With fantasy sports as popular as ever, Red Bull Global Rallycross is giving fans multiple ways to play in 2017.
In addition to a Fantasy Championship, in which fans’ picks earn them points throughout the season, GRC also is running a separate Fantasy Challenge for each of the season’s 12 rounds. These two unique formats each require players to consider different things before locking in their selections, and that can make setting your lineup tricky.
For the Fantasy Challenge, Supercar drivers are divided into three tiers based on their performance heading into a given round, with a fourth tier comprised of the whole Lites field. Players have to pick the driver from each tier they think will help earn them the most points for that event, with their Lites picks being used as tiebreakers.
To help you know what to look for when making your selections, here are the four racers we’ve put in our lineups for the Red Bull GRC Ottawa Challenge:
Tier 1: Steve Arpin, Loenbro Motorsports
Although Tanner Foust might have been the fastest driver on track in New England, Arpin was in the mix all weekend, and ultimately took victory in the final. His consistent performance, however, isn’t the main reason we’re picking him. The Ottawa, Ontario, native is set to race in front of his home crowd for the first time in his GRC career, and that extra motivation should help him carry his momentum forward from Thompson, Conn.
Tier 2: Scott Speed, Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross
Although VARX and Speed look as strong as ever this year, we’re choosing him largely based on his performances both Saturday and Sunday in Thompson. Speed was caught in multiple battles with Mitchell deJong — who’s the other Tier 2 driver available this week — throughout the weekend, and he consistently showed the poise of a veteran racer to come out in front. We have little doubt he can repeat that in Ottawa.
Tier 3: Patrik Sandell, Subaru Rally Team USA
Hindered by mechanical gremlins, Sandell struggled at Subaru’s home race in Connecticut. But even with his issues, the Swede persevered to finish P5 in Round 4. His teammate, Chris Atkinson, had less problems in New England, and his drive to a third-place finish seemingly was a more accurate representation of SRTUSA’s pace. If Sandell can put together a clean weekend, he should do well.
Tier 4: James Rimmer, DirtFish Motorsports
Like Sandell, Rimmer had car problems that limited the number of points he left Thompson with. But he has shown his true speed through the first four rounds. In fact, in the first heat race of Round 4, he followed his teammate Conner Martell to a 1-2 finish, crossing the line roughly 9 seconds clear of the rest of the field.
All photos via Red Bull Content Pool
