I am writing this article before the Indy race because I am going on vacation and won’t have Internet access until later next week. So, I don’t know the results of the race at the Brickyard while I am writing this.

            Once again this should be one of the most boring races of the year and you just have to go with past performance to pick your drivers this week. With that said I am picking Denny Hamlin to win this race. In 5 career starts at Pocono, Denny has 2 wins and a worst finish of 6^th. He knows how to get around this track.

            Brian Vickers is another guy who really has a handle at Pocono. He might not be driving for a high profile team right now but they are very close to getting a win. Brian finished 2^nd here in June and could pull off an upset this weekend.

            Kurt Busch has really been running well at Pocono over the past few years with 2 wins and 2 runner-up finishes in his last 6 Pocono races. He also finished 8^th here earlier this season.

            Kasey Kahne won the race here earlier this year but that was only his 3^rd top 10 finish in 9 races at Pocono. I would rather use Kasey on some of the intermediate tracks where he really excels.

            Mark Martin is the long time master of Pocono. Although Mark has never gotten a win here, no one has finished in the top 5 more than he has. Mark has finished in the top 10 in more than half of his races here throughout his long and illustrious career.

            Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are both good at Pocono and should come away with decent finishes once again this weekend. However, I wouldn’t put either of them in victory lane at the end of the day.

            Tony Stewart has really run well at Pocono over the past few years and this is the time of the year that Smoke gets it going. The question is if JGR is going to give Tony the best shot at winning or use him for some experimental purpose for the rest of the season.

            Dale Earnhardt Jr. has run well at Pocono over the last 2 races but had a long stretch of struggling before that. Junior didn’t crack the top 10 in the 6 previous races to his last 2 top 10 finishes but he is driving for Hendrick now.

            Matt Kenseth is usually very consistent at Pocono and Carl Edwards has been getting better and better with each race he has under his belt at Pocono. Both of these guys have a great shot at a top 10 finish once again this weekend.

            Yahoo Picks for Pocono

            Group A

            Denny Hamlin (starter)

            Jimmie Johnson

            Group B

            Mark Martin (starter)

            Ryan Newman (starter)

            Kasey Kahne

            Kyle Busch

            Group C

            Brian Vickers (starter)

            Travis Kvapil

            Top 5 Overall at Pocono

1.      Denny Hamlin

2.      Jimmie Johnson

3.      Brian Vickers

4.      Tony Stewart

5.      Kurt Busch

Dark Horse: Brian Vickers

Stay Away From: Jamie McMurray

As always you can Email me with any questions, comments or suggestions at gutsamaniac@hotmail.com. I will be out of town until later in the week so please be patient and good luck!