The DFS NASCAR rankings below are based on a mixture of expected output and DraftKings Fantasy NASCAR salaries. The order is not based on the highest projected fantasy totals, but rather by the DFS value of each driver.
Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $150K Engineer [$50K to 1st] (Cup)
1. Chris Buescher ($10,000) — Trust the stats. Not only did Buescher win the Daytona summer race, but he’s been the best DFS NASCAR pick at the plate tracks (Daytona and Talladega) since 2017. Over that span, he’s earned a top-10 DFS score in 12 of 25 super-speedway races.
2. Michael McDowell ($7,100) — It’s all about the DKFP in Fantasy NASCAR at DraftKings. Drivers need to finish. They need to finish up front. And they need place differential points. In 10 of the last 25 plate races, McDowell has a top-10 DFS score. That’s tied with Denny Hamlin for the second-most.
3. Denny Hamlin ($9,800) — Everything is working out for Hamlin. This looks like it might be the year that he finally wins the Cup Series Championship. He can make another statement this weekend at Talladega. Super speedways are matters of chance for most, but not Hamlin. He is one of the best plate racers ever.
4. Ty Dillon ($5,000) — This might be hard to believe, but Ty Dillon has a top-10 DFS finish in nine of his 21 super-speedway races. It makes sense. Dillon has a knack for finishing these races unscathed. He also has a knack for qualifying poorly thanks to his lackluster equipment.
5. Erik Jones ($7,800) — This season has been a disappointment for Legacy Motor Club, but all is not lost. A win at Talladega would be huge for this small team. And a win is not out of the question. Jones has a top-10 finish in six of the last seven Talladega races.
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6. Joey Logano ($10,100) — During the DraftKings era, no driver has been in more optimal lineups at Talladega. Logano won the spring super-speedway race at Atlanta earlier this season. He’s not a playoff driver, so he’s got nothing to lose. Checkers-or-wreckers Logano at a plate track could be wild.
7. Ryan Blaney ($10,200) — Denny Hamlin is still the King of the Super Speedways, but Blaney is on the rise. His Team Penske teammate Joey Logano and former teammate Brad Keselowski always challenged Hamlin’s throne. Now, it’s Blaney’s turn.
8. Chase Elliott ($9,300) — He has a top-15 finish in eight of his last 10 super-speedway races. Over that span, he has wins at Talladega and Atlanta.
9. Bubba Wallace ($9,200) — The age old question of whether Talladega and Daytona are the same, rears its ugly head again. Bubba has a top-15 finish in 10 of the last 13 Daytona races. At Talladega, he has two top 15s in 11 races (one of those top-15 finishes was a win in a rain-shortened race).
10. Kyle Busch ($8,700) — Veteran NASCAR drivers go through dry spells and hot streaks at super speedways. There is no rhyme or reason. Busch is on a hot streak. He won at Talladega in the spring and finished third in the spring of 2022. He finished fifth and 10th at Atlanta this season, and he finished third in the Daytona summer race.
11. Kyle Larson ($9,000) — The only tracks where Larson cannot dominate are the super speedways. That’s because no one can dominate. Luck trumps skill. This disadvantages Larson, but it doesn’t. He’s been so unlucky that he’s due for a lucky break and a win.
12. Ricky Stenhouse Jr ($8,500) — The 2023 Daytona 500 winner is better at Talladega. At one point earlier in his career, he reeled off nine top-10 finishes in 13 Talladega races. Since then, he’s failed to earn a top-10 finish in the last six Talladega races with four of those being finishes outside of the top 20. He’s due.
13. Brad Keselowski ($10,500) — His super-speedway stats sum it all up. He’s been the best and the worst plate racer. He never lost his skill, but he lost his luck. His luck is back. Keselowski has a top-10 finish in four straight super-speedway races — three were top fives.
14. Chase Briscoe ($6,500) — The young Stewart-Haas Racing driver has never won a super-speedway race at any level. That may not be the case for long. He’s earned top-10 finishes in each of the last two Talladega races, and he led 67 laps in this summer’s Daytona race.
15. William Byron ($9,500) — In the last seven Talladega races, Byron has six top-15 finishes. He has not won at Talladega, but he has a Daytona win and two Atlanta wins.
Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $150K Engineer [$50K to 1st] (Cup)
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is greenflagradio2) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.