This weekend the Nascar Cup Series heads to Talladega. Whenever we head to a track like Talladega, there is a strategy to implement when playing dfs. We are looking for the safest floor lineup in cash games. Its ok to leave thousands on the table when making lineups this weekend. Superspeedway racing is about putting yourself in the best position for when wrecks occur and they will occur. In cash games, the focus should be placed on the guys starting in the back. They have the most upside for place differential and they tend to ride around in the back and move up as the wrecks happen. We aren’t looking for a dominator this weekend with limited laps run and how fastest laps tend to come throughout the field. This strategy has worked in cash games all three superspeedway races this season and should put you in a good spot on Sunday. I am leaving salaries off my driver’s list because again salary doesn’t matter this week while using guys starting near the back.
Denny Hamin
Denny’s engine let go on his qualifying lap and will start last in the field. In cash games you plug Denny in and move on. He will/should be 99% owned in cash games tomorrow because he has the highest floor. In tournaments, I wouldn’t completely fade him either. However in multiple lineup entries, I could understand leaving him out of a few because wrecks will happen and Denny will be racing his way to the front. Denny won in Daytona in February but finished outside the top 25 in the other two superspeedway races this season.
Matt DiBenedetto
MDB starts 31st and has decent upside with a less risky floor. Matt led 49 laps in Daytona in February and finished 8th in the July Daytona race. MDB was involved in a wreck at the spring Dega race. This is a track where driver skill and a little luck is more important then the car itself. Matt may not sit in the back and wait for wrecks to happen which may make him a little more risky but with the way hes been driving it seems like a little luck may be on Matt’s side.
Brendan Gaughan
Brendan only races the superspeedway races. He hangs around in the back, doesn’t try to move up through the fields, lets the chaos develop in front of him and then moves up when the smoke clears. He had a top 10 finish here in April using that strategy and finished 19th and 23rd at Daytona this year. I’m not sure he will make my cash lineup starting 28th but he is a great tournament option with his upside.
Corey LaJoie
Corey has done really well at the superspeedway races this season. He has finishes of 18th and 6th at Daytona and 11th at Talladega in the spring. He starts 33rd and is probably another staple in your cash lineup Sunday. LaJoie will not be racing for stage points and has shown that he knows how to race at these tracks in order to avoid the wrecks. Place differential upside is here and the floor is high.
Ryan Preece
Another driver who has shown promise this season in superspeedway races. He has two top 10 finishes this season including a 3rd place finish at Talladega in the spring. He starts 30th and he is another driver who we play in tournaments for the place differential upside and higher floor. Plus we know he has more reliable equipment then some of the other back markers.
Kurt Busch
With salary not being an issue this weekend, I could see people playing either Busch this weekend. Kurt strarts 24th and Kyle starts 26th. Personally, I like Kurt over Kyle at superspeedways. Aggresiveness works for Kyle Busch and can be a positve at most tracks. However, at Talladega it can be the reason for the Big One. Kurt has done over his career at superspeedways and in this package this season he has finishes of 10th, 6th and 25th. Kurt has the place differential upside to make him worth plugging into your tournament lineups.
Superspeedway races have an edge if you play the strategy correctly. If you have any questions, message me on twitter @davidjr831
