2 months agoMichael McDowell qualified 27th for this weekend's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas, and while that is definitely not an advantage at a road course track, it's a position that McDowell is quite used to. In three career starts at COTA, the Front Row Motorsports driver has started 20th, 27th, and 23rd but ended up with finishes of 12th, 13th, and seventh (respectively) in those races. The 27th-place starting spot is actually good news for DFS players this weekend, as McDowell has a lot of place differential upside considering his prowess on road courses. At a modest $8,000 on DraftKings, Michael McDowell has the potential to be one of the best value drivers on the slate when it's all said and done on Sunday. He has an average finish of 13.9 on road courses over the last two seasons, which is ninth-best in the Cup Series.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Win The Race
2 months agoChris Buescher qualified 20th for this weekend's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas, but that doesn't mean you should stay away from him. Road course race tracks have been one of the most consistent venues for Buescher in the NextGen era, as he has finished 11th or better in each of the last ten races on this track type. That includes an eighth-place result here at COTA last season despite starting back in 32nd-place. At $7,800 on DraftKings, Buescher makes for an interesting pick, as the upside is there due to his midpack starting position and place differential potential, but he has just one top-five finish at road courses over his last nine starts. Still, you can't say he hasn't been a safe pick for a top-10 at these tracks lately. His average finish of 10.1 over the last 18 road course races is second-best to Chase Elliott's 8.5 over that same span.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Driver Averages
2 months agoKeep an eye on Kyle Busch this weekend at Circuit of the Americas. The Richard Childress Racing driver finished runner-up to race winner, Tyler Reddick, in this race last season and was consistently one of the better drivers on road course tracks throughout the 2023 season. When you look at average running position on road courses last year, Busch ranked fourth-best with an ARP of 9.88. His average finish was slightly worse (11.4) but Busch did post top-five results at Sonoma and the Charlotte ROVAL in addition to last year's race here at COTA. Rowdy qualified 16th for this weekend's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix, giving him solid place differential upside. At $9,200 on DraftKings, there is potential for Busch to be a great value DFS pick this weekend. You should definitely consider him in your lineups.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Win The Race
2 months agoIt has been a tough start to the 2024 season for Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Team Penske team. Although they did finish fourth at Atlanta, the other four races have all ended with Cindric in 22nd-place or worse in the running order. Hopefully, though, he he can turn things around at Circuit of the Americas this weekend. Earlier this week during media availability, Cindric noted, "I think it's a great opportunity for us to kind of get back on track and hit the reset button. [COTA has] been a place that we've had some good pace. We obviously have to adapt to the new package, but I'm excited to go hit the reset button and get after it." Cindric has posted finishes of sixth and eighth over the last two races at this track. He starts 11th for this weekend's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix and makes for a very sneaky fantasy pick in DraftKings, especially at his $7,200 salary. You should consider Cindric as a tournament DFS play this weekend.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Motorsport
2 months agoKamui Kobayashi will be making his second-ever NASCAR Cup Series start at Circuit of the Americas this weekend with the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix. Kobayshi has an impressive racing history all over the world, particularly in the FIA World Endurance Championship, but his other NASCAR Cup Series start ended in a disappointing 33rd-place finish at the Indy Road Course last season. This weekend, Kobayashi will pilot the No. 50 Toyota for 23XI Racing. In practice on Saturday morning, he was able to post the eighth-fastest single lap time, but Kobayashi wasn't able to back that up in qualifying and will start from 25th for this weekend's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix. With such limited Cup Series experience, it's hard to tell what to expect from the Japanese racer. After practice, he said, "Practice went well. This is way different driving. Obviously, we brake late. With this Cup car, you can't. I just overdrove a lot and couldn't get a good lap time."
--Jordan McAbeeSource: PRN
2 months agoFresh off of his strong run at Bristol last weekend, Justin Haley is keeping the speed up at Circuit of the Americas this weekend. The No. 21 Ford ranked 21st-fastest during practice on Saturday morning in Austin, Texas, and Haley followed that up with a 13th-place qualifying effort later that day. It is the best start spot for Rick Ware Racing at this race track. As far as finishing potential goes, Hely goes have 19th- and 15th-place finishes to his credit at COTA over the last two years, but those were with Kaulig Racing equipment. Although he should be a fun underdog to root for in this weekend's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix, Justin Haley is a bit too risky to be recommended in DFS contests due to his abnormally high starting position.
--Jordan McAbeeSource: Rick Ware Racing
2 months agoMartin Truex Jr. did not have the best practice session on Saturday. However, his Toyota seemed to warm up much like he did. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver ended up seventh in qualifying. Truex Jr. and his No. 19 car found a way to get into the final round. However, he still ended up more than 1 3/4 seconds off the time set by William Byron. Overall, six of the top ten qualifiers were from Toyota. Fellow teammate Ty Gibbs was 0.015 seconds off of the pole. There is little doubt that Joe Gibbs car is fast. Toyota could again place four or five drivers in the top ten easily. Truex Jr. finished seventh in 2022 and has the speed to contend on Sunday.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 months agoRyan Preece has not had the best of starts all year. Saturday afternoon at the Circuit of Americas was no exception. The Stewart-Haas Racing driver was almost a full second behind William Byron. That placed Preece 24th among the 39 cars who qualified for the Echopark Automotive Grand Prix. Preece has finished 15th and 32nd in two trips to Austin. However, once again, he has work to do on Sunday. His average qualifying position is 26.6 in 2024. That is his worst since becoming a full time driver in 2019. Sunday may see Preece trying to struggle to maintain position.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 months agoJohn Hunter Nemechek had little to be happy about during practice on Saturday. The Legacy Motor Club driver lagged way back in his Toyota. However, the No. 42 car managed to turn in a decent lap in qualifying. That got him up to 22nd. It was better than practice where Nemechek lagged near the back. He was 31st in practice but his overall average ranked 35th. Like Erik Jones, the Legacy version of the Toyota lacked the speed and power needed to better command the Circuit of the Americas. Nemechek has done well this year but Sunday will be a test.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 months agoErik Jones and the Legacy Motor Club team had one bad afternoon on Saturday. Jones qualified 38th more than 1.9 seconds behind William Byron. The problem was that practice was even more calamitous for Jones and the Toyota. The No. 43 car was almost 3.3 seconds off the pace then. Everything seemed off on the turns unlike the other Toyota cars. He was a bit better in his lap averages placing 23rd at 133.7 mph. Unfortunately, over 68 laps, Jones may only find enough speed to move up several spots. A lot of work will need to be done to fix the Toyota for Sunday afternoon.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 months agoTimmy Hill felt the sting of the Austin, Texas road course on Saturday in practice and qualifying. The Power Source Ford lagged way back and ended up 37th in qualifying. The No. 66 car was several seconds off the pace of William Byron. In practice, Hill was more than eight seconds slower. Worse, he could only run four laps on the car. Hill kept losing speed coming out of the turns. A tenth here and a couple of tenths there add up quickly over the 3.426-mile course. The hope for Hill will be to gain some experience and finish all 68 laps on Sunday.
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 months agoJosh Berry had his first qualifying drive in the Stewart-Haas Racing Ford. It did not go well. Berry wound up 31st more than 1.3 seconds off of the time set by William Byron. The No. 4 Ford has struggled out of the gate with zero Top 10 results and an average finish of 22.4. Worse, Berry ran 15 laps in practice and still had a best lap almost three seconds behind. His five-lap average was still 31st. One wonders if the Ford can move up a few spots. That makes Berry a decent DFS option but little else on Sunday from Circuit of the Americas .
--Chris Wassel - RotoBallerSource: NASCAR.com
2 months agoRicky Stenhouse Jr. will start P30 in Sunday's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuits of the Americas (COTA). While Stenhouse is always a bit of a wild card, particularly outside of NASCAR's superspeedways, he is always a driver to consider when building DFS lineups. In 2023, Stenhouse appeared
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2 months agoOn Saturday afternoon, Noah Gragson qualified 39th for Sunday's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuits of the Americas (COTA). Gragson is off to a hot start in 2024, as he has three top 12s in just five races. Even with last week's 34th place finish, which came in a race plagued by tire issues, his average finish for the season is 19.4, which is quite impressive given how relatively inexperienced he still is. Despite the strong start to the year, there is reason to believe that the Stewart-Haas star may fall back down to earth this weekend at COTA. While Gragson has an average finish of 11.31 in his 21 Xfinity starts on road courses, he has an average finish of 21.5 in his two Cup starts on road courses, which includes a 20th-place finish at this track last season. Between his struggles on road courses at the Cup level, and the mediocre speed he showed in Saturday's practice, it is best to treat the No. 10 as nothing more than a dart throw in DFS this weekend.
--Adam Erhardt - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
2 months agoOn Saturday afternoon, Joey Logano qualified 35th for Sunday's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuits of the Americas (COTA). Although Logano is widely considered among NASCAR's elite drivers, his 2024 results do not reflect this. With two DNFs and an average finish of 25th, the 2022 Cup Series
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