Race Weekend Central

Daily Fantasy NASCAR FanDuel Forecast: 2019 Food City 500

Downforce, high-banks, grip strips, etc… It’s not the old Bristol Motor Speedway, but nonetheless, Bristol provides 500 laps at the fastest half-mile and it will put on a show. You will be surprised by the names we have in this edition of DFS Fantasy Preview.

Keep in mind as you fill out your DFS lineups, these drivers may not be the fastest on speed, but this list takes into consideration their past performance at the track, their equipment and most importantly throughout the season to be a key contender to maximize your DFS Performance.

Below are some drivers to keep in mind when filling out your DFS lineups. As always, you will see some questionable names amongst the usual suspects as the sport heads to Bristol.

Here are the rules for FanDuel’s new Daily Fantasy NASCAR game.

FanDuel has put more emphasis on finishing position than other DFS sites. For this reason, FanDuel allows you to look at the entire field instead of just dominators and big movers.

Also, with only 0.1 points awarded for each lap led by a driver, the need for a dominator is less important when building a winning lineup. The 500-lap race will only have a total of 50.0 points up for grabs in this category. Take note when building your roster and focus on mid-pack competitors who can climb up toward the front on race day.

Here are a few drivers to keep an eye on for Sunday’s race.

ELITE TIER: $10,000 and up

Kurt Busch ($11,500)
Career at Bristol Motor Speedway: 36 starts, 6 wins, 11 top 5s, 18 top 10s
AVG Finish at Bristol: 14.7

He struggled to get a good lap in during qualifying and will start outside of the top 25 in the 27th position. This should be okay as the No. 1 showed speed Friday, coupled with the fact Busch has the second most wins (six) at Bristol of all active drivers (brother Kyle has seven). Teammate Kyle Larson has led almost 600 laps in 10 starts here which means the team has speed, don’t be surprised to see Busch rally Sunday if he can stay out of trouble.

Ryan Blaney ($11,400)
Career at Bristol Motor Speedway: 7 starts, 0 wins, 0 top 5s, 2 top 10s
AVG Finish at Bristol: 21.9

Blaney led first practice, the first (and) second rounds of qualifying, prior to settling for third in the final round. Regardless, the No. 12 team will lead laps and could possibly sneak a win and join the Penske party. He has led 221 laps in the last two races at Bristol, crashing out in April and settling for seventh in August.

Erik Jones ($10,200)
Career at Bristol Motor Speedway: 4 starts, 0 win, 2 top 5s, 2 top 10s
AVG Finish at Bristol: 12.5

Perhaps the one driver everyone will overlook (at a decent price) on Sunday is Jones. He dominated the summer race here in 2017, leading over half of the race, starting from the pole and finishing second. He was disappointed with the result then, but returning with a win under his belt (Daytona 2) and carrying momentum from Texas could allow for Jones to steal a victory and possibly solidify his position at Joe Gibbs Racing for 2020.

ALL-STAR TIER: $6,000 – $9,999

Ricky Stenhouse Jr ($9,000)
Career at Bristol Motor Speedway: 12 starts, 0 wins, 4 top 5s, 6 top 10s
AVG Finish at Bristol: 11.3

Stenhouse has always been good at Bristol. It is statistically his best race track (four of his 14 career top fives) and this weekend is no different. He was fast in practice and has an average finish of 8.5 in the spring races at Bristol. He rolls off 19th which leaves plenty of positions for him to gain throughout the Food City 500.

Ryan Newman ($7,500)
Career at Bristol Motor Speedway: 34 starts, 0 wins, 2 top 5s, 18 top 10s
AVG Finish at Bristol: 15.7

I am high on Newman this weekend. He has four straight top 15s at Bristol and he is with a team (Roush) that has shown speed consistently at Bristol. He starts inside the top 10 and folks such as Steve Letarte and others see the value in picking Rocket Man to sneak inside the top five, if not better. He does not have any wins but has a top 10 in more than half of his starts at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile.

One-Time Weekly Bets

Ricky Stenhouse Jr – 25/1
Ryan Newman – 100/1
William Byron – 100/1

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