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The NASCAR Cup Series returns to Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the second time this year. Josh Berry won the spring Las Vegas race, and his victory was one of the biggest surprise performances of the year. The Cup Series does not run as many races at the 1.5-mile cookie-cutter tracks as it used to. However, there are still a few tracks on the schedule with similar characteristics to Las Vegas. We will use results from those races to try and identify some of the best DFS plays for this weekend.
This race will also mark the beginning of the Round of 8. We must keep a close eye on the playoff picture, even for DFS purposes, as playoff drivers usually find themselves in contention for race wins at this point in the season. Will one of the eight remaining playoff drivers punch their ticket to the season finale at Phoenix? Or will someone outside the playoff picture score an upset victory?
Below are my NASCAR DFS lineup picks for the South Point 400 at Las Vegas on DraftKings and FanDuel this week. Please note, this slate locks on 10/12/2025 at 5:33 p.m. ET.
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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 1st - DK: $11K, FD: $13K
Hamlin's weekend started on a high note as he posted a blistering lap in qualifying to capture his fourth pole of the season.
Denny Hamlin wins the pole at Las Vegas, his fourth pole in 2025, tied for his second most ever in a season
Sunday will also be Denny's 100th Cup Series races starting on the front row, becoming the 9th driver in series history to have 100+ front row starts pic.twitter.com/miAZIoSLWl
— NASCAR Insights (@NASCARInsights) October 11, 2025
This is the first time he's won the pole at Las Vegas, and it is the second time in his career he's started on the front row at the track. Hamlin has been pretty good at Las Vegas over his 20-year Cup Series career. In 27 Las Vegas Cup Series starts, Hamlin has six top fives, 14 top 10s, and an average finish of 12.8. He also scored a victory at the track back in 2021.
Hamlin did not start the 2025 season strongly on the cookie-cutter tracks, but he has performed much better on them as the season has progressed. He finished second at Kansas two weeks ago and led a race-high 159 laps in the process. Hamlin also scored a victory at Michigan back in June.
DENNY HAMLIN WINS AT MICHIGAN! pic.twitter.com/Sb6CAPrSas
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) June 8, 2025
Hamlin's performance at Kansas was particularly eye-opening, as that is viewed as the "sister track" to Las Vegas. Following a fantastic qualifying effort, Hamlin has put himself in an ideal position to win this weekend's race. He is also positioned to score plenty of fastest lap and dominator points for DFS gamers.
I think Hamlin will be looking to atone for failing to close out the victory at Kansas, and believes he has a great chance to pick up his second career Las Vegas victory this weekend. DFS gamers should feel confident building their lineups around the Joe Gibbs Racing veteran.
Joey Logano
Starts 9th - DK: $10.2K, FD: $11.5K
Las Vegas has been one of Logano's best tracks throughout his career. In 24 career Cup Series starts at the track, Logano has four wins, eight top fives, 14 top 10s, and has an average finish of 9.8. His four Las Vegas victories are tied with Phoenix for his most at any track.
Logano has had mixed results on the cookie-cutters so far in 2025. He finished outside the top 10 at Las Vegas (spring race), Charlotte, Michigan, and Kansas two weeks ago. However, he finished ninth at Kansas in the spring and won at Texas back in May.
JOEY LOGANO WINS AT TEXAS! #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/1S4qIINm7y
— FOX: NASCAR (@NASCARONFOX) May 4, 2025
Logano wasn't great in practice. However, he qualified well, and his track history at Las Vegas is too good to ignore.
Christopher Bell
Starts 3rd - DK:$11.2K, FD: $13.5K
Bell has yet to win at Las Vegas and only has three top fives and five top 10s in 11 career starts at the track. However, he did finish second in this race last year and led a race-high 155 laps in that race.
Bell has also performed well on the cookie-cutters so far in 2025. He scored top 10s at Texas, Kansas (twice), and Charlotte. Bell finished 12th in the Las Vegas spring race, but his two top-5 finishes at Kansas this year bode well for his outlook this weekend. He was also fast in practice and had the fourth-fastest 10 consecutive lap average.
Given his performance in this race last year, Bell could be close to picking up his first career win in the desert. He should be in contention for the victory again this weekend, and should be another great play for DFS gamers, too.
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Bubba Wallace
Starts 7th - DK: $8.2K, FD: $9K
Wallace only finished 28th in the first Las Vegas race this year. He hasn't been great at Las Vegas over the years, but he was fast at Michigan and was in contention for the victory at Kansas a few weeks ago.
Wallace was also fast in practice and posted the fifth-quickest overall lap as well as the fifth-best 10 consecutive lap average. He should post another top-10 finish this weekend and could very well sneak into the top five, too.
Brad Keselowski
Starts 34th - DK: $7.6K, FD: $7.8K
Keselowski has been a great DFS play at the cookie-cutter tracks this year. He finished 11th at Las Vegas in the spring, fifth at Charlotte, 10th at Michigan, and eighth at Kansas two weeks ago. He scored positive place differential points in each race and proved to be a major value for DFS gamers.
Starting 34th, he is in a great position to score a ton of place-differential points once again. Keselowski is a great play at this price, and could easily finish inside the top 15. It would behoove gamers to include him in their lineups this weekend.
Ryan Preece
Starts 16th - DK: $6.9K, FD: $6.5K
Preece finished third at Las Vegas in the spring and posted top 10s at Kansas (spring race), Charlotte, and Michigan, too. He could be a great value play at this price if he can score another top-10 finish or better this weekend.
John Hunter Nemechek
Starts 26th - DK: $6.2K, FD: $5.5K
Nemechek has had a few solid runs on the cookie-cutters this year. He finished inside the top 10 at Texas as well as the spring Kansas race. Nemechek also scored positive place-differential points in both those races.
I like the idea of targeting Nemechek as a cheap place-differential play to offset the cost of some of the higher-priced drivers on the slate.
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