Have you ever wondered why NASCAR does not really have stats? Think about it. It is a sport where things are measured in 1/1000th of a second, yet the best stats you can find are start, finish, highest placed, and laps led? I am not that much of a NASCAR fan, but I have wondered for a while why there are not better stats and think this an area ripe for innovation. Enter StatSheet.

StatSheet has built a name for itself through its revolutionary college basketball stats and is now taking a stab at NASCAR. In addition to the usual (read:useless) NASCAR stats mentioned earlier, Statsheet’s NASCAR pages feature stats such as quality passes, green flag pass differential, and driver rating. For example, check out the stats from the 2009 Daytona 500, it becomes obvious that Jeff Gordon lost the race in the pits. Despite starting third and a positive pass differential, Gordon finished 13th. These stats paint a picture that you probably would not see just looking at regular race results.

From a pure fantasy perspective, stats like these can help actually help fantasy players determine who is running hot but not putting up the final numbers or who is outperforming his car. Currently, there is a dearth of quality information about NASCAR drivers, and information like StatSheet’s can transform how NASCAR is watched and perceived.

StatSheet Founder Robbie Allen told me, “I’ve barely scratched the surface with NASCAR and right now there isn’t much available on the web today. I plan on doing a lot more over the next year.” I cannot wait to see what comes next.

Over the last few years, the idea of live fantasy sports has gain significant traction as market pioneers such as Live Hive Systems‘ Nanogaming and YOUbeQB’s fantasy football game have emerged with major media companies (ESPN, CBS to name a few) have signed on for various incarnations of these live fantasy sports games to be played for a computer. While those games provide a wealth of information from a web browser, Event Day Games simplifies the idea of live fantasy sports and makes it mobile friendly.

Likening itself to things such as Super Bowl box pools and March Madness brackets, Event Day Games focuses on creating free games for singular events such as the NFL Draft and NASCAR races. During the events, registered players receive text messages with questions, and the players text back with their predictions. If you are correct, you score points. If you are wrong, everyone of your friends that entered the contest along with you, has a chance to rag on you. It is really a win-win situation.

While still refining its game play, I love the fact that Event Day Games is targeting NASCAR. The first big benefit is that NASCAR has very loyal and dedicated fans, which enables Event Day Games to develop a loyal fan base. Second, there is a race every week which enables them to continue developing the game and sign-up new members. Third, by focusing on groups of friends, Event Day Games is focusing on making a large game seem small.

Technologically, Event Day Games systems has kept the system so simple that people play it while away from their computers, something that differentiates itself from the other live fantasy sports solutions. No mounds of data, just a simple text interface. While I am a fan of the data-rich solutions, it is nice to have an on-the-go solution that does not require me to sit on every pitch or every down.

Congratulations to Event Day Games with its launch, and good luck as it enters the live fantasy sports market.