Welcome to the Cup Series Setup for Fanduel. Here we will be breaking down the best plays for Fanduel purposes. My name is RyanLarkin88 and you can follow me @Larkin8 on twitter. This week the Cup Series is at Las Vegas. The VIP Member Research Station and Domination Station will be ready to go for you to help create your lineups so be sure to check that out. Also, jump in the NASCAR VIP Slack and get some great insight into this weeks race.
Top Tier Plays
Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch is always a legit threat for the win no matter the track. He finished 3rd here in the spring after leading 13 laps. We are to expect a hot slick track something that should play into his favor. He had the fastest car in 10 lap average in final practice as well. Starting 20th he offers good place differential possibilities and I fully expect him to work his way to the top 5 and contend for the win. There are a couple drivers I feel are a little better plays overall but KB is in a strong position to score well this week.
Kevin Harvick
Harvick will start the race from the 3rd position on Sunday. He is one of the top contenders for the win this week. Back in March he started from the pole and led 88 laps before finishing 4th. Since joining SHR he has had three finishes of 38th or worse here which has really hurt his average finish but he has also completely dominated and won two other races. One of the fastest if not the fastest car all year long in terms of raw speed.
Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski
Keselowski starting 18th and Logano starting 22nd both offer similar place differential upside. I fully expect them to work their way towards the front and end up as top contenders for the win. They are two of the best at this track having won having combined to win 4 of the last 7 races here and would have won a 5th if not for Keselowski having a hub issue on the last lap in March of ’17. They finished 1st and 2nd here in the spring under the new rules package after starting 10th and 19th. Hard to separate these guys this week and both are fantastic plays.
Value Plays
Erik Jones
Jones is a fairly simple play. He starts 26th and has a very strong shot at a top 10. With the place differential points available starting that far back plus his finishing position upside he is a very strong play this week.
Alex Bowman
Bowman was incredibly fast on this style of track over the course of the summer. His best runs came at Kansas where he battled Keselowski late before finishing 2nd and of course his win at Chicago. He starts 19th and will cost only $9,000. I believe he has a strong shot at a top 10 this week and could maybe even work his way into the top 5. He finished 11th here in March.
Ryan Newman
Newman was 8th in 10 lap average speed and 7th in 15 lap average during final practice. He is one of the best restarters in the sport and is also one of the hardest drivers to pass. Both are huge advantages with this rules package especially at this track. His teammate Stenhouse finished 6th here in the March race under this new package so the team has shown they can get a really great finish here. Newman starts 17th and cost $7,800. I believe he has the ability to score his 10th top 10 of the season this week.
Low Tier/Punts
Chris Buescher
Buescher has finished 18th or better in 15 straight race in 2019. He also has 4 top 10s this year all of which have come on 1.5 mile tracks. He is an elite restarter which is a massive advantage with the 2019 rules package. He starts 28th and amazingly still only cost $7,000. If he can find his way into the top 15 he will yet again deliver fantastic value.
Bubba Wallace
Bubba is coming off a 3rd place finish at Indy last week. While this finish means very little in terms of what his car will do this week it is a huge confidence boost for a driver who is a big up and down at times with confidence. He is a very good restarter which if we get a few cautions can set up nicely for him to take advantage of and gain spots throughout the race. He starts 31st so he has a lot of room to move forward. He only cost $5,500 so the price is really good and if he can make his way forward can be a very strong punt play.
This will conclude this edition of The Monster Energy Cup Series Setup for Fanduel. If you would like to reach out and talk NASCAR Follow me on twitter @Larkin8 and join me as well as our other DFS Army NASCAR contributors (Brady Miller, Taco, and NillyJay) in the NASCAR coaching channels.