RADIO
Denny Hamlin Extends his Championship Lead With Third-Place Finish
Denny Hamlin was considered one of the top favorites to win the Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway, and he left the race with a third-place finish and an increased lead in the regular-season standings. Hamlin started the race from pole position and led most of his 30 total laps in the first stage, but he lost ground after being shuffled back on restarts following a few cautions and ended the stage in eighth, collecting three stage points. The No. 11 Toyota driver had his car improved during the second stage and ran as high as second, but still fell behind William Byron and Chase Briscoe for the stage win. Hamlin ended the stage in third, earning eight more stage points. In the final stage, Hamlin continued to run inside the top five through most of the stage and then ran other drivers down in the closing laps. Hamlin passed Alex Bowman and William Byron to make it to his eventual finishing position of third. After the 19th race of the season was completed, Hamlin now holds a 44-point lead over Tyler Reddick for the regular-season championship.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
William Byron Finishes Fourth as the Top Chevrolet Driver at Chicagoland
Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron finished as the top Chevrolet driver during Sunday's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Byron started the race from 10th, but ended up becoming the most dominant driver of the race, leading 94 laps and sweeping the first two stages. He obtained the maximum number of stage points and continued to lead the race even through the third stage until the last round of green flag pit stops. Byron ended up pitting one lap after Chase Briscoe, which led to Briscoe passing Byron upon the completion of Byron's last stop. The No. 24 Chevrolet driver continued to run behind Briscoe until he was passed by Christopher Bell and Denny Hamlin in the closing laps, leaving him to finish in fourth. It is Byron's first top-5 finish of his Cup career at Chicagoland, and his 94 laps led are the highest in a single race this season. With Chicagoland completed, Byron is now 12th in the regular-season standings with seven races to go before The Chase begins.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Bubba Wallace Leads Laps and Finishes Sixth at Chicagoland
Bubba Wallace of 23XI Racing finished in the sixth position during Sunday's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. The No. 23 Toyota driver began the race from eighth position, but ran well throughout the race. He ended up finishing third at the end of the first stage, earning eight stage points. Although he missed out on further stage points in the second stage as he placed 11th at the end of it, Wallace led 35 laps during the stage. Wallace continued to run inside the top 10 through most of the final stage, outside of pit stops and recovered positions, in order to place sixth by the end. This was Wallace's best career finish at Chicagoland as well as his first top-10 finish at the site. After Chicagoland, Wallace is now 13th in the regular-season standings with seven races left before The Chase begins.
Source: NASCAR.com
Source: NASCAR.com
Is Christopher Bell Worth Rostering for Chicagoland Lineups?
Joe Gibbs Racing's Christopher Bell is starting sixth after qualifying for the Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. This will be Bell's first Cup Series race at Chicagoland, although he does have two O'Reilly Series starts at the site with a best finish of 12th. In 18 races completed this season, Bell has seven top-10 finishes with an average finish of 17.7. During practice for this week's race, Bell ranked as high as 10th in 20 consecutive lap averages. Bell has stated to media members that despite making gains in his recovery, he is not fully healed from his wrist injury after a few weeks. The injury status, as well as Bell's low upside and inconsistency this season, makes him a driver only worth DFS consideration for tournaments.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Is Chase Briscoe Worth Rostering for DFS at Chicagoland?
Chase Briscoe of Joe Gibbs Racing will start in seventh for this week's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Briscoe matches the starting position that he also had in last week's race at Sonoma Raceway. The No. 19 Toyota driver has never raced at Chicagoland in the Cup Series, but he did have two starts at the site in the O'Reilly Series, with two top-15 finishes. In 18 races so far this year, Briscoe has eight top-10 finishes and an average finish of 16.0. In practice for this week's race, Briscoe ranked ninth in 10 consecutive lap averages and sixth in both 15 and 20 consecutive lap averages. With top-notch equipment and practice speeds, Briscoe is a driver who fantasy players can rely on for DFS this week.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
William Byron Is an Underrated DFS Option for Chicagoland Lineups
Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron will start in the 10th position for this week's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. This will be the second time in Byron's Cup career that he will start inside the top 10 at Chicagoland. In two previous races at the site, Byron has a best finish of eighth from his last appearance there in 2019. Through 18 races this year, Byron has eight top-10 finishes, including at all four races at 1.5-mile Intermediate tracks. In practice for this week's race, Byron ranked fourth in 10 and 20 consecutive lap averages and third in 15 consecutive lap averages. Byron is one of the more underrated DFS options for this week's race due to his top-5 caliber practice speeds and overall consistency at Intermediate ovals this year.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Should Fantasy Managers Consider Chase Elliott for Chicagoland DFS Lineups?
Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports will start ninth for this week's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Elliott also competed in the O'Reilly Series race at the site earlier in the weekend, where he went on to finish in second. In four previous races at Chicagoland, Elliott has had two top-5 finishes and an average finish of 8.8. With 18 races completed this season, Elliott has two wins, eight top-10 finishes, and an average finish of 13.2. The No. 9 Chevrolet driver also has three top-10 finishes at 1.5-mile Intermediate oval tracks like Chicagoland this season, including a win at Texas. In practice for this week's race, Elliott ranked among the top 15 fastest in 5- 20 consecutive-lap averages. Considering his past history and overall consistency at Intermediate oval tracks, Elliott is a driver to consider rostering for DFS, especially in tournaments, as he can be a potentially sneaky option.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Could Carson Hocevar be A Top-10 Contender at Chicagoland?
Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar is starting in the 15th position for this week's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. This will be Hocevar's first time participating in a Cup race at Chicagoland in his career. After 18 races this season so far, Hocevar has one win, seven top-10 finishes, and an average finish of 14.6. Hocevar also has two top-15 finishes at 1.5-mile Intermediate tracks, including Kansas and Texas. In practice for Sunday's race, Hocevar ranked eighth in five consecutive lap averages while displaying top-15 speeds in all other categories. Due to his equipment and practice speeds, Hocevar is a driver who is capable of competing for a top-10 finish and is one of the more favorable DFS options to consider for all formats.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Bubba Wallace May Have a Strong Performance at Chicagoland
Bubba Wallace of 23XI Racing will start in eighth for the Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Wallace will start inside the top 10 at the site for the first time in his first race there with 23XI. In two previous races at Chicagoland, with Richard Petty Motorsports, Wallace's best finish is 23rd. Through 18 races so far this season, Wallace has eight top-10 finishes with an average finish of 17.0. At 1.5-mile Intermediate tracks this year, Wallace has three top-10 finishes, including a fifth-place finish at Kansas. In practice for this week's race, Wallace displayed top-5 speeds in the five-, 10-, and 15-consecutive-lap average categories in practice. Although Wallace's high starting position leaves little Place Differential upside, he does have a fast enough car to place in the top five and be a great DFS option for tournaments.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Joey Logano Qualifies Outside of the Top 30 at Chicagoland
Team Penske's Joey Logano is starting 31st for this week's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Compared to his past races from 2019 on back, this is the lowest starting position of Logano's Cup career at Chicagoland. In 11 races at the site, Logano has six top-10 finishes, all of which came in his last six Cup events. After 18 races so far this season, Logano has 10 top-20 finishes, including two at 1.5-mile Intermediate oval tracks with an overall average finish of 20.8. In practice for this week's race, Logano ranked 29th in 10 consecutive lap averages, 22nd in 15 consecutive lap averages, 13th in 20 consecutive lap averages, and fifth in 25 consecutive lap averages. Although Logano has struggled at times on Intermediate ovals, Logano's practice speeds indicate that he still has the equipment to compete for a top-20 finish. Due to his upside, Logano is best suited as a cash game play for DFS.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Is Alex Bowman Worth Consideration for Tournament DFS Lineups at Chicagoland?
Alex Bowman will start in the 12th position for this week's Eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. Bowman is the track's most recent winner as he won at the site in 2019. In five prior races at Chicagoland, Bowman has three top-10 finishes and an average finish of 18.6. With 14 races completed in the 2026 season, Bowman has three top-10 finishes with an average finish of 22.6. One of Bowman's top-10 finishes this year came at Texas, another track of a similar type to Chicagoland. In practice for this week's race, Bowman ranked as high as 16th in 15 consecutive lap averages. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver does start high enough to be a potential Place Differential risk, as his practice speeds indicate that he will finish in the top 20. However, with Bowman still aligned with one of the best teams in the field, he is worth consideration for tournament DFS lineups.
Source: DriverAverages.com
Source: DriverAverages.com
Ty Gibbs Could Contend at Chicagoland
Don't be surprised if Ty Gibbs contends for the win at Chicagoland Speedway on Sunday evening. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has been stout at the intermediate tracks this season, posting finishes of fifth at Las Vegas, sixth at Darlington, ninth at Kansas, and sixth at Charlotte. For the eero 400 on Sunday evening in the Windy City, Gibbs qualified fifth and also posted the fifth-fastest lap in practice. As far as track history goes, Gibbs has never raced at Chicagoland Speedway in the major NASCAR series, but the Cup Series hasn't raced at this track since 2019, so there are quite a few drivers that do not have much experience. As far as DFS goes this weekend, Gibbs is a tournament play at $9.0K on DraftKings, as he has some dominator upside but not much Place Differential potential. Still, he's in a Toyota, and those cars have all the speed right now.
Source: ifantasyrace
Source: ifantasyrace
Chris Buescher Qualifies Third at Chicagoland
The Roush-Fenway Keselowski Racing Fords brought some good speed to Chicagoland Speedway this weekend, and it was apparent in qualifying, with Chris Buescher leading the way with a third-place effort. His teammate and team owner, Brad Keselowski, was fourth-fastest, so that was a good run for that team as well. As far as race expectations, there's no reason to think that Buescher won't be able to compete for a top-10 finish in the eero 400 on Sunday. The No. 17 Ford has been stout on this track type this season, with finishes of sixth at Las Vegas, ninth at Darlington, 10th at Kansas, and fifth at Texas. Buescher also had the eighth-best 10-lap average during practice on Friday, showing that the No. 17 Ford has good long-run speed for the race on Sunday night.
Source: Jayski
Source: Jayski
Brad Keselowski Has Best Qualifying Result of Season at Chicagoland
Brad Keselowski typically doesn't qualify very well, and that has been quite apparent this season. His average starting position thus far in 2026 is a worse-than-average 22.1. That's why it was a bit surprising to see Keselowski's name near the top of the qualifying results at Chicagoland this weekend, as the No. 6 Ford ended up fourth-fastest in the session. This will be Keselowski's first start better than 12th since Darlington back in March, a race that he nearly won. So what should we expect out of Keselowski on Sunday? Although a race-winning effort may be out of the question, a top-10 finish (and possible top-five) probably isn't. The No. 6 Ford has posted solid finishes on intermediate tracks this season, with a 10th at Las Vegas, a second at Darlington, a sixth at Kansas, a 13th at Texas, and a 15th at Charlotte. When it comes to DFS, Keselowski is strictly a tournament play, as he offers no Place Differential upside, but if he sneaks in and leads a bunch of laps, it wouldn't take a lot for him to hit value at his $8.0K salary on DraftKings.
Source: Autoweek
Source: Autoweek
Corey Heim an Easy DFS Play at Chicagoland
After winning at the San Diego Naval Base Coronado a couple of weeks ago, Corey Heim is back in Cup Series action for 23XI Racing this weekend at Chicagoland Speedway--and the young driver picked up right where he left off. Heim posted the sixth-fastest lap in practice on Friday evening, and was third-best when it came to 10-lap average, showing that the No. 67 Toyota had good long-run speed for the race. Then qualifying happened, and because of his early draw, Heim ended up with the 28th-best lap. That's good news for DFS players, though, as Heim is now a great Place Differential play in daily fantasy games. And at just a $7,500 driver salary on DraftKings, he's affordable as well. Heim has a 15th-place finish at Kansas this season as well as a 19th-place result at Charlotte, both of which are somewhat comparable to Chicagoland.
Source: Jayski
Source: Jayski
