The rankings below are based on a mixture of expected output and DraftKings’ NASCAR salaries for that day. The ordering is not based on the highest projected fantasy totals, but rather by the value of each driver.
After a weather delay on Sunday, the DraftKings Food City Dirt Race slate locks at 4 p.m. ET on Monday.
Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $450K Sunday Dirt Feature [$100K to 1st] (Cup)
NASCAR WEATHER ALERT: Today's NASCAR Cup Series and Camping World Truck Series races have been postponed until Monday.
— DK Nation (@dklive) March 28, 2021
The Pinty’s Truck Race on Dirt is scheduled to take place at noon ET and the the Food City Dirt Race is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET. pic.twitter.com/SjJhJUBlpV
1. Kyle Larson ($12,000) - In 2020, Kyle Larson won 43 dirt races. He’s not just experienced, he’s one of the greatest of all time. Anything can happen in this race, so there is no such thing as a lock, but Larson is as close as it gets.
2. Christopher Bell ($11,000) - The Chili Bowl is one of the biggest dirt racing events of the year. The best dirt racers from around the country compete in the indoor races at Tulsa. Bell won the Chili bowl three straight years from 2017 to 2019.
3. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ($10,200) - Some of the drivers in this field were once dirt racers. Stenhouse is still a dirt racer. He owns a dirt racing team and earned a win at Bristol last weekend.
4. Stewart Friesen ($9,500) - His equipment might be questionable, but it’s unknown how reliable the top tier cars will be either. Friesen is about as experienced as it gets when it comes to dirt. To illustrate his commitment to dirt, Friesen skipped a Truck Series race last season to compete in a dirt race. He’s the reigning champ at El Dora.
5. Tyler Reddick ($10,500) - His dirt racing youth is not a distant memory, but Reddick has not gained as much part time experience as other drivers. Reddick became a full time driver in the NASCAR Truck Series in 2014 because of his excellence on dirt. Since joining NASCAR, Reddick has limited dirt racing opportunities.
6. Chase Briscoe ($9,900) - He’s finished 3rd, 1st, and 7th in the last three Truck Series dirt races at El Dora. He led 54 laps in his 2018 win, and 93 laps in 2019, but Brsicoe wrecked late in the 2019 race while working his way towards the front.
7. Kyle Busch ($8,900) - He’s putting in the work. Busch raced at Bristol last weekend to become familiar with the surface and the sight lines. He admits that the late models are nothing like the Cup cars. In 2012, Busch won the Prelude to the Dream late model race at El Dora.
8. Bubba Wallace ($8,500) - In 2014, Bubba Wallace led 97 laps and won the El Dora truck race while driving for Kyle Busch. The 2014 Truck Series race at El Dora had a strong field. If he was able to figure it out at El Dora, then he should be able to figure it out this weekend. Plus, Bubba will get extra laps in the Truck Series race.
9. Austin Dillon ($9,700) - The Dillons grew up dirt racing and they won a lot. That data is skewed by the financial chasm between grassroots drivers and silver spoon drivers. Nevertheless, on a more equal playing field, Austin Dillon won the first ever Truck Series race at El Dora.
10. Ryan Newman ($6,900) - During his early years of racing, Newman spent about half of the time racing on dirt. He earned his first dirt win when he was 5 years old. Most of his professional career has been spent on asphalt, but he still finds time to compete on dirt occasionally. Newman is pulling double duty this weekend to learn more about the changing track.
11. Chase Elliott ($8,700) - Every driver is preparing differently for Bristol. Elliott couldn’t land a truck ride for the Bristol race, so he settled for a late model. Unfortunately, Elliott wrecked in the A-Main race and was unable to gain more experience the next day.
12. Kevin Harvick ($8,100) - It’s clear that Harvick does not want to do this. He’s been vocal throughout his career that NASCAR should not race on dirt. Search Harvick’s twitter account for the word dirt. He hates it, but he has to do it. Harvick is racing double duty this weekend, likely because he does not want to embarrass himself on Sunday.
13. Martin Truex Jr ($8,000) - Reps matter, and Truex will get tons of Truck Series laps and Cup Series laps this weekend. He’s going to need it because his only dirt experience is a couple charity races and riding four-wheelers.
14. Denny Hamlin ($9,100) - He has almost no dirt experience and his plan is not to prepare at all. What could go wrong? There is a method to his madness. The Cup Series cars are built for asphalt, they won’t run well in dirt. Practicing with cars built for dirt won’t teach him much.
15. Joey Logano ($8,300) - In his words, he was “clueless” about dirt racing before his race at Volusia in February. During the hot laps, Logano was the 48th quickest of 80 modifieds, but by the end of his feature, Logano finished 3rd.
16. Ty Dillon ($6,600) - No one knows how the Gaunt Brothers car will hold up, but the picture will be more clear after practice on Friday. Even if Dillon is in inferior equipment, it’s likely that half the field wrecks out. If that’s the case, then this experienced dirt racer should be less likely to wreck.
17. Brad Keselowski ($7,500) - His practice dirt race in Georgia a couple weeks ago didn’t go well. His second to last Truck Series race was at Eldora (2015). He finished 28th, but was in 10th place on lap 134 of 150 of that dirt race.
18. Chris Windom ($7,400) - As far as skill goes, Windom checks all of the boxes. He became part of an elite company last year by winning the USAC triple crown (Midget, Sprint and Silver Crown). In practice, DFS players will find out if they can trust Windom’s Rick Ware car.
19. JJ Yeley ($6,400) - It’s not very often that two Rick Ware cars make the ranking. Actually, it has never happened, but Yeley is a dirt racer. Like Chris Windom, Yeley is a USAC triple crown member. Tony Stewart is another member of the club, and JJ Yeley has a similar career to Tony Stewart minus funding.
20. Mike Marlar ($7,200) - His Carl Long car could be garbage, but why would he sign up to run this race if the car will fall apart in the heat races? Maybe, Marlar believes that with his expertise on dirt, he can make this car competitive. Marlar’s resume is filled with dirt wins and it’s highlighted by 14 major dirt late model wins.
Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $450K Sunday Dirt Feature [$100K to 1st] (Cup)
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