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NASCAR Cup Series Setup Top Plays for FanDuel DFS: Busch Clash at Daytona

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 Busch Clash. 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.

I am PUMPED to be back with some NASCAR racing. It is important to remember that this is an extra small field of only 18 cars so finding an edge will be tricky.

Be sure to check out the preview article for some extra info on the Busch Clash. 

Top Tier Plays

Denny Hamlin

This is the most obvious of play considering he will start the furthest back of anyone in 18th position. Hamlin is also one of the absolutely best here at Daytona if not the very best. He has won this race three times and has won the Daytona 500 twice including last year. He is going to offer the best overall upside given place differential and is also a huge threat for the win.

Chase Elliott

Sneaking my favorite play in here now to hopefully get everyone excited. Chase will start 11th for the Busch Clash giving him some solid place differential but also puts him in that no man’s land where ownership tends to be spread out for this race. The surface stats for Chase at Daytona do not look good. This is positive as people may overlook him for this race. His best finish in a points-paying Daytona race was 14th back in 2017. This will give the appearance of a driver who isn’t good here. However, when you look deeper you can see that Chase has two victories in the Daytona Duel races, and has dominated the early part of this race before getting involved in a wreck in 2018. The HMS cars always have speed and with all four in the race, he will have plenty of help. In 2019, Elliott had finishes of 7th and 8th in the Clash and Duel races and also scared an 8th and a victory at Talladega. This is my top play due to starting position, ownership %, and his overall upside.

Brad Keselowski

So you want to takedown a GPP. Well, you need to be willing to take a risk. Keselowski is starting 2nd meaning he has one of the lowest floors possible and lacks the obvious place differential upside of a Denny Hamlin. This will naturally see his ownership percentage drop giving him leverage on the field. Keselowski is a phenomenal plate racer winning six point paying races and also winning this race in 2018. The key to him being in the optimal lineup will be dominating the laps led and winning this race. Something he definitely has the ability to do. Another thing I like is a pissed off Keselowski, something that we will get after he drove his Daytona 500 car into an infield fence destroying the right side of his car. He will be on a mission to prove he is the best at Daytona.

Joey Logano

Besides Hamlin, I see Logano as the 2nd most obvious play of the slate. His ownership will surely be high but he is too good of an option to be ignored. Logano won the 2015 Daytona 500 and has followed that up with two 6th place finishes and two 4th place finishes. He also won a Daytona Duel race last year as well as this race in 2017. Starting 13th he offers some place differential and a safer floor than most while also possessing one of the highest upside. He can definitely link up with teammate Keselowski and dominate this race.

Value Plays

Jimmie Johnson

Johnson comes in as the 4th cheapest option on FD despite the fact that he is the defending champion of this race. He will start 17th giving him elite upside. Johnson has all three of his HMS teammates in this race so plenty of help to get up front and stay there. He has won two Duel races, two Clash races and two Daytona 500’s plus one win in the Summer 400 miler. Great price and a great spot for JJ.

Erik Jones

Jones will roll off 12th for the Clash. Similar to Chase Elliott he is right in the middle of the field with some good place diff upside and also has three teammates in the race to work with. He won here in July of 2018 and finished 3rd in the 2019 Daytona 500. The Toyota cars are great drafters and work well together. While I don’t consider him a top threat for the win if he can score a top 5 then he will very likely be on the winning lineup. This is my favorite of all value plays as I believe he will be one of the lowest owned drivers.

Austin Dillon

Was looking for a Keselowski type value play that could sneak in with low ownership but outside of Byron and Bowman there really isn’t one. That left us with Austin Dillon as the best play. Dillon, the 2018 Daytona 500 winner has finished 5th and 6th in the last two Clash races. He does a great job of staying out of trouble and being there at the end. AD starts 15th so he is safe and offers a good upside. He will likely tag along with the HMS Chevy crew which might not be the worst thing. I believe he stays out of trouble and scores a top 10. If we get a big crash that could even open things up more for Austin.

 

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.