RADIO
Could Chase Briscoe be A Sneaky Pick for Texas Lineups?
Chase Briscoe of Joe Gibbs Racing is starting Sunday's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway from the fifth position after qualifying. Briscoe matches the best qualifying result of his career from the 2024 race at Texas for this week's race. In seven previous races at the site, Briscoe has four top-10 finishes in three of the past four Texas Cup races. Through 10 races so far this season, Briscoe has four top-10 finishes and an average finish of 18.3. In practice for this week's race, Briscoe ranked among the top five fastest in the 15 through 30 consecutive lap average categories. Based on his great track history, top-notch equipment, and practice speeds, Briscoe is an underrated driver capable of competing for the win this week.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Should DFS Managers Roster Ty Gibbs at Texas?
Joe Gibbs Racing's Ty Gibbs will start 10th for Sunday's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. This will be the fourth consecutive race in his Cup career where Gibbs will start inside the top 10 at Texas. In four previous races at Texas, Gibbs has had a best finish of 13th and led only five laps total. With 10 races completed so far in the 2026 season, Gibbs is sitting fifth in the regular season standings with one win, seven top-10 finishes, and an average finish of 12.7. In practice for this week's race, Gibbs ranked 18th in overall lap averages and 22nd in 15 consecutive lap averages. Although Gibbs does not have the strongest track history at Texas, he has been remarkably consistent this season, regardless of track type. Fantasy players should consider Gibbs as a potentially sneaky DFS option to compete for a top-10 finish based on his season-wide performance and top-notch equipment from JGR, which has led more laps on 1.5-mile Intermediate ovals than any other team this season.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Is Daniel Suarez Worth Rostering After Career-Best Starting Position at Texas?
Daniel Suarez of Spire Motorsports is starting second for the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. This is the first front row start of Suarez's Cup career at Texas. In 13 Cup races, Suarez has six top-10 finishes and an average finish of 14.7 in 13 Cup races. Through 10 races so far this year, Suarez has two top-10 finishes and an average finish of 16.1. In practice for this week's race, Suarez ranked 22nd in overall lap averages and 14th in 10 consecutive lap averages. Despite a new career-best starting position and solid track history at Texas, Suarez is difficult to recommend for this week's race in DFS since he carries little upside. The No. 7 driver is only playable in tournament games, as he is likely to lose positions from Place Differential over others with better equipment who are more likely to compete for the win.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Kyle Busch Is a DFS Risk Starting in the Top 10 at Texas
Kyle Busch of Richard Childress Racing will start in the sixth position for this week's Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. This will be the first race of the 2026 season where Busch will have a new crew chief, Andy Street, who last worked with Busch and RCR in the last five races of the 2025 season. In 35 total Cup Series races at Texas, Busch has four wins, 19 top-10 finishes, and is the only driver in the field with over 1,000 laps led throughout their Cup career (1,069) at the site. After 10 races this season, Busch has one top-10 finish, an average finish of 22.1, and sits 27th in the regular-season standings. In practice for this week's race, Busch ranked 17th in overall lap averages and as high as 11th in 20 consecutive lap averages. Although Busch has solid track history at Texas, his high starting position makes him only worth recommending for tournament lineups, as he is a risk for DFS otherwise.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Tyler Reddick One of the Favorites to Win at Texas
It should come as no surprise to anyone, but Tyler Reddick is one of the favorites to win this weekend's Würth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. Reddick already has five wins this season, including victories at both Kansas and Darlington, other intermediate race tracks. At Texas, Reddick has been one of the best in the Next Gen era despite some misleading results. Last year at this track, he finished second in both Stages but ending up finishing 21st after spinning out on lap 254 while running sixth. In 2024, he finished fourth here at Texas, and he won the fall race here in 2022. This weekend, Reddick qualified eighth for Sunday afternoon's race and looked strong in practice, ranking fastest in 20-lap average during the session. At $10,700 on DraftKings, Reddick makes for an excellent DFS pick this weekend, combining some Place Differential upside with race-winning potential as well.
Source: FOX Sports
Source: FOX Sports
Chase Elliott Could Contend for Another Win at Texas
Keep an eye on Chase Elliott in this weekend's Würth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. The Hendrick Motorsports driver is a recent winner here (in 2024) and looked stout in practice this weekend, ranked fastest in 25-lap average during the session. Chase was reportedly very happy with his car, and the speed backed that up. Looking at other intermediate tracks this season, Elliott nearly stole a win at Las Vegas and had top-five speed at Kansas before fading late. On Sunday, the No. 9 Chevrolet will roll off the starting grid from 14th-place, making Chase Elliott ($9,500 on DraftKings) an excellent DFS play with Place Differential upside as well as race-winning upside. In the Next Gen era, Chase has the fourth-best speed ranking at Texas specifically.
Source: ifantasyrace
Source: ifantasyrace
Carson Hocevar on Pole at Texas
After grabbing his first-ever Cup Series win at Talladega Superspeedway last weekend, Carson Hocever continued the good vibes this Saturday, ending up fastest in qualifying at Texas Motor Speedway--just like he did last season. Hocevar will now lead the field to the green flag for Sunday afternoon's Würth 400. Last year, Hocevar led 22 laps and finished sixth in both Stages before ultimately falling back to 24th after an untimely caution and him getting caught up in a wreck. Looking at this weekend, though, Hocevar should have the potential for another top-10 finish at Texas, just like he accomplished here in 2024. As far as DFS goes, Carson is a high-risk option due to his starting spot, but if he can dominate a portion of this race and get a good finish, it'll be easier to hit value with his $8,500 DraftKings salary.
Source: ifantasyrace
Source: ifantasyrace
Bubba Wallace Wrecks in Practice at Texas
Bubba Wallace had an eventful Saturday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway, as the 23XI Racing driver showed good speed (he was fifth-fastest in practice), but mid-way through the session he ended up spinning out and hitting the wall, destroying his race car in the process. The No. 23 team pulled out the backup car and Bubba wasn't able to qualify, giving him a 37th-place starting spot on Sunday (out of 38 total cars in the field). While this situation isn't great for Bubba, it is great for DFS players, as he now has very high Place Differental upside. Bubba has two top-seven finishes in the last three Texas races, including a career-best third-place finish here in 2023 after starting on the pole. He's a very safe DFS play this weekend with high scoring upside.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Chris Buescher Looking to Continue Strong Run at Texas
Fresh off of his runner-up finish at Talladega, Chris Buescher will be looking to continue the strong runs at his home race track of Texas Motor Speedway this weekend. The No. 17 Ford has been stout at the intermediate race tracks this season, as this team has top-10 finishes at Kansas, Darlington, and Las Vegas, and there's no reason to think that Buescher won't be able to contend once again in this weekend's Würth 400. Although he hasn't had a top-10 finish at this track since the 2022 season, Buescher does have three top-five Stage results over the last six at this track, and he looks to have potential top-five speed again this weekend. In practice on Saturday, the No. 17 Ford ranked second-fastest in 20-lap average and third-best in 25-lap average. As far as DFS goes, Buescher will start from third-place on Sunday, which makes him a difficult driver to be confident about due to his mid-range salary ($8,100) and limited Place Differential upside. If you believe Buescher will dominate a portion of this race, though, he could be a good tournament pivot on DraftKings.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Austin Dillon Blows Engine in Practice at Texas
Austin Dillon only made it a couple of laps in practice at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend before he realized something didn't seem right with his race car. On lap three, he figured it out: the engine was blowing up. Because of the failure, Dillon wasn't able to post a lap in qualifying for the race, and he will now start dead last (38th) for this weekend's Würth 400. While this setback isn't ideal, it's not completely damning. Additionally, Austin Dillon is now a very safe DFS pick for this weekend's race, as he has sky-high Place Differential upside at a very affordable salary on DraftKings ($6,500). In cash games, Austin Dillon is a must-play, and you should even have a good amount of exposure to him in large-field tournaments as well.
Source: Motorsport
Source: Motorsport
Carson Hocevar Scores his First Career NASCAR Cup Series Victory at Talladega
Carson Hocevar of Spire Motorsports finished in first and got the victory in the Jack Link's 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Hocevar began the race from the 12th position. Through the first stage, Hocevar kept his car damage-free, but was one of several drivers who took two stops under the green flag and ran outside of the top 10 at the end. Hocevar finished the first stage in 16th and earned no stage points. In the second stage, Hocevar ran in the middle of the pack, but was one of many drivers involved in the biggest crash of the day on lap 114. Despite receiving some damage, Hocevar was able to continue and recovered back up to the 12th position at the end of the stage, receiving no further stage points. In the final stage, Hocevar made it up to the front of the pack and then kept trading the lead with Chris Buescher. Hocevar went on to lead 19 laps and pull ahead of Buescher on the final lap for his first career NASCAR Cup Series win. The victory moved Hocevar up to eighth in the regular-season standings after 10 races so far this season.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Chris Buescher Misses out on Winning at Talladega by Finishing Second
Chris Buescher was one of the top contenders to compete for the win in the Jack Link's 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Buescher began the race from 10th after qualifying was canceled due to weather, and starting positions were set by the NASCAR rulebook. Outside of his one green flag pit stop, Buescher ran inside the top 10 throughout most of the first stage and fell short of winning it, as he placed fourth and earned seven stage points. In the second stage, Buescher kept his car clean and avoided the biggest crash of the race on lap 114, which allowed him to regain track position towards the front as others crashed. Buescher went on to finish third in the second stage and score eight more stage points. In the final stage, Buescher made it up to the front of the pack and traded the lead with Carson Hocevar. Buescher led 22 laps in the final stage, but ultimately missed out on victory as Hocevar edged ahead on the final lap. With his first top-5 finish of the season and a new career-best finish of second at Talladega, Buescher is now seventh in the Cup Series standings.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Alex Bowman Earns First Top-Five Finish at Talladega Since Returning From Injury
Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman placed third at the end of the Jack Link's 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The driver of the No. 48 Chevrolet started the race from 20th, and although he did not experience any issues with his car, he did take two green-flag pit stops to get through the first stage. As a result, he ended the stage in 23rd and scored no stage points. In the second stage, Bowman moved to the front of the pack as other drivers went to pit road during the stage break and also avoided the large crash of lap 114. Bowman eventually kept driving within the pack and ended the second stage in eighth, collecting three more stage points. In the final stage, Bowman ran inside the top five through most of the stage and kept running alongside Chris Buescher, Carson Hocevar, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Although he eventually got past Stenhouse on the final lap, he still could not generate enough speed to pass Buescher and Hocevar and settled for third. This is Bowman's first top-5 of the season and still remains 36th in the regular season standings after only six full races completed this year.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Chase Elliott Scores A Fourth-Place Finish at Talladega
Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports ended the Jack Link's 500 at Talladega Superspeedway in the fourth position. Elliott began the race from eighth and ran all over the field towards both the front and the back. He was one of the drivers who took two green flag pit stops in the first stage, which made him end the first stage in 25th place behind the other drivers who only made one pit stop throughout the whole stage. In the second stage, Elliott shuffled back towards the front and avoided the biggest crash of the day on lap 114. He continued to run inside the top 10 through the rest of the stage, finishing it in ninth and earning two stage points. In the final stage, Elliott remained a contender and helped push several drivers towards the front, including Carson Hocevar and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Elliott continued to run behind the leaders until the final lap, where he made a move to get past Stenhouse, but fell short of the win as he advanced to fourth. This marked Elliott's fourth top-5 finish of the season, and his first since his Martinsville win, as he now sits fourth in the regular-season standings after 10 races.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Zane Smith Nabs First Top-Five Finish of the 2026 Season at Talladega
Zane Smith of Front Row Motorsports finished in the fifth position during the Jack Link's 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Smith began the race from 30th after qualifying for the race was rained out, and starting positions were set by the NASCAR rulebook. The No. 38 Ford driver lay back through most of the stage in the pack and kept his car clean, even after a pit road penalty for an uncontrolled tire. Although he did not challenge for stage points, he ended the first stage in 34th. In the second stage, Smith avoided a large wreck on lap 114 by heading to pit road just before it occurred and, as a result, gained plenty of track position. Then, Smith made it up to 10th by the end of the second stage and earned one stage point. In the final stage, Smith ran throughout the top 15 and top 10 during most of the stage. In the final laps, Smith maneuvered around a few other drivers and climbed up to fifth by the end of the race, earning his first top-5 of the season and the first of his Cup career at Talladega. After 10 races this season, Smith is now ranked 20th in the regular-season standings.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
