October 13, 2025

Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin won Sunday's South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but not in dominating fashion, as he led only nine laps in the event. Hamlin started in the pole position for the race, but did not maintain the lead as he botched the opening restart. This mistake sent Hamlin back to fighting for a top-5 spot, but he eventually finished the first stage in fourth. In the second stage, Hamlin kept his car clean, executed pit stops without mistakes, and ran in the top five during the entire stage outside of pit stops. Hamlin wound up fourth at the end of the stage. In the final stage, Hamlin quietly rode between the top 10 and top five through most of the stage, keeping pace with the top drivers at the front of the pack. During the last two cautions of the race, Hamlin took four tires and took advantage of them to rise back up to third with under 10 laps to go. Hamlin chased down Kyle Larson, the dominant driver of the day, and passed him while he was trying to overtake Chase Briscoe. Instead, Hamlin went on to pass Briscoe and lead the final four laps to claim victory at Vegas. This was Hamlin's 60th career Cup Series win, second at Las Vegas, and also earned him an automatic berth to the championship round at Phoenix, where he will compete for the 2025 Cup Series championship.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

October 13, 2025

Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson had a strong showing during the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Larson started the race from sixth place, but quickly showcased that he had one of the best cars in the field. In the first stage, Larson went from sixth to second, falling short of the stage win behind his teammate William Byron. Where Larson took the race over, however, was in the second stage. The No. 5 Chevrolet driver ended up dominating and winning the second stage, leading the majority of laps outside of green flag pit stops. Larson continued his dominance into the final stage, leading at several points outside of green flag pit stops until Byron crashed on lap 237 with Ty Dillon. After pit stops, Larson lost a few positions and the lead and spent the last remaining parts of the race trying to regain it. Larson made it back as high as second and was catching Chase Briscoe, who was only on two fresh tires for the lead late, but was unable to pass him. Denny Hamlin soon got past Larson while Larson kept trying to use momentum to pass Briscoe, sending him back to third. Although Larson did pass Briscoe in the closing laps, he could not generate a run to catch Hamlin and settled for second. Despite falling short of victory at Vegas, Larson had a strong points day and now sits 35 points above the playoff cut line with two races left in the Round of 8.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

October 13, 2025

Chase Elliott's performance in the South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway started off with promise, but ended with a disappointing finish of 18th on Sunday night. Elliott started fifth in Sunday's race and ran inside the top five for the duration of the first stage. The No. 9 Chevrolet driver ended the first stage in the fifth position, scoring stage points. In the second stage, Elliott continued running inside the top 10, but suffered a major setback during green flag pit stops. Elliott's team was tagged with an uncontrolled tire penalty during his pit stop, forcing him to make a pass-through that set him a lap down. As a result, Elliott spent the rest of the race trying to make up ground and finished the second stage in 25th. Elliott struggled to regain further track position through the final stage as his car struggled to pass other drivers. By the end of the race, Elliott placed 18th, marking the second-lowest finish of 2025 for him since the playoffs began. Elliott now sits sixth in the playoff standings, 23 points behind the cut line, with two races left before the championship round begins.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

October 13, 2025

William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports had one of the strongest cars during Sunday night's South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but ended up leaving the race in 36th with a wrecked race car. Byron began the race in fifth position, but quickly worked his way towards the front of the pack. After the first wave of green flag pit stops were completed, Byron acquired the lead from Chase Briscoe and went on to not only lead the rest of the first stage but also win it. In the second stage, Byron lost the lead and was unable to regain it throughout the stage. He still ran in the top five through most of the second stage outside of pit stops, and scored more stage points by placing third at the end of the stage. During the final stage, Byron kept himself in contention against Denny Hamlin, Briscoe, and his teammate Kyle Larson. After obtaining the lead from getting past Larson, Byron led 10 additional laps before heading for another green flag pit stop on lap 231. Byron lost the lead after finishing his pit stop, but then on lap 237, Byron was caught in the path of Ty Dillon, who attempted to head to pit road. Byron and Dillon collided, leaving Byron unable to continue the race with heavy damage. As a result, Byron was credited with a finish of 36th, and with two races left in the Round of 8 in the playoffs, he now sits 15 points behind the cut line to advance to the championship round.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

October 12, 2025

Sportsbooks have pegged Christopher Bell as the favorite to win this weekend's South Point 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver qualified third for this weekend's race and had one of the best cars in practice, ranking second-best in 30-lap average during the session. Bell had the dominant race car in this exact race last season, leading 155 laps before ultimately finishing second behind surprise winner, Joey Logano. That is Bell's second-straight runner-up finish in the Playoffs race here at Las Vegas, and his third top-five finish over the last five races at this track overall. As far as DFS contests go, Christopher Bell is a solid pick despite his hefty $11,200 salary on DraftKings. If he can grab the lead early on Sunday evening, we could see another dominating effort out of him in Sin City.--Jordan McAbee
Source: FOX Sports

October 12, 2025

Denny Hamlin will lead the field to the green flag at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday evening for the South Point 400, as the Round of 8 kicks off from Sin City. Denny is a previous winner at Las Vegas (back in 2021) and has been a constant top-10 threat in the Next Gen era, with five finishes of 11th or better over the last six races at this track. Additionally, Hamlin had the dominant car at Kansas a couple of weeks ago, and that is the sister race track of Las Vegas, so there's no reason to think the No. 11 Toyota will be lacking any speed this weekend. As far as practice goes this weekend, Denny had the sixth-best 10-lap average but ranked a little lower on the longer-run charts--although that could be because of one or two bad laps during the run. With how strong the No. 11 Toyota was at Kansas a couple of weeks ago, it wouldn't be surprising at all to see Hamlin lead early and often, plus compete for the Las Vegas win this weekend. --Jordan McAbee
Source: Jayski

October 12, 2025

Last year in the Las Vegas Playoff race, Joey Logano used strategy and some helpful blocking by his teammate to get to victory lane and punch his ticket to the Championship race. Can he do it again? Logano qualified ninth for this weekend's South Point 400, which is actually pretty good considering he was quite slow in practice, ranking 28th-fastest out of the 38 cars on the track. In last year's race, he started from back in 10th before swiping the victory at the end. Logano has two victories at Las Vegas in the Next Gen era and four total in his career, so he definitely knows how to race this track. As far as DFS goes this weekend, Joey isn't a highly recommended play due to his $10,200 salary on DraftKings and limited dominator upside. However, if he pulls off another surprise win, he could very well end up in the optimal lineup. --Jordan McAbee
Source: Speedway Digest

October 12, 2025

The No. 24 Chevrolet was the fastest car in practice on Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, as William Byron posted the best 10-, 15-, 20-, 25-, and 30-lap average during the session. We've seen him put on dominating efforts at intermediate tracks this season, particularly at Charlotte, where he led 283 laps before finishing second. At Las Vegas specifically, Byron has one win under his belt (in 2023) and has back-to-back top-five finishes over the last two races here. Additionally, he's on a five-race streak of top-10s at this track. For Sunday evening's South Point 400, Byron will roll off the starting grid from fifth-place, giving him solid track position to start out with, and he comes in at a very affordable $10,000 on DraftKings. He should be a popular DFS pick with plenty of dominator upside this weekend.--Jordan McAbee
Source: ifantasyrace

October 12, 2025

Ty Gibbs had the fastest lap time in practice at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon, posting a 29.714-second circuit at 181.733 mph around the 1.5-mile oval. And while that is definitely a good sign for Gibbs and the No. 54 team, their tendency to fade during races could come into play this weekend once again. For the overall picture, though, this is a very good sign for Toyota as a whole, as that organization was the dominant one at Kansas a couple of weeks ago, and it looks as though that speed has carried through to Las Vegas. As far as Ty Gibbs goes specifically, he qualified 10th and is priced at $7,400 on DraftKings. While he could make for an interesting tournament play, keep in mind that he has finished 22nd or worse in five of his six career starts at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It is worth noting, though, that his career-best result was a fifth here in 2024, so it's probably worth sprinkling some Gibbs into your DFS lineups this weekend.--Jordan McAbee
Source: Jayski

October 12, 2025

Don't be surprised if Bubba Wallace contends for the South Point 400 win at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday evening. Remember, the No. 23 Toyota was in position to win the race at Kansas a couple of weeks ago before Bubba got passed on a late restart and ended up finishing fifth. Kansas is the sister track to Las Vegas. As far as his track record in Sin City specifically, though, there's a lot to be desired. Bubba finished fourth here back in 2023, but that is his only top-10 result at Las Vegas over the last 10 races here. Still, the No. 23 Toyota had speed in the spring race here this season, finishing fourth in both Stages before ultimately winding up in 28th-place after getting caught up in a wreck. In practice this weekend, bubba had the fourth-best 30-lap average, showing that the No. 23 Toyota has good long-run speed.--Jordan McAbee
Source: ifantasyrace

October 12, 2025

Ross Chastain had an interesting Saturday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The No. 1 Chevrolet was one of, if not the fastest cars during practice, but late in the session, Chastain got a little too high in turn three and ended up scraping the wall. His Trackhouse Racing team was able to repair the car, though, and Ross still went out and qualified 15th for Sunday evening's South Point 400. Now the question is, will that car still have the same speed during the race despite hitting the wall in practice? Las Vegas has been a great track for Chastain, as he has finished seventh or better in six of the seven Next Gen races here. The only exception? A 12th-place result in 2023. At $9,000 on DraftKings, Chastain makes for a great DFS pick this weekend due to his Place Differential and finishing position upside, assuming his No. 1 Chevrolet can stay away from the wall on Sunday night.--Jordan McAbee
Source: On3

October 12, 2025

Chris Buescher has had solid speed at intermediate tracks this season, and it looks as though the No. 17 Ford is fast once again this weekend in Las Vegas. During practice on Saturday afternoon, Buescher was one of the best on the long run, ranking seventh-fastest in terms of 10-lap average during the session. Will that translate to speed during the race itself, though? The No. 17 Ford will roll off the starting grid from 11th-place when the South Point 400 goes green, and Buescher will be looking for his first finish better than 10th at this track since the 2020 season. In fact, that ninth-place run in 2020 is his best finish ever at Las Vegas in 17 career starts. With the speed that this Roush-Fenway Keselowski team has had this season, though, Buescher may be able to best that this weekend. --Jordan McAbee
Source: Driver Averages

October 12, 2025

In this year's spring race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Austin Cindric's No. 2 Ford was one of the best. He started third, led 47 laps, won a Stage, and ended up finishing sixth when it was all said and done. This weekend, though, Austin will have his work cut out for him if he wants to repeat that, as he qualified back in 31st-place for Sunday evening's South Point 400. However, when you look at practice speeds, Cindric wasn't nearly that slow in race pace, as the No. 2 Ford ranked ninth-fastest in 30-lap average during the session. If Cindric has that kind of speed on Sunday evening, he could make for a great DFS Place Differential pick, especially at his affordable salary of $7,200. Over the last five races at this track, he has two top-10 results along with three outside of the top 20 entirely, so it has been a bit hit or miss for Cindric in Sin City.--Jordan McAbee
Source: ifantasyrace

October 12, 2025

Although he no longer seems to have the blinding speed he once had in the Gen 6 era, Chase Elliott has gotten his consistency back as a modern-day analogue to what the Labonte brothers were 25-30 years ago. It seems likely he doesn't have the speed to make the Championship Round, particularly since he's never led a lap or finished better than 9th at Las Vegas in the Next Gen era. However, his fourth-place qualifying run yesterday was his best here and he is coming off a gallant win two weeks ago at the very similar Kansas Speedway. Since he ranked third overall in practice and also had the third-best average speed, he'll likely run in the top five a lot but he'll probably struggle to lead. Nonetheless, at $9,500 he is cheaper than drivers who will more likely dominate like Denny Hamlin and William Byron, so starting him instead isn't a terrible idea.--Sean Wrona - RotoBaller
Source: Racing Reference

October 12, 2025

Although Kyle Larson only finished ninth in the March race at Las Vegas, he was pretty spectacular, as he made five passes for the lead without being passed once for the lead himself before he was ultimately foiled by pit strategy. While he has been nowhere near as fast in the second half of the season (probably because he has been a little more conservative after the backlash from him crashing in both Memorial Day races), he's still getting finishes, but he hasn't had one of his patented dominant runs in a while, which might make him a difficult option since he is very mistake-prone. At $11,500, he is the highest-priced driver on DraftKings DFS in the field. You should probably choose Denny Hamlin instead since he's more likely to get a good finish and dominate, but a lot fewer people will likely start Larson, which might be the best reason to choose him instead.--Sean Wrona - RotoBaller
Source: Racing Reference