players, your team budget won't allow you to pick all track favorites so Mid-pack Attack is here to help. A mid-packer may not win the race but has as good a shot at a top 15 finish as track favorites Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch and Matt Kenseth. There were 48 cars on the preliminary entry list for this weekend's Cup race. The 43 drivers who qualify will be competing in front of 142,000 fans in the grandstands for a total purse of $6,459,779. Here are our picks for Sunday's UAW-Dodge 400 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Mid-pack picks
Since it's still early in the season, mid-packers aren't necessarily mid-pack in the point standings at this time. Some are in the top 15 but will drop like stones after four or five races. Others, deep in the standings, will likely be moving up. That said, other than the track favorites, we'll be picking from all over the standings for the next couple of weeks.
Jeff Burton's combined Cup and Nationwide (Busch) Series numbers show 5 wins, 12 top tens and an average finish of around 9th in 17 starts. It's an understatement to say he does well at LVMS. He's the only driver to finish all 10 Cup races and 9 on the lead lap. Burton has two top 15's this season so far and Sunday should be no exception.
Mark Martin leads all drivers with 8 top tens in Cup series races at Las Vegas. The inaugural race winner is a fantasy option every time he enters a race at this track. Like Burton, he brings the car home in one piece (running at the finish in 9 out of 10 races). His 11.2 average finish makes him a good choice for a third of fourth driver in your roster this weekend.
In four Cup starts at this track,
Kasey Kahne averaged a 3.5 start (best in the series) including 2 poles. As to his finishes; he wrecked twice and finished 2nd and 4th in the other two starts. The runner-up finish was in only his 3rd Cup Series career race. Kahne is back running like he did in 2006. With a 7th at Daytona and a 9th last Monday at Fontana, look for another top 10 from him on Sunday.
Greg Biffle has an average finish of 10th in his last three Cup starts at LVMS. In the Nationwide Series, he averaged an 11.3 finish at Las Vegas for six races. Oh yeah, let's not forget his two starts in the Craftsman Truck Series. He started both races 5th in the lineup, finished the first in 5th and won the other. Biffle has finishes of 10th and 15th so far in 2008 and that is where we expect to find him this weekend.