February 15, 2026

Kyle Larson is one of the most talented drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series garage, but he has yet to break through and find much success at Daytona International Speedway. Over 23 career starts at this 2.5-mile race track, Larson has never posted a top-five finish, and he has just six top-10 results to his credit (26%). On a positive note, Larson's career-best finish at Daytona came last summer, when he crossed the finish line in sixth after winning a Stage and leading 10 laps. "Yung Money" also finished sixth in the summer race at Daytona back in 2016. This weekend, the two-time Cup Series Champion will start from eighth-place when the Daytona 500 goes green. From a DFS perspective, it may be enticing to take a talent like Kyle Larson, but from a strategy perspective, it may be best to stay away due to his poor track record and limited Place Differential upside this weekend. --Jordan McAbee
Source: Driver Averages

February 15, 2026

Three-time Daytona 500 Champion, Denny Hamlin, understandably has quite the reputation at Daytona International Speedway. He has led the most laps (682) among all active drivers and has the third-best average finish (18.0) among drivers that have made more than six starts at this race track. But is Hamlin starting to lose his edge at this superspeedway track? Since the debut of the Next Gen car, something has been off with Denny Hamlin at Daytona--and it's showing in his finishes. Over the eight points-paying races in this car, Hamlin hasn't finished better than 17th, and six of the eight races ended with him in 24th-place or worse. Still, Hamlin remains one of the most popular picks at Daytona, especially in DFS contests. This weekend, he will sure to be popular yet again, as his 22nd-place starting spot on Sunday gives Denny some solid Place Differential upside. But with his very apparent struggles at Daytona as of late, it's not wrong to ask the question, is it finally time to fade Denny Hamlin at Daytona?--Jordan McAbee
Source: Driver Averages

February 15, 2026

Thanks to a crash in the Duel race on Thursday night, Chris Buescher will now start from dead last (41st place) for Sunday's running of the 68th annual Daytona 500. Thankfully for Buescher and the No. 17 team, that isn't a major disadvantage, as any driver in the field, from any starting position, can go on to win this race. From a DFS perspective, Buescher suddenly becomes the safest play on the slate. With his last-place starting spot, he can't score negative fantasy points on DraftKings, and the sky is the limit when it comes to his place-differential upside. Although there is certainly strategy in going underweight on Buescher in tournaments, he's still one of the best fantasy plays on this slate. Since the start of 2023, Buescher has the second-best average driver rating (97.0) and the best average finish (8.3).--Jordan McAbee
Source: Driver Averages

February 15, 2026

Kyle Busch is on the pole for this season's "Great American Race," as the No. 8 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Motorsports put up the quickest lap time in Wednesday evening's qualifying event. Now, on Sunday, the former Cup Series champion will lead the Daytona 500 field to the green for the field time in his career. Busch has gone to victory lane several times in his storied Cup Series career, but never in the Daytona 500. He won the summer race here back in 2008 and also has three Duel race wins. His best finish in the Daytona 500 has been a second-place finish back in 2019 while with Joe Gibbs Racing. Could this be the year that Rowdy finally breaks through? He certainly has the starting position to do so. However, that also makes him an extremely risky DFS play, particularly in DraftKings. Even though he starts up front, you'd be better off staying away from Kyle Busch in DFS on Sunday.--Jordan McAbee
Source: NBC Sports

February 15, 2026

Although Jimmie Johnson has announced that the 2027 Daytona 500 will be his final NASCAR race, he still has more left in the tank--and it starts with this weekend's Great American Race. Johnson walked away with a podium finish (third) in last year's Daytona 500 despite starting back in 40th-place, and he will have a similar journey this Sunday as well, as the No.l 84 Toyota will roll off the starting grid from 31st-place. That gives Jimmie plenty of Place Differential upside, making him a solid DFS pick on DraftKings at an affordable salary ($5,800). The best part is, Johnson doesn't even have to replicate that third-place finish from last year to make it into the optimal DFS lineup this weekend. --Jordan McAbee
Source: Autoweek

February 3, 2026

Even after a handful of starts under his belt after returning from injury, Billy Horschel still seems to be getting back to playing form after a missed cut last week at Torrey Pines. He averaged -0.85 strokes putting and -1.75 strokes gained from tee to green. The most glaring metric was from around the green, with an average of -1.43. However, the scary part for Horschel this week at TPC Scottsdale will be off the tee, as the FMI was his first time gaining strokes in this area since September of last year. It's imperative to hit the fairways at the Stadium Course to have chances to score. If that isn't improved, it could be a long week for Billy Ho.--Todd McGill
Source: Data Golf

November 3, 2025

Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports, kept himself in the title fight on Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway, but did not have the fastest car for most of the race. The No. 5 driver started the race from third and generally ran around the top five for most of the day, but typically behind his teammate, William Byron, and Denny Hamlin, who was the most dominant driver of the race. At the end of the first stage, Larson finished fifth, and at the end of the second stage, he placed fourth. In the middle of the final stage, Larson suffered a flat tire with under 100 laps to go, kept the car from crashing, and fell a lap down. He did get his lap back and worked his way back up into the top five before the end of the race, thanks to some pit strategy where he took two tires while other teams took four. The No. 5 team repeated the same strategy on the final caution of the race when Byron got a flat tire and slammed into the wall with two laps to go. Finally, Larson restarted ahead of Hamlin by a few positions, and through the final overtime restart, Larson stayed ahead of Hamlin to finish in third place. The result was enough for Larson to become the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series champion by finishing two positions ahead of Hamlin. This is Larson's second Cup Series title after winning his first in 2021, and he ended the season with three wins.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

November 3, 2025

Team Penske's Ryan Blaney was one of the top performers in Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Blaney began the race from the fifth position, and although he had a slow start by dropping back a few positions early, his car had excellent speed on longer green flag runs. This showed in the first stage as he went from eighth to second by the end of the stage, running just behind William Byron for the stage win. Blaney continued to run inside the top five through most of the rest of the race, finishing second at the end of the second stage to Denny Hamlin. At times, he was the fastest driver on the track in the final stage and was the only one to keep up with Byron and Hamlin, the two most dominant drivers of the race. The No. 12 Ford driver was set to finish in third until Byron hit the wall with two laps to go with a flat tire. On the final pit stop of the race, Blaney took two tires and restarted in fourth. Then, on the final restart of the race, Blaney went on to fight for the win and took it away from Brad Keselowski and Kyle Larson. This victory was Blaney's fourth of the season and first of his Cup career at Phoenix, but he did not win the title as he was not one of the four championship drivers. The Penske driver finished sixth in the final driver standings for the 2025 season. --Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

November 3, 2025

William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports was a consistent threat for the title during the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, but had an unfortunate incident that ruined his chance to win it all. Byron started the race from the second position and, throughout most of the day, ran inside the top five. The No. 24 Chevrolet driver won the first stage and finished third at the end of the second stage, competing with fellow title contender Denny Hamlin for the lead through most of the race. Despite leading 52 laps, Byron was unable to catch Hamlin on speed and looked to finish as the runner-up until he ran into the wall with two laps to go with a flat right rear tire. The third appearance of Byron in the championship four ended with a 33rd-place run, and he finished fourth of the four title contenders, even though he was incident-free through most of the race.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: NASCAR.com

November 3, 2025

Denny Hamlin was the sentimental favorite for the NASCAR Cup Series championship because not only is he the winningest non-champion but his father is also terminally ill. For most of the race, it looked like it was going to happen as Hamlin started on the pole and led 208 out of 319 laps. Although William Byron pipped him to win Stage 1, he retook the leda from eventual winner Ryan Blaney and dominated Stage 2. In a race where all four championship contenders had tire issues, Hamlin had a slow pit stop as the team struggled to jack the car after a flat tire, which dropped him to 11th. Nonetheless, he retook the lead and was leading when Byron popped a tire and crashed with two laps left. However, his team's decision to take four tires on the final restart dropped him to tenth and he could only make it back to fifth, resulting in a second-place championship finish and one of the playoff format's biggest buzzkills.--Sean Wrona - RotoBaller
Source: Racing Reference

November 3, 2025

Chase Briscoe looked a little outmatched in the Championship 4 since his opponents Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, and William Byron were all vastly more experienced in championship battles, but Briscoe tried his hardest, and in a race where all four Championship 4 drivers had tire issues, Briscoe certainly had his moments. Although Briscoe qualified 12th, he drove up to fifth before he popped a tire to help trigger the race's third caution. Although he fell to 32nd, he miraculously drove all the way back up to second before he got trapped a lap down after a caution came out on Lap 220 after he blew another tire. Amazingly, he re-entered the top five and even led a few laps after taking two tires, but he got shuffled out on the final caution because the tires he had left were of lower quality than those of the other teams, resulting in an 18th-place finish, but his third-place championship finish is still far better than most people expected.--Sean Wrona - RotoBaller
Source: Racing Reference

November 3, 2025

Brad Keselowski did not run very well in Sunday's season finale at Phoenix, but he sneaked into the lower reaches of the top 10 on Lap 258 before he and the No. 6 team stayed out of the pits to take the lead on the caution for William Byron's blown tire and crash with two laps remaining. While most of the leaders pitted, Keselowski stayed out in an attempt to end both his and RFK Racing's season-long goose egg. However, he ended up being passed by Ryan Blaney (who took two tires) on the last corner, which attracted little attention because the announcers entirely ignored the battle for the win to focus on the championship. Although Keselowski lost the race, his third second-place finish of the season may give him some positive momentum going into 2026.--Sean Wrona - RotoBaller
Source: Racing Reference

November 2, 2025

Team Penske's Austin Cindric will start in fourth place for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship race at Phoenix Raceway. Cindric's starting position for this week's race is a new career-best for the No. 2 Ford driver at the site. In seven Cup starts at Phoenix, Cindric has three top-20 finishes with a best finish of 11th, which he acquired earlier in the season. Through 35 races in 2025, Cindric has one win and only five top-10 finishes, with only one of them being at a short track. In practice, Cindric ranked 33rd in overall lap averages and only displayed top-10 speeds in the five-consecutive-lap-average category. With his underwhelming history, high starting position leaving no upside, and limited top-10 results this season, Cindric is a driver who cannot be trusted for DFS lineups on Sunday.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: DriverAverages.com

November 2, 2025

Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman will start in the eighth position for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway. Bowman qualified inside the top 10 for the first time at Phoenix since March 2022 this week. In 20 races in his Cup career at the site, Bowman has three top-10 finishes and an average finish of 21.2. The No. 48 Chevrolet driver also placed in the top 20 in each of his last five Phoenix appearances. After 35 races this season, Bowman has 16 top-10 finishes with an average finishing position of 17.5. In practice, Bowman ranked 15th in overall lap averages and 15 consecutive lap averages, while displaying top-10 speeds in the 20 and 25 consecutive lap average categories. Phoenix has not been Bowman's best track statistically and holds low upside from his starting position. With solid practice speeds, however, the No. 48 Chevrolet driver can be considered a playable tournament play for this week's race.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: DriverAverages.com

November 2, 2025

Noah Gragson of Front Row Motorsports is starting 18th in this week's NASCAR Cup Series Championship at Phoenix Raceway after qualifying for the event. This will be just the second time in his Cup career that Gragson will start a Phoenix race inside the top 20. In four races at the Arizona track, Gragson has two top-15 finishes, but also collected positive Place Differential three times. In 35 races this year, Gragson has nine top-20 finishes and an average finish of 25.1. In practice for Sunday's race, Gragson ranked 30th in overall lap averages, 20th in 10 and 20 consecutive lap averages, and 16th in 15 consecutive lap averages. With his practice speeds being indicative of a top-20 finish, Gragson is a DFS option to consider for tournaments this week, especially as his starting position does not provide high upside.--Sean Engel - RotoBaller
Source: DriverAverages.com