The NASCAR Cup Series visits a tapered spacer track for the second time this season on Sunday. Talladega Superspeedway will host the Geico 500. This week, you have the chance to include drivers who may not usually be towards the front in your NASCAR DFS lineups and feel pretty okay about it. Will you be able to avoid “The Big One” and make some money or will your drivers wreck out before the finish? Here is my advice to help you guarantee a winning ‘Dega weekend!
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FanDuel NASCAR DFS Overview
In this NASCAR Cup Series DFS column, I will be using FanDuel prices and scoring. Their scoring includes the following:
- .1 points for leading a lap
- .1 points for completing a lap
- Add/subtract a point based on the difference in a driver’s finishing position relative to their starting position
- Points based on where the driver finishes
FanDuel NASCAR DFS | Race 10
Geico 500 Drivers to Consider
Denny Hamlin ($14,000)
Denny Hamlin is one of the best drivers in the draft as he has won three of the last five editions of the Daytona 500. He also won the last time NASCAR raced at Dega last fall. Hamlin leads the season points standings by a mile and has been way too good this season to not get the win at one of his best tracks. He starts on the pole and I think he can lead a lot of laps on the way to finally earning his first win of the year.
Aric Almirola ($12,000)
Yes, Aric Almirola had a pretty bad start to the 2021 NASCAR season, but last week could’ve been the start of a momentum swing. Why not continue it at a track in Talladega Superspeedway where AA was won before? Starting 14th, he has the opportunity to get to the front and pick up some NASCAR DFS points along the way. Almirola is one to put in your lineup.
Tyler Reddick ($9,500)
Tyler Reddick is back in the column this week (shocker!). He is a guy who is pretty good at Talladega and knows how to run well in the draft in general. He won a stage here last year and knows how to get to the front at the superspeedways. Reddick is a guy who is on the “money saver” side of this week’s NASCAR DFS pricing, making him an ideal value play .
Micheal McDowell ($5,500)
The 2021 Daytona 500 champion is THE value play this week. I don’t know how Michael McDowell is this cheap for a Talladega race. This guy won the last tapered spacer race and he is still priced this low? Take him in NASCAR DFS and run with it. McDowell knows how to run this track and with a 23rd starting spot this week, the points opportunity is there.
Geico 500 Drivers to Avoid
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ($11,000)
I really do not like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at his FanDuel NASCAR DFS price this week. Yes, he is a good driver at Talladega and on superspeedways in general, but is he an $11,000 driver? I say no, but I know he will be a popular choice for many this week.
Martin Truex Jr ($10,000)
Martin Truex Jr is not a superspeedway racer, plain and simple. He cannot stay in the front like he can at the other tracks. For some reason, he also can’t block the runs at this track. With a third-place starting spot this week, it makes it a whole lot easier to avoid him in NASCAR DFS.
Kyle Busch ($9,700)
Kyle Busch was running in the top five last week until he tested the pit road threshold and was penalized. Whatever you do, don’t take him in NASCAR DFS this week at Dega. Busch does not have any good luck here and seems like he is always involved in a wreck. Failure to finish the race will cost you points big time. He is one to stay away from this week.
Kevin Harvick ($9,200)
Look, I am high on Kevin Harvick mostly every other week. Unfortunately, he has proven time and again not to trust him trying to block the field at the superspeedways. Last year at Talladega, Harvick led the field on the final lap until exiting turn four when Ryan Blaney got around him and he fell all the way back to 10th. This year at the Daytona 500, he was again shuffled out of line with under 10 laps to go. Harvick is a survivor at this track, not a leader.
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