May 25, 2025
If you take a look at the practice sheet for this weekend's Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway, you'll notice one driver that is noticeably missing: Kyle Busch. The Richard Childress Racing driver didn't turn a single lap in practice on Saturday afternoon, as it was immediately noticed that the No. 8 Chevrolet not only had radio problems but also power steering issues. The team spent the entire practice session diagnosing and trying to fix the issue. Busch was able to get out on track and complete a qualifying lap, though, and Rowdy will roll off the starting grid from 24th-place when the Coke 600 goes green. Busch has been very strong at Charlotte Motor Speedway over the years, with eight finishes of sixth or better over his last 11 points-paying starts at this track. At $8,800 on DraftKings, Kyle Busch is a usable DFS play this weekend due to his Place Differential upside and strong track history.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Jayski
May 25, 2025
Don't be surprised if Ricky Stenhouse Jr. walks away with a solid finish at the end of the Coca-Cola 600 this weekend. The Hyak Motorsports driver actually has a very impressive record at Charlotte Motor Speedway, including two seventh-place finishes in the three Next Gen races here. Additionally, over the last 13 points-paying races at Charlotte, Stenhouse has ended up 15th or better 10 times. This weekend, he will have good track position to start out with in the Coke 600, too, which has been a struggle point for this No. 47 team for much of the season, as he qualified 11th for this weekend's race. There's definitely top-10 finishing upside on the table for Stenhouse on Sunday, but as far as rostering him in DFS, it may be a bit too risky at his $6,700 salary (due to the high likelihood of negative place-differential points). Stenhouse is strictly a tournament option on DraftKings this weekend and should be used sparingly.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Driver Averages
May 24, 2025
Keep an eye on AJ Allmendinger in this weekend's Coca-Cola 600. The Kaulig Racing driver was sporty in both practice and qualifying on Saturday, posting the third-fastest lap in practice along with the second-best 10-lap average. Allmendinger also wound up second-fastest when it came to 20-lap average during the session. In terms of qualifying, the No. 16 Chevrolet ended up fifth-fastest, and that is where The Dinger will start on Sunday. When it comes to track history, Allmendinger posted a 14th-place finish here at Charlotte back in 2023, which is his only start at this track in the Next Gen era. Despite being a cheap DFS option this weekend ($6,100 on DraftKings), Allmendinger's high starting position makes him nearly unplayable for Sunday's race. Chances are, he's going to slip back from his starting spot, making him very susceptible to negative Place Differential FPTS.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: NASCAR Insights
May 24, 2025
Don't sleep on Zane Smith in DFS this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway. At $5,800 on DraftKings, Smith is a relatively cheap driver that has some Place Differential upside considering the No. 38 Ford qualified mid-pack in 23rd this weekend. As far as track history goes, Zane actually has two Coca-Cola 600 starts under his belt, and his first attempt (in 2023) ended with a top-10 finish despite starting back in 29th-place. This time around, Zane has several less cars to get up there. A couple of weeks ago at Kansas, Smith walked away with a 16th-place finish despite showing top-10 speed, and he wound up finishing 17th at Texas earlier this month as well. Both of those tracks are comparable to Charlotte in terms of track length (1.5 miles) and being low-wear. Zane isn't a core driver to use in DFS this weekend but he's a servicable, cheap option that DraftKings players should not avoid by any means.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Speedway Digest
May
24,
2025
When
this
year's
Coca-Cola
600
goes
green,
John
Hunter
Nemechek
will
roll
off
from
Row
3,
as
the
Legacy
Motor
Club
driver
qualified
sixth
for
this
weekend's
race
--
his
best
qualifying
effort
of
the
season.
During
practice
on
Saturday
afternoon,
read more...
May 24, 2025
If you need a cheap option for your DFS lineups this weekend, Riley Herbst is a decent choice. The 23XI Racing driver is just $5,000 on DraftKings for Sunday's Coca-Cola 600, but he starts way back in 31st-place and should be able to move up throughout the race, grabbing Place Differential FPTS along the way. Looking at other 1.5-mile intermediate tracks this season, Herbst finished 19th at Las Vegas, 14th at Texas, and 27th at Kansas. In practice at Charlotte this weekend, he was 25th-fastest on the board, which is a full six spots better than his starting position on Sunday. In order for Herbst to make it into the optimal DFS lineup this weekend, the race will likely need to have some attrition, but with it being the longest scheduled event of the year, there is definitely opportunity for that to happen. Don't be afraid to use Herbst a bit with your lineups this weekend.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: ifantasy
May
24,
2025
Ty
Dillon
isn't
going
to
challenge
for
the
Coca-Cola
600
win
at
Charlotte
Motor
Speedway
this
weekend,
but
a
respectable
mid-teens
finish
isn't
out
of
the
question
for
the
Kaulig
Racing
driver.
Dillon
has
raced
in
all
three
Next
Gen
Coke
read more...
May 18, 2025
Kyle Larson missed yesterday's NASCAR All-Star qualifying race while he was qualifying 21st for the Indy 500. Although Justin Allgaier was announced as Larson's replacement, he did not attempt to start the race since Larson would have to start in the back today anyway. The fact that Larson won the first North Wilkesboro all-star race in 2023 and is typically the best short track racer in the NASCAR Cup Series in general suggests that Larson will definitely gain more positions than any other driver in the race especially after starting 19th, which should help for Place Differential. However, the fact that it is so difficult to pass for the lead suggests that it will be difficult for Larson to win. His short track record is still so great that he might be worth starting even at $10,500, but passing is probably too difficult for him to win.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Although William Byron seemed like the favorite in his All-Star Heat Race on paper yesterday since he started third and has been a better short track driver than Brad Keselowski and Ross Chastain lately, Byron finished third and did not seriously contend for the win in his heat race and got passed by Ross Chastain, a typically worse short track driver who qualified considerably worse. Considering Byron is a better short track driver than most of the people who outqualified him, it would be tempting to start him for DFS points for leading, but the fact that he was unable to take the lead last night suggests he might be likewise unable to do so tomorrow, particularly when a better short track racer in Christopher Bell is starting in front of him. He probably qualified too well to start for DFS since he doesn't look likely to dominate, especially since he costs $9,500.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Typically a good short track racer, Chase Briscoe started fifth and finished fourth in the first All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro in 2023, making him the only driver to both start and finish in the top five in that race. However, he failed to advance in 2024 after finishing seventh in the All-Star Open, so as usual it's hard to predict how he'll do in this race. While he is with a Joe Gibbs Racing team that is typically vastly faster on short tracks than Stewart-Haas Racing, he fell from second to seventh in his heat race when his teammate Christopher Bell led from start-to-finish, although Briscoe's teammate Denny Hamlin fell through the field even worse. Given JGR's typical speed on short tracks, Briscoe is highly worthy to start for DFS play for Place Differential points, but since Denny Hamlin is a better short track driver and starting even worse, he might be the better option.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Alex Bowman has had improved speed on short tracks lately since he won poles at the last two Bristol races, even though Kyle Larson blew his doors off in both races. Although he qualified second for the first All-Star heat race, he fell to fifth after superior short track drivers William Byron and Ryan Blaney and more surprisingly Ross Chastain all passed him. Bowman has never started the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro since he missed it due to injury in 2023 and failed to win a race that year to make him eligible in 2024. In last year's All-Star Open, he qualified second but failed to advance after falling to sixth. The fact that he lost positions in both last year's All-Star Open and yesterday's heat race suggests he may be unlikely to gain as many positions as he would need to make him valuable for DFS, so he probably should be avoided.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Despite the fact that Ross Chastain has typically been slow on short tracks in recent years, he surprisingly drove from ninth to finish second in the first heat race for today's NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway; he was even the only non-winner to lead a lap in his heat race yesterday. This resulted in a third-place starting position. Although he is usually a non-factor for the lead on short tracks, the fact that he qualified so well and is consistently one of NASCAR's best restarters suggests that he has a chance to dominate if he gets around Brad Keselowski early, and Keselowski has typically been slower than Chastain for most of the season. Although his short track record and strong starting position means he's not one of the greatest DFS options, if you think he will dominate the race, he is certainly worth considering especially with a DFS salary of $7,100.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Although Austin Cindric has significantly improved from previous seasons, short tracks remain probably his worst track type and he is unlikely to perform very well in tonight's NASCAR All-Star Race. He starts 16th after finishing 8th in Heat Race 2. In his previous All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro, Cindric actually lost positions from his 17th-place starting position, falling to 21st two laps down. In 2024, he failed to advance to the All-Star Race after finishing last in the All-Star Open. Despite the typical speed Penske has had on short tracks in recent years, Cindric has seemed to be nowhere near as fast as Joey Logano or Ryan Blaney. Although the possibility of Place Differential points looks promising, Cindric is one of the weakest short track drivers in the field, so he should probably be avoided.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Daniel Suárez starts 12th in tonight's NASCAR All-Star Race after finishing sixth in his heat race. Although Trackhouse Racing has struggled for speed all season and they have tended to be slowest on short tracks in recent years, Suárez's teammate Ross Chastain mentioned that the fact that they got more practice time helped all the Trackhouse drivers. With Chastain driving from 9th to 2nd in his race, Suárez from 10th to 6th in his, and Shane van Gisbergen shockingly winning the pole and dominating the early stages of the All-Star Open, Trackhouse has a lot more speed than people likely expected, so Suárez is definitely worth considering for DFS play. He won the pole for the inaugural race at North Wilkesboro in 2023 and led 55 laps and is starting worse than Chastain, so he seems like a low-key great DFS option.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
May 18, 2025
Harrison Burton's surprise win at Daytona last year made him eligible for the NASCAR All-Star Race but after losing his Wood Brothers ride, he had no team for whom to race. However, Rick Ware Racing decided to enter him in their No. 51 car to lock themselves into the race. However, expectations should be muted for this car since Burton is probably both the worst driver and driving for the worst team entered in the race, although he did surprisingly pass Denny Hamlin for 9th in the heat race and did not finish last. Nonetheless, based on his own record and Rick Ware's record, it's hard to imagine him gaining positions especially with Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, and the all-star winner starting behind him. Even at $5,500, he probably should not be started for DFS play tonight.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
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