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Justin Carter's DraftKings DFS lineup picks for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Ag-Pro 300 at Talladega. Read his daily fantasy NASCAR advice and Xfinity sleepers.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to Alabama this weekend for a big race on the high banks of Talladega Superspeedway. Austin Hill is on the pole—can he make it 3-for-3 this year at winning superspeedway races, or will someone manage to take Hill down?
Last October, Hill won the pole here and led 60 laps, but finished 14th as A.J. Allmendinger drove to the victory, followed by Sam Mayer. Could Mayer have a shot on Saturday at his first Xfinity Series victory?
Here at RotoBaller, we want to help you make informed decisions about your DFS lineups, which is why I'll be breaking down the slates for the Xfinity Series. Let's look at some NASCAR Xfinity DFS lineup picks for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Ag-Pro 300 on DraftKings. Be sure to also check out our NASCAR Premium Tools for Xfinity Series including our DFS Lineup Optimizer and powerful Research Station. This slate locks on 4/22/23 at 4:18 p.m. ET.
Xfinity DFS Picks - DraftKings
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Austin Hill
Starting 1st - $10,500
It's always risky to play the polesitter at a superspeedway, but I'm beginning to think Austin Hill's the exception to that rule.
Hill was on the pole at Daytona to start the season, leading 39 laps on his way to the win. Then at Atlanta, he didn't start quite as high—third, that time—but he won again, leading 103 of the 163 laps.
This is the best superspeedway driver in the Xfinity Series right now. He starts front row with his teammate, so it's relatively easy to see how he leads most or all of the first stage with Creed behind him. Hill's the clear favorite to win, and the only driver starting near the top that I'm comfortable going heavy on.
Cole Custer
Starting 18th - $9,700
Place differential is important at a track like this, but place differential isn't always "okay, who starts 30th and could do well." Sometimes it's just "who qualified worse than he should have," and in this case that's Cole Custer, who starts 18th on Saturday.
After a slow start to his Xfinity return, Custer has two top fives in a row, topped off by a third at Martinsville last weekend. Can he keep building on that momentum this week?
Custer hasn't had the best results at Talladega, with one top 10 in three Xfinity Series starts, but he does have two top 15s in Cup here. He brings a lot of experience to the track though, so even if the finishes haven't always been there, the fact that he's turned so many laps here has me optimistic for this weekend.
Brandon Jones
Starting 21st - $8,500
Like Custer, Jones got off to a slow start with his new team. And like Custer, Jones looked like he started to find something last week, as he got his first top 10 of the year, finishing fifth at Martinsville.
Starting 21st, Jones offers some solid PD upside. He's finished in the top 10 in three of his last four starts here, including a second-place finish in the 2021 fall race, when he led 12 laps. And he'll have three teammates in the field to give him drafting help, which should help Jones get up front and help him avoid potential accidents—though anything can happen, so I don't want to say that with too much confidence, haha.
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Parker Kligerman
Starting 38th - $8,300
I mean, we've got to have a couple of guys starting below 30th in our lineups, right? It's a superspeedway, after all!
Okay. Let's start with Parker Kligerman in the 48 car, then. Kligerman was unable to turn a lap in qualifying, relegating him to bringing up the rear of the field. He'll start 38th.
Kligerman finished sixth here last fall in this 48 car, and he ran well at Daytona this year before finishing 23rd. He followed that up with a season-best fourth at Atlanta. He's pretty good at these drafting tracks and has more PD upside than anyone in the field. Chalk play, but chalk for a reason.
Jeremy Clements
Starting 37th - $6,900
Clements is kind of like the light version of Kligerman this week. One less spot of PD upside, not quite as good a car, but still a really strong play.
Clements has run a lot of races here, making 15 Xfinity Series starts, and while he only has two top 10s here, he's been solid, with an average finish of 21.3. He's been running at the finish in 11 of those 15 races.
It seems that Clements runs a pretty risk-averse race at this track. Of his DNFs, just two are from crashes. That doesn't give him the ceiling of someone like Kligerman, but it increases the chances that Clements is actually there at the end of the race to score a top 20.
Gray Gaulding
Starting 26th - $5,700
I know a lot of people say to fill your value slots with guys starting all the way in the rear at a track like this, but I think there's value in a guy like Gaulding, who starts 26th. Sure, Joey Gase or Josh Bilicki technically have more place differential upside, but Gaulding's also a better drive than those guys.
In his Xfinity career, Gaulding has two top 10s at Daytona in six starts, and two at Talladega in four starts. His 'Dega numbers are especially intriguing, with an average finish of 16.3 here, including a runner-up finish in 2019 in this 08 car.
Gaulding hurts you more than a Gase-type does if he wrecks, since there are some extra place differential spots he can lose. But he can contend for a top 10 here without needing as much chaos as those other guys.
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