This week we head to Talledega. When it comes to tracks like Talledega, there’s a certain strategy to play in cash games to limit your lineup to the “Big One”. For cash games we want to focus on place differential, especially on Draftkings where it is more important. In Daytona, this strategy worked out and we cashed on both sites. This is the new era of “restrictor plate” racing as Nascar has done away with the actual restrictor plate and moved to a tapered spacer. In practice, we saw lap speeds in excess of over 204 mph. On Draftkings, for cash games, your focus should be more on the drivers starting near the back. They have the highest floor, they are most certain to try to run all the laps and limit the damage if they get involved in the big one. On Fanduel I could understand playing drivers, especially the JGR drivers, as place differential doesn’t matter as much and finishing position and laps run plays a bigger role. The one thing you should know when making your lineups for the race is that you can leave a lot of salary on the table. We want guys in the back and they are cheap!
Chris Buescher (FD $6200 DK $6,900)
I think Chris Buescher is the top play this week. Honestly, his performance all season has been stellar with the level of equipment he drives in. Even better is that he has had great results at tracks like Dega. Over the last 5 superspeedway tracks (Daytona and Talledega) he has 3 top five finishes. The bonus for us is that he starts 31st and gives us great place differential upside.
Ross Chastain (FD $4,000 DK $5,800)
Ross Chastain starts 34th. Ross is another driver who we like to play at superspeedways. In the recent races at superspeedways, he has finished top 25 or better. Ross is in a car that will sit back in the pack which limits his exposure to the big wreck and gives us a better chance at picking up positions if he stays clean through the race and others wreck.
Parker Kligerman (FD $3,500 DK $5,200)
Parker finished 15th at Daytona back in February. Parker will be using the same strategy as Ross and will sit back and wait for the big wreck to occur. Parker starts 35th and is another high floor option. Again this is all part of a safety strategy. These are guys we typically wouldn’t really consider in cash games at most tracks. However with their starting positions and the way they drive at these type of tracks, they offer the safety net we look for when we come to these tracks
Denny Hamlin (FD $12,800 DK $9,200)
I could see Denny being a cash game play. He starts 23rd. Denny over the last 5 races at Talledega has finished no worse than 14th. He won the Daytona 500 back in February. The floor for him starting 23rd is lower than the guys I mentioned above but on Fanduel place differential isn’t as important which makes him almost a lock for cash game lineups
Kyle Busch (FD $14,000 DK $12,000)
Honestly, every Joe Gibbs Racing car is going to be a great play this week. Those guys include Denny Hamlin, Kyle Busch, Erik Jones, Martin Truex Jr. All four drivers are starting 20th or worse. Kyle starts 22nd. He has the potential to win this race. Combine that with his place differential upside and he becomes a solid play this weekend. He is an aggressive driver so be aware that he has potential of being involved in a wreck here.
Ryan Newman (FD $7,300 DK $7,800)
Ryan Newman is a driver who likes to play it safe at these types of tracks. He starts 24th and will slide his way to the back and wait for the big wreck to happen. He has finished top 14 in three of the last 5 races at Talledega. Well he won’t make my cash lineup builds, he will definitely play a big role in my tournament lineups.
If you have any questions on lineup construction, drivers, Nascar or anything feel free to message me on twitter @davidjr831 or in our Nascar Discord. I will have my Final Thoughts out first thing Sunday morning so look for those when building your lineups this weekend and good luck.
