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Tony Stewart been under the radar since winning his last championship in fantasy nascar. I believe he still more then capable of being that guy again. Look for him to start the season off sluggish , but once the calendar flip to June. That where Smoke becomes relevant. I usually don't use Smoke until the first Pocono race. Don't really see the point.
Intermediate tracks have been a strength for Smoke in his career. Honestly in 2014 , he wasn't quite as bad as I thought. Only had 3 bad races. Outside of those races , he had only 2 races (Charlotte II , Kansas I) worse then 18th. Should be noted at those races , he finished 20th and 21st. Most of his races he finished in the low to mid teens. He was even stronger at larger tracks. Had an 8.0 average finish between the tracks of California and Michigan.
Smoke always been a strong flat track racer. 2014 was a bit down performance wise. But no doubt he knows how to find success on them. Let look at his career numbers and recent race data.
Indy could be his best track among the flats from a career standpoint. In 16 career races , Smoke have an 8.5 average finish and 2 wins. Finished 17th in 2014. But finished in the top 10 in 9 of the previous 10 races at IMS. Hard to not like him at Indianapolis. Pocono is my personal favorite track to use Smoke at. In 36 races , Smoke have an 11.8 average finish. In 2014 , he finished 36 and 13. Since July 2005 , he had only 3 finishes worse then 15th. 16 finishes of 13th or better. Hard to beat that. That almost a decade span.
New Hampshire is a very good track for Smoke. In 31 career races , he have an 12.3 average finish. Finish 36th and 7th in 2014. Recently been better in the summer race. 3 Top 10s in his last three summer races. The Fall been pretty messy for Smoke. Smoke been good at Phoenix in his career. Unfortunately since the repave , Smoke been pretty unreliable at Phoenix. Something to consider.
At short tracks , Smoke been inconsistent recently. Had 2 Top 5s in 2014. Outside of that , Smoke short tracks been iffy. He will hold value at short tracks.
Richmond probably his best track for a career point of view. He have 3 wins and 11.2 career average finish. Even though over his previous 3 races at RIR , Smoke average finish is 19.3. But on the plus side , the previous 4 races Smoke had an 4.6 average finish. So basically an 11.9 average finish altogether. Slightly below his average for his career.
Martinsville been a decent track recently for Stewart. Kinda overrated in my opinion. More hype then his record can back up. 6 Of the past 10 races have resulted in 17th or worse. 4 Of them were 24th or worse. Not exactly good numbers at any track.Bristol been pretty unkind to Smoke. Since 2006 , Smoke have 3 finishes inside the top 10. That's is terrible. Then again Bristol never been a strong track for Smoke. I would avoid him at Bristol. Despite his 4th place finish in 2014.
Road courses will be a solid area for Smoke. He always had a knack for running well at them. Behind Gordon , Smoke have the most wins. Watkins Glenn is the preferred over Sonoma though. Both are good spots to use Smoke. Side note on Sonoma , I feel like he have fallen off a bit there. Still a useful option , but not what he been at WGI.
Plate track been a down trending type track for Smoke. But I will give him benefit of the doubt. I am sure he can deliver top notch results. But recent results there have me wanting to stay away. Least until he get back to his old self at Daytona and Talladega. Just for the record , I wouldn't use him at the 500 even if he was on a hot trend.
I don't know what to expect from Smoke. As I stated in the Profile , I think Smoke could have a very good season in 2015. My fellow writers must feel the same way we all have him from 13th - 17th range on our rankings to start the season. His best days will be Intermediate tracks , flats and road courses. The plate tracks and shorts will likely be the places to avoid him. Also it worth noting Smoke been at his best during the summer months. 2014 that was also the case. We saw a upstick in production once the weather got warmer.
Twitter - @JeffNathans