May 9, 2026, 11:11 PM ET

To the surprise of likely nobody, Shane van Gisbergen is the favorite to win this weekend's Go Bowling at The Glen. The Trackhouse Racing driver put down a monster lap in qualifying on Saturday, beating second-fastest, Michael McDowell, but over two tenths of a second. Additionally, van Gisbergen looked incredibly stout in practice, ranking best in five-, 10-, and 15-lap average during the session. SVG is the defending winner of this race and it's going to take a lot for him to not win here on Sunday. As far as DFS goes, though, SVG is an interesting play because of his high salary ($13.5K on DraftKings) and zero Place Differential upside. It's going to take a dominating day from SVG for him to hit value on the DFS slate, but it's not like that has never happened before.--Jordan McAbee
Source: ifantasyrace

May 9, 2026, 11:08 PM ET

Chase Elliott qualified back in 27th place for this weekend's Go Bowling at The Glen, which should make him an obvious DFS play for this weekend's race. Elliott is one of the best road course racers in the series, and even on an off-day at this track type, the No. 9 team is usually able to challenge for a top-10 finish. However, Chase's recent history at Watkins Glen specifically leaves a lot to be desired. He did finish fourth here in the first Next Gen race (back in 2022), but in the three Watkins Glen races since then, Chase has finished 32nd, 19th, and 26th. Not very good. This weekend, the No. 9 Chevrolet has struggled to find speed since the Hendrick Motorsports team unloaded it, as Chase not only had a poor qualifying effort on Saturday, but was also only 22nd-fastest in practice. Obviously, it's tough to completely fade a Place Differential DFS play like Chase Elliott on Sunday, but maybe it's not a bad idea to pivot to someone else more reliable.--Jordan McAbee
Source: ifantasyrace

May 9, 2026, 11:00 PM ET

Chris Buescher is one of the best racers at Watkins Glen, but qualifying hasn't been his specialty. It wasn't this weekend, either. The No. 17 Ford ended up 14th-fastest during the session on Saturday, and now Buescher will start from row seven when the Go Bowling at The Glen goes green on Sunday. Fans shouldn't worry, though, as Buescher should finish much better than that. Over the last four races at Watkins Glen, the Roush-Fenway Keselowski Racing driver has never finished worse than ninth, and he went to victory lane here in 2024 as well. Last season, Buescher wound up finishing third. As far as this weekend goes, Buescher is a safe DFS pick with some Place Differential upside. If he's able to knock off another top-five result on Sunday, he should be able to easily hit value on DraftKings, where his salary is only $8.8K.--Jordan McAbee
Source: Speedway Digest

May 9, 2026, 10:42 PM ET

After signing a contract extension with Team Penske, it's time to keep an eye on Ryan Blaney this weekend. The Team Penske driver is one of the best at long-run speed and managing his tires, and with the falloff expected by Goodyear for this weekend's race, that could play right into Blaney's hands. Additionally, the No. 12 Ford was stout in practice this weekend, ranking fourth-fastest in 10-lap average during Saturday's session. Blaney had a very fast car here at Watkins Glen last year, leading 35 laps from the pole en route to a sixth-place finish, and the same can be said at COTA earlier this season (another road course), where Blaney led 11 laps and finished eighth. At $8.2K on DraftKings and starting seventh, Ryan Blaney is definitely a risky DFS pick, but in large field tournaments, there is an opportunity there to be overweight on a driver who should have a very fast race car on Sunday.--Jordan McAbee
Source: Team Penske

May 9, 2026, 10:38 PM ET

Michael McDowell is a very established road course racer. He has a dominating win at the Indy Road Course to his credit, and over the last 11 races on this track type, McDowell has walked away with a top-five finish in six of them. He has yet to do that at Watkins Glen, though. Over 16 career starts at this New York track, McDowell's best finish has been sixth, and that came back in the 2022 race. He also ended up seventh here in the 2024 race. Could that change this weekend, though? McDowell qualified on the outside pole for Sunday's Go Bowling at The Glen and ranked fifth-best in five-lap average during practice. He seems poised to have a career-best day at The Glen. As far as DFS goes, McDowell ($8.0K on DraftKings) has limited upside due to his high startng position, so he's a risky tournament play (to use sparingly) at best.--Jordan McAbee
Source: Catchfence

May 9, 2026, 10:35 PM ET

Carson Hocevar has been on quite a hot streak in Cup Series action as of late, getting a win at Talladega a couple of weeks ago while also posting four top-10 finishes over the last six races overall. This weekend will be good test for the No. 77 team and their momentum, though, as the Go Bowling at The Glen is set to take place on Sunday afternoon. Hocevar is by no means a road course ace, and his aggressive driving style typically doesn't mesh well with this track type. He does have a third-place to his credit at Watkins Glen but that is Hocevar's only top-10 finish in 12 career starts on this track type, and in five of the last six, he's finished 29th or worse. This weekend at Watkins Glen, Hocevar qualified 11th, though, and showed good speed in practice, ranking third-best in 10-lap average. He's a very risky fantasy pick this weekend, but as we've seen before, there could be some surprise upside there.--Jordan McAbee
Source: Driver Averages

May 9, 2026, 10:24 PM ET

With 11 races complete in the 2026 season, Joey Logano is now on the outside looking in on the Chase, as he sits 17th in the points standings as the midway point of the regular season looms. Logano sports an average finish of 21.0 this season and is currently on a three-race streak of finishes of 30th or worse. In other words, he desperately needs a good finish to get back on track. Could that be this weekend at Watkins Glen? Logano qualified sixth for Sunday's Go Bowling at The Glen, which is his best starting spot at a road course since 2024, and it's possible that he challenges for a top-10 finish as well; in the Next Gen era, Logano has finished 15th or better in all four Watkins Glen races, including a third-place result in 2022. As far as DraftKings goes, though, Logano at $6,900 and starting up in sixth isn't that good of a pick because of his high probability of negative Place Differential.--Jordan McAbee
Source: Beyond The Flag

May 4, 2026, 12:34 PM ET

Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports won the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway while being the most dominant driver of the race. Elliott began the race from 14th, but spent the whole first stage gaining track position, even through pit stops. By the end of the first stage, Elliott made it up to eighth and earned three stage points. In the second stage, Elliott took advantage of cautions and pit stops to cycle out to the lead after others headed to pit road over the course of the green flag. Despite one more caution at the end of the second stage, where Elliott went to pit road while Brad Keselowski and Ryan Preece stayed out, Elliott was able to pass both drivers for the second stage victory and 10 stage points on the ensuing restart. In the final stage, Elliott dominated the stage outside of pit stops despite some competition from Denny Hamlin and Tyler Reddick. After the final caution occurred with eight laps to go, Elliott stayed on track instead of pitting and competed with Hamlin for the win. Elliott successfully held off Hamlin to score his second victory of the 2026 season as well as his second Texas win. As a result of winning, Elliott is now third in the regular-season standings after 11 races.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

May 4, 2026, 12:32 PM ET

Denny Hamlin of Joe Gibbs Racing was one of the main contenders to win in another race at a 1.5-mile intermediate track this season, this time the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. Hamlin showcased his race-winning speed after starting the race from fourth as he went ahead and took the lead from Chase Briscoe midway through the first stage before his first pit stop. Through the rest of the first stage, Hamlin went on to battle with Christopher Bell until a late race caution shuffled Hamlin back as he returned to pit road while others stayed out. He then worked back up to 10th by the end of the first stage, scoring one stage point. In the second stage, Hamlin continued his ascent through the pack until he reached second behind Chase Elliott. When another caution occurred near the end of the stage, Hamlin went to pit road, but fell behind Brad Keselowski and Ryan Preece, who stayed out and also behind Elliott. After the final restart of stage two, Hamlin finished the stage in fourth behind Keselowski, Elliott, and Tyler Reddick, who passed the No. 11 Toyota driver. In the final stage, Hamlin competed for the lead alongside Elliott and Reddick until the very end, and despite his best efforts, he was unable to pass Elliott through the entire stage. Hamlin settled for his third top-2 finish on a 1.5-mile Intermediate oval track of the season, but is now second in the regular-season standings after 11 Cup races this year behind Reddick.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

May 4, 2026, 12:28 PM ET

Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman finished in third place in the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver started from ninth, but was not much of a factor in the race's first two stages. In the first stage, Bowman ran at the back of the top 10, but then used pit stops to try to adjust his car for the later parts of the race. He finished the first stage in 18th and failed to gain any stage points. The second stage was also quiet for Bowman as he ran inside the top 20 through most of the stage, but kept his car clean. After heading to pit road once more at the end of stage two, Bowman made it up to 10th and scored one stage point at the end of the stage. In the final stage, Bowman's car was improved enough that he ran between fifth and 10th throughout most of the stage. During the final caution, Bowman stayed out of pit road for track position and restarted third behind Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin. Bowman could not keep up with the two leaders, but held on for his second consecutive third-place finish of the 2026 season. After the 11th race of the season, Bowman now moved up two positions to 34th in the regular-season standings after missing four races due to injury.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

May 4, 2026, 12:24 PM ET

Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing placed fourth at the end of the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday. The No. 45 Toyota driver started the race from the eighth position and ran inside the top 10 through most of the stage. After pit stops and cautions, Reddick got shuffled further back into the pack and ended the first stage in 20th, leaving him with no stage points. Reddick recovered his track position in the second stage thanks to a fast car that allowed him to make moves on track and through well-executed pit stops. This allowed Reddick to compete for the stage win, but he finished second at the end of the second stage to Chase Elliott and gained nine stage points. In the final stage, Reddick ran mostly in the top five and competed for the lead at times with Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin. Before the last restart of the race, Reddick led a bunch of drivers into pit road, got fresher tires while others stayed out. Reddick restarted in 10th and then made it back up to fourth by the checkered flag, falling short of grabbing the win from Elliott. After Texas, Reddick remains the points leader of the Cup Series standings with 11 races completed, thanks to his seventh top-5 result of the season.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

May 4, 2026, 12:23 PM ET

RFK Racing's Chris Buescher finished in the fifth position in Sunday's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. Buescher began the race from the third position, and although he ran in the top five through the first half of the first stage, he fell back to 11th in the second half after pit stops and restarts shuffled the field. This left Buescher with no stage points at the end of the first stage. In the second stage, he made his way back up to the top five after making moves on track and having clean pit stops. Due to other drivers staying out and not getting the best restart at the end of the stage on stage two's final restart, he fell to seventh and earned four stage points. In the final stage, Buescher continued to make a run at the top five and made it back there in the closing laps. On the final restart of the race, Buescher restarted around sixth and made his way up to fifth to collect his first career top-5 finish at his home track at Texas. With his second top-5 finish of the season, Buescher now moves to fifth in the Cup Series standings after 11 races.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

May 3, 2026, 2:41 PM ET

Christopher Bell of Joe Gibbs Racing will start in the seventh position for this week's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. The No. 20 Toyota driver will start in the top 10 for the first time since April 2024 at Texas. In seven Cup starts at Texas, Bell has four top-10 finishes, including two of the last three Cup events at the site. After 10 races completed this season, Bell has four top-10 finishes and an average finish of 15.5. In practice for this week's Cup race, Bell ranked 12th in 10 and 15 consecutive lap averages. Bell does not carry much upside from his starting position, but he is a driver who can maintain a top-10 finish based on equipment and overall favorable track history. Fantasy players should roster Bell in tournament-based lineups more than cash games this week.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: DriverAverages.com

May 3, 2026, 2:26 PM ET

William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports qualified 15th for this week's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. Byron last qualified outside of the top 10 at Texas in the 2023 race at the site. In 11 Cup races at Texas, Byron has one win and six top-10 finishes with an average finish of 11.4, which ranks second-best of all active Cup drivers. In 10 races completed so far this year, Byron has five top-10 finishes with an average finish of 14.8. In practice for this week's race, Byron ranked first in 10 consecutive lap averages and second in 15 consecutive lap averages. Considering how Texas is one of his better tracks with fast enough speeds to compete for the win in practice, Byron is an excellent choice to roster in all DFS formats.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: DriverAverages.com

May 3, 2026, 2:15 PM ET

Team Penske's Joey Logano will start in the 23rd position for Sunday's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway after qualifying. This marks the fourth consecutive Texas race where Logano will start 20th or worse in the Cup Series. In 30 Cup starts at Texas, Logano has two wins, 22 top-20 finishes, and an average finish of 13.3. After 10 Cup races completed so far this year, Logano has six top-20 finishes and an average finish of 19.4. In practice, Logano ranked seventh in 10 consecutive lap averages and ninth in 15 consecutive lap averages. Due to his upside from his starting position combined with his practice speeds, Logano is worth rostering in all DFS formats for this week's race at Texas.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: DriverAverages.com