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Sean Engel's NASCAR Cup Series DFS picks for the Straight Talk Wireless 400. Check out his DFS sleepers and top plays on DraftKings and FanDuel for the Straight Talk Wireless 400 (2025).
The NASCAR Cup Series heads back to the east coast this week for Sunday's Straight Talk Wireless 400, which is taking place at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Homestead is a 1.5-mile Intermediate track known for its wide passing lanes, allowing drivers to easily make moves for position through the top, where there are massive speed advantages, the bottom, where it's full of grip, or the middle of the track. Homestead was once the venue of the Cup Series championship finale and was a staple in the playoffs for most of its NASCAR tenure, but this year, the Cup Series visits the site early in the season during March.
Josh Berry broke through for his first career Cup Series victory last week at Las Vegas with Wood Brothers Racing. Berry became the third different winner this season after five races, earning it by passing Daniel Suarez in the later laps under green flag conditions. Berry is now looking to become the first driver to win two races while driving for the Wood Brothers since 1987, when Kyle Petty scored his second win with the longtime team during the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Below are my NASCAR DFS lineup picks for the Straight Talk Wireless 400 on DraftKings and FanDuel this week. This slate locks on 3/23/2025 at 3:10 p.m. EST. If you have further questions or want to discuss racing, you can find me on X at @SeanE247.
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DFS Lineup Picks - DraftKings, FanDuel
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Kyle Larson
Starts 14th - DK: $11K, FD: $14K
Every driver in the Cup Series field has a few preferred tracks that they love to run races on, and for Kyle Larson, Homestead is one of his personal favorite tracks. Larson loves the track so much that he decided to do a tripleheader weekend and participate in both the Truck and Xfinity Series races as well as the Cup Series race. Larson won the Truck Series race earlier in the weekend.
In 11 Cup starts in his career at Homestead, Larson has one win, which came during the October 2022 race at the site, five top-5 finishes, and 626 laps led, which is the most of all drivers in the field this week. The No. 5 Chevrolet driver led in each of the last four Homestead Cup events, with two of them being 96 or more laps led.
Larson was the fastest of all drivers in practice Group B and had the best 20, 25, and 30 consecutive lap averages, signifying he will have the car to beat on longer green flag runs. With a starting position outside of the top 10, Larson also carries some Place Differential upside.
Due to his top-notch equipment from Hendrick Motorsports, his overall favorable track history, and practice speeds, fantasy players should make Larson one of the first drivers to lock into DFS lineups this week.
Tyler Reddick
Starts 20th - DK: $10.7K, FD: $13.5K
Drivers who come from a dirt racing background tend to perform well at Homestead. This is generally due to the characteristics of the track lending itself well to techniques learned in dirt racing, such as "riding the wall," where drivers can race as close to the wall as possible for a speed advantage off corners. Another technique also commonly used by dirt racers at Homestead is "slidejobs" which usually are passes done from the bottom of a corner where a driver dives down in front of another to make a pass and then block their opponent's racing lines as they come out the corner.
Larson, mentioned earlier, is one of the most notable drivers to come from a dirt racing background. However, he is not the only former dirt racer with a history of performing well at Homestead. Tyler Reddick of 23XI Racing is another who should not be overlooked as far as top-priced drivers are concerned.
In five races at Homestead, Reddick has four top-5 finishes and is the track's most recent winner, earning it during the October 2024 Cup event. The No. 45 Toyota driver also obtained positive PD four times in his Cup career at Homestead.
With his speeds in practice being among the top 10 fastest in the field in all categories, expect Reddick to collect a solid number of points based on his upside and compete for a top finish.
Denny Hamlin
Starts 23rd - DK: $9.7K, FD: $11K
While he may not have a dirt racing background like the first two drivers, Denny Hamlin is another driver whose history at Homestead makes him a noteworthy DFS option. In fact, Hamlin is one of the most experienced drivers in the field at the Miami track with 20 starts in the Cup Series.
In 20 races at Homestead, Hamlin has 13 top-10 finishes and three wins. Hamlin led multiple laps in each of the last three Cup races and gained positive PD in three of the last five. The No. 11 Toyota driver also placed third in his last appearance at the Miami track last October.
Hamlin's practice speeds ranked in the top 10 in all categories except 30 consecutive lap averages. He also has plenty of upside from his starting position and is worth rostering in all formats as a result.
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Brad Keselowski
Starts 32nd - DK: $8K, FD: $8K
Brad Keselowski's 2025 season has not gotten off to a hot start, with no top-10 finishes through the first five races this year. However, Keselowski has quietly been trending upward as the season progresses and was a decent DFS performer. The No. 6 Ford driver does have three finishes with positive PD and placed in the top 15 in two of the last three races. Last week's race at Las Vegas was his best finish of the season as he placed 11th, falling short of a top-10 finish.
In 17 starts in his Cup career at Homestead, Keselowski has seven top-10 finishes. Since 2022, Keselowski has had two finishes with positive PD at the Miami track, and he did score a top-5 in the October 2022 race at the site.
During qualifying, Keselowski messed up on his qualifying lap and will start deep in the field while providing massive upside. Keselowski's practice speeds also indicated that his car will be great on longer runs as he ranked eighth in 25 and 30-consecutive lap averages.
Overall, fantasy players should find a lot of comfort in rostering Keselowski this week, especially as he will likely race into the top 20 or better based on his RFK Racing equipment and practice speeds.
Ryan Preece
Starts 31st - DK: $7.2K, FD: $6.2K
Another RFK Racing driver to watch for this week is Ryan Preece. Believe it or not, despite being priced lower, Preece is currently outperforming his boss, owner/driver Keselowski, this season. In the first five races this year, Preece has three top-20 finishes, which include his first top-5 finish from last week's race at Las Vegas.
In six starts at Homestead, Preece has only two top-20 finishes, but he did gain his best career finish of 10th in his last appearance in the Cup Series at the site in October 2024. Also, despite only one top-10 finish in his Cup career, he's been a solid DFS performer at Homestead, as he earned positive PD in four of his last five races at the Miami track.
Just like Keselowski, Preece did not set a fast lap during qualifying but has plenty of upside from his starting position. Although he did not display as great of practice speeds as Keselowski, Preece did rank among the top 20 in 25 and 30-consecutive lap averages.
Based on his equipment, upside, and overall track history at Homestead, Preece is well worth rostering in all DFS formats this week.
Austin Dillon
Starts 30th - DK: $6.3K, FD: $5K
Richard Childress Racing driver Austin Dillon is another driver who favors Homestead as one of their top tracks. Dillon is also another racer who comes from a dirt racing background and as mentioned with Larson and Reddick, dirt racers usually perform favorably at Homestead.
In 11 races at Homestead, the No. 3 Chevrolet driver has nine top-20 finishes, including two of the three races at the site since 2022. Dillon also nabbed positive PD in his Cup career at Homestead seven different times.
In practice, Dillon ranked 18th in overall lap averages while displaying top-20 speeds in the 25 and 30 consecutive lap average categories. Dillon also has incredibly high upside from his starting position.
For those looking for a value driver with a history of quality finishes who can get it done again, consider Austin Dillon for DFS this week.
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