Welcome to the NASCAR Cup Series Setup for Fanduel. Here we will be breaking down the best plays for Fanduel purposes. My name is Ryan Larkin and you can follow me @Larkin8 on twitter. This week the Cup Series is at Daytona International Speedway for the Daytona 500. 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 week’s race.
The Daytona 500
The biggest race of the year is upon us. I am beyond excited to get after it and hopeful one of our Army members can take that FanDuel $25,000!!! Let’s get to my top plays for the race.
Top Tier
Kyle Busch, Chase Elliott, Clint Bowyer, & Ryan Blaney: Going to group these four drivers together as they are very similar. All four are starting towards the back of the field. As a result, they will carry great position differential upside. Of course, ownership for them should be higher as a result so they will be a bit chalky. Bottom line is that all four are in elite equipment and are real threats to finish up front or even win this race.
Kurt Busch: Denny Hamlin starting 21st is going to get a lot of love but starting three spots in front of him is Kurt Busch. I expect Kurt to get overlooked in this situation which is good. This means lower ownership. He is the 2017 Daytona 500 champion and has scored top 10s in half his Daytona races. The sweet spot for us this week will be drivers who can score top 5s something that he has done a lot of as well here. 13 top 5s in 38 races is an incredible track record. The most of any driver in the field.
Kevin Harvick: Harvick has incredible speed in the Duels which bodes well for his chances. He is perhaps the smartest driver in the sport giving him a massive edge on his competition. He sees what is happening around him better than anyone. Something that was on display in the Duels when he essentially saved the field from a massive crash on the last lap. Two wins and the third most top 5’s of active drivers at 9. Strong upside here and hopefully low ownership.
Value Plays
Ricky Stenhouse: It is super risky to take the pole sitter given his horrible floor. However, Stenhouse has a ridiculously fast car. I can definitely see a world where he dominates early and often. If he stays clean he is a clear threat for the win as well. This is a GPP only play but don’t be afraid to get some ownership on the fastest car and craziest driver.
Matt Dibenedetto: Matty D comes in with a solid 16th place starting spot. Like that he can add some place diff to a potential top 10. He has three Penske teammates to work with and proved to Harvick in the Duels he is a great driver to work with. I expect him to have a super fast car and plenty of allies. Dibenedetto led the most laps in this race last year and was looking good until getting wrecked late in the race.
Ty Dillon: Ty has finished 6th or better in his last three Daytona races. He has implemented the ride around and play it safe model until late in the race. With the weakened field, he takes his RCR powered car inside the top 10 for a good finish. I expect him to do much of the same again this week. Starting 24th he will offer some place differential upside that could be the difference if he can go four straight top 10’s.
Ross Chastain: Chastain is in a third Ganassi car and only has one real shot to take a win this year. Knowing him he is going to attack this opportunity full force. He has teammates Kurt Busch and Kyle Larson to work with as well. He has an Xfinity Series win here last year and has shown to be a really good Superspeedway racer in general.
Backmarkers
FanDuel is a little different than DK when it comes to the backmarkers or punts. The full point place differential on DK gives these drivers incredible value once they reach top 20. On FanDuel the half point makes it more of a struggle for them to pay off. You need a bit more carnage and for them to get into that top 15 range to have a GPP winning chance. That being said, Timmy Hill, Joey Gase, Sorenson, Poole, Houff, McLeod, Lajoie and Gaughan all deserve your attention.
Corey Lajoie is my favorite play of the group. He scored finishes of 18th and 6th here last year staying out of trouble and finishing strong.
Check out some of our other DFS Army NASCAR content for the 2020 season!!!
Cup Series: 2020 NASCAR Cup Series Season Preview
Xfinity Series: 2020 NASCAR Xfinity Series Season Preview
Truck Series: 2020 NASCAR Truck Series Season Preview
DFS Army Strategy Series – NASCAR Scoring Fanduel vs Draftkings
This will conclude this edition of The NASCAR 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.