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Sean's NASCAR DFS picks for DraftKings, FanDuel and the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400 in Dover Motor Speedway (2025). His top NASCAR daily fantasy lineup plays and DFS sleepers.
With two consecutive weeks of road racing completed at Chicago and Sonoma during the last two weeks, the NASCAR Cup Series finally heads back to a standard oval track for this week's Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400, taking place at Dover Motor Speedway. Dover is a one-mile track nicknamed the "Monster Mile" due to its tough concrete surface and reputation for challenging drivers, teams, and equipment. Dover is one of only a few tracks on the Cup schedule that take place on a concrete surface, and it is considered one of the more unique races. Despite being a one-mile track that normally uses the short track rules package, it instead employs the Intermediate rules package, resulting in a different racing format.
This race will mark the semifinal round of the 2025 In-Season Tournament, with only four drivers remaining to win the title: Ty Dillon, John Hunter Nemechek, Tyler Reddick, and Ty Gibbs. Notably, there are no Ford drivers left, one Chevy driver, and three Toyota drivers. Practice and qualifying were completely rained out this week, so there is no practice data available. All starting positions were set by NASCAR's scoring metric, which factors in results from last week's race at Sonoma, along with the owner's championship standings. As a result, there will be some unknowns about how well each team's car performs on Sunday, given that it will be without prior practice and with a brand-new tire compound being used by all cars, provided by Goodyear. This is expected to affect handling and grip differently than in prior races.
Below are my NASCAR DFS lineup picks for the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400 on DraftKings and FanDuel this week. This slate locks on 7/20/2025 at 2:00 p.m. EST. If you have further questions or want to discuss racing, you can find me on X at @SeanE247.
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DFS Lineup Picks - DraftKings, FanDuel
Once you've read this article, be sure also to check out all of our other weekly NASCAR DFS articles to help you set your optimal DFS lineups. You should also check out our NASCAR DFS lineup tools for the ultimate combination of DFS resources to help you win big, including our Lineup Optimizer, DFS Cheat Sheet, Research Station, and more.
Disclaimer: All the drivers presented as picks for this week's race are meant to be some of my top DFS recommendations of the week. They are not originally intended to fit all into one lineup.
Denny Hamlin
Starts 13th - DK: $11K, FD: $13.5K
Some drivers in the field adapt better to concrete tracks compared to others, but one of the best in recent years on concrete in terms of both consistency and success is Denny Hamlin. That much is proven based on his performance at Dover in the past couple of years.
Since 2022 at Dover, Hamlin has one win, two top-5 finishes, and led 207 laps, which is the second-most of all drivers. The No. 11 Toyota driver is also the defending race winner of this week's race and led multiple laps in the last four Cup events at Dover. Hamlin also has seven top-10 finishes in the last 10 Dover races.
Denny Hamlin credits Jimmie Johnson and Martin Truex Jr. for his success at @MonsterMile #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/zYt6CWWjfw
— Matthew Pencek (@mattpencektv) July 19, 2025
After completing 19 different Cup races this season, Hamlin has three wins, 10 top-10 finishes, and an average finish of 13.6. He finished second at Bristol and third at Nashville, the two other Cup races that also took place on concrete, while his starting position for this week's race provides a solid opportunity for upside. Expect Hamlin to be highly competitive as one of the top favorites to win on Sunday.
Chase Elliott
Starts 1st - DK: $10K, FD: $12K
Out of all of the established tracks in the Cup Series where he has at least 10 or more starts, Dover is the best statistical track for Chase Elliott on the Cup schedule. Elliott has made 14 starts at the Delaware track, and he has 10 top-5 finishes and finished 12th or better 12 times. The only two times where Elliott finished worse than 12th were due to a crash and an engine failure, meaning that Elliott is typically a great performer at Dover whenever he does not encounter an issue out of his control.
At Dover in his career minus an accident and an engine failure, Elliott has a 4.7 average finish and an 85.7% top five finish rate.
In 3 of the last 4 he's finished in the top 5 with the outlier being an early return from injury race (11th).
The #9 team is hot right now too!
— Ryan (@ifantasyrace) July 19, 2025
Elliott's strong history at Dover also carries over to the Next-Gen car. He won at the site the first time the car raced there in 2022 and finished no worse than 11th in this newer car. Elliott also gathered positive Place Differential twice in that span at Dover.
This season, Elliott has one win, 11 top-10 finishes, and a series-leading average finish of 10.2 after 20 races. The No. 9 Chevrolet driver is also the only driver in the Cup Series to finish in the top 20 at the end of every Cup race this season. Elliott has been hot lately with four top-5 finishes in the last five Cup events this season, and although he has no upside due to starting at the front, he has a high chance of leading laps and competing for the win, as evidenced by his amazing Dover history.
Ross Chastain
Starts 19th - DK: $9.5K, FD: $11K
One driver who should not be overlooked for this week's race, particularly those at the higher end of the salary ladder, is Ross Chastain. He is a driver who, if you look at his stats as a whole, may not seem as impressive as some, but most of the races in his Cup career at Dover in the past were with teams with inferior equipment, like Premium Motorsports.
It's Chastain's last four Dover races that are more impressive and noteworthy. From here, he finally got solid equipment as he had one race at the site with Chip Ganassi Racing and then three with Trackhouse Racing. In this span, Chastain never finished lower than 15th and collected positive Place Differential in all races. The last three races with Trackhouse were all since 2022, where he has an average finish of 5.7 at Dover.
Chastain has a starting position that is right towards the middle of the pack and has some PD upside available. Considering how he placed 11th or better in both of the races on Concrete this season, and his average finish of 14.7 for the year, Chastain should move up a couple of positions and compete for a top-10 finish.
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Alex Bowman
Starts 16th - DK: $8.8K, FD: $9.5K
For a lengthy period of time, Hendrick Motorsports was one of the more dominant teams at Dover, especially when Jimmie Johnson drove for the team. Even though Johnson does not drive for the team and instead is busy owning and running Legacy Motor Club, Hendrick has picked up on most of his positive results through all of its drivers.
“Hard to predict!” @Alex_Bowman on how he would celebrate if he wins at the @MonsterMile this weekend!
He also reflects on the historic win in 2021, the anticipation of the new tire, and what’s the shoe situation with @bobpockrass! #NASCAR | #Dover | @MtrsprtsToday pic.twitter.com/OP1P7rXjA0
— Tim Moore (@IveBeenTimMoore) July 19, 2025
Any of the four Hendrick drivers this week, such as Kyle Larson (DK: $11.5K | FD: $14K), William Byron (DK: $10.5K | FD: $12.5K), or Elliott, who was mentioned earlier, make for capable DFS options, but Alex Bowman should especially not be overlooked as Dover is one of his top tracks statistically. In 13 races at Dover, Bowman has one win and six top-10 finishes. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver is even carrying a streak of four consecutive top-10s in his last four Dover Cup appearances.
In 20 Cup races so far this year, Bowman has 10 top-10 finishes and an average finish of 17.5. He has been quietly racking up results over the past couple of races, too, as he placed 11th or better in four of the last five Cup events with three top-10 finishes. Bowman is in top-notch equipment, likely to compete for a top-10 finish, making him a solid DFS option overall at his price point.
Josh Berry
Starts 14th - DK: $6.8K, FD: $7.5K
Wood Brothers Racing driver Josh Berry feels underpriced this week at Dover, especially when considering his past history at the track in the Xfinity Series. In three races at Dover in the Xfinity Series, Berry has one win, but three top-2 finishes and led 48 or more laps in two different events at the site.
Berry has three Cup starts at Dover, and he placed in the top 15 twice with a best finish of 10th from the 2023 race, where he filled in for an injured Bowman. Overall, he has an average finish of 18.0 in his Cup career at Dover.
After 20 races completed so far this year, Berry has an average finish of 21.3 and finished in the top 20 nine times. Bristol, another concrete track like Dover, was one of his better finishes of the year, where he placed 12th. Although he does not offer as much upside as other drivers who fall towards the value tier this week, Berry has arguably better equipment and favorable track history to boot. Expect a top-15 result from Berry with the chance to compete for a top-10.
VIDEO: Josh Berry pre-race press conference from Dover Motor Speedway
🎥 #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/uA2uVsSODf
— Speedway Digest (@speedwaydigest) July 20, 2025
John Hunter Nemechek
Starts 28th - DK: $5.7K, FD: $5.2K
For those looking for a deeper DFS option to save on cap flexibility, consider John Hunter Nemechek this week. He will have pressure to perform in this week's race to keep himself alive in the In-Season Tournament against Ty Dillon, who starts ahead of him in the pack this week.
It may be the invasion of the Ty’s in the Semi Final round of the In-Season Tournament, but it’s an invasion of all four guys previously or currently competing 23XI Racing as John Hunter Nemechek looks to take down underdog 32 seed Ty Dillon.
Nemechek also talks about the tire… pic.twitter.com/t1rD2Mb7P2
— Declan Wayman (@declan_wayman) July 19, 2025
Nemechek has three prior starts at Dover in his Cup career, with three top-25 finishes. His best finish at the site was 20th, which he scored in his last two appearances in the Cup Series there. The No. 42 Toyota driver has also picked up positive PD in all three of his Cup races at Dover. In the Xfinity Series at Dover, Nemechek has four top-10 finishes in seven races.
In 20 races this season in the Cup Series, Nemechek has nine top-20 finishes and an average finish of 19.4. This includes three top-15 finishes in the last five Cup events, and he also gained positive PD in the prior two races on concrete at Nashville and Bristol. Nemechek is a driver who is one of the better recommendations for a value play this week, especially as he's been outperforming his previous Cup history at most tracks this season within his second year at Leagacy Motor Club.
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