It kind of feels weird to just now be getting to Richmond Raceway’s spot on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule. For years and years this place was known as The Action Track where hot tempers and excitement melded into Saturday night short track mayhem for the top racing series in the country.
Those days may be behind this old bullring for now, but its penchant for producing some legendary moments is obviously still there, as we saw when Austin Dillon shocked the world and won here last summer. Will we see an upset winner this week? I certainly don’t see it, with how hard it has been to pass in this Next Gen car, but we have a huge advantage this weekend fantasy players:
Qualifying is back on Friday.
So my advice is to pick five guys starting in the top 15 and then from there, go with a driver like Austin Dillon. Otherwise, what I would do would be look at the statistics from the other flat short track races over the course of this season.
I’m still going forward with the strategy of using the top 15 to make my picks, but the choice is entirely up to you.
Let’s take a look at how I fared with my picks at Watkins Glen International last week. It wasn’t my best outing, but I got a cheap win by picking Shane van Gisbergen to get it done.
Fantasy Breakdown: 2025 Go Bowling at The Glen
| Right on the Money | Lick Your Wounds |
| SVG: 63.6 points scored | Brad Keselowski: -1.5 points scored |
| Chris Buescher: 53.1 points scored | Michael McDowell: 12.4 points scored |
| Ryan Preece: 34.3 points scored |
So, yeah, not too bad. Ty Dillon posted 14 points last weekend, and honestly, that was about what I expected so that’s why you don’t see him up there. After a weekend like that, I’m pumped for Richmond.
2025 DraftKings Rules of the Road
Drivers will be awarded points based on their finishing position, position differential, fastest laps and laps led. The driver who wins the race scores 45 fantasy points, while second place gets 42 points, third gets 41 points and so on, at least through the top 10. The 11th-place finisher scores 32 points, 21st gets 21 and 31st gets 10.
However, any spots drivers lose or gain on the track are added or subtracted from their score. If the driver leads a lap, they will earn 0.25 points for each lap led and 0.45 points for each fastest lap.
Fantasy Forecast
Denny Hamlin ($11,000)
I’m “A11 In” on the No. 11 Toyota Camry this weekend. Hamlin’s record here is phenomenal, but in the Next Gen car, well it’s utterly ridiculous.
He has two wins, three runner up finishes (including last year), and only one finish outside of the top five back in 2023.
Those are slam dunk numbers, and while the price tag may be high, I think it’s a given that he wins this race Saturday night.
William Byron ($10,400)
Willy B seems to be back to doing Willy B things as of late. He followed up his win at Iowa Speedway with a top five at The Glen and now rolls into Richmond as the most recent short track winner.
Byron’s record is just OK at this track though, so a little buyer beware for that, and he’s the deepest qualified in this lineup rolling off in 14th.
I think they can keep the good times rolling, but they may need strategy like they did at Iowa.
Ryan Preece ($7,600)
For the third week in a row, I give you Preece, the pole sitter for this event.
Remember how I said that this team would probably win at Iowa and that may be his last chance? Well that’s because I forgot about Richmond.
Back in 2021, he absolutely crushed the field at this place on the Whelen Modified Tour, leading 98 of 156 laps from the pole.
Could it be a repeat of that incredible night and locked up playoff spot to boot for driver No. 60? I think it could, but it’s going to be tough to fend off the guys who are up there with him. I like him for another solid top-five finish.
Bubba Wallace ($7,500)
Listen guys, Wallace may be 23XI Racing’s best shot at a championship this season, for real.
Right now, he is on the run of his career, even before his Brickyard 400 win. His last four finishes? They’re all top 10s, including last week at a road course, which Wallace himself has acknowledged as a weak spot in his racecraft.
Oh and he’s coming off of his best career finish at Richmond a year ago. Do not be surprised to see him on the podium this weekend.
Austin Dillon ($7,300)
When returning to the site of a glorious NASCAR upset, it’s not usually a good idea to select the defending winner. Especially when that defending winner is ferociously inconsistent most weeks in this series.
However, Dillon is different. That win, while statistically still on the books, essentially didn’t count toward the playoffs after he was penalized for dumping Hamlin and Joey Logano on the final lap to win.
So, I think Dillon has something to prove this weekend. That last year was no fluke, and this team (at least according to the current format) deserves a playoff spot.
He starts in 11th, and I could easily see a top 10 out of this group.
AJ Allmendinger ($6,000)
You must be thinking: “Are you confused? Last week was the road course, are you sure you didn’t mean to have him last week?”
As stressed out as I have been lately, no, I’m not confused. I’m enamored. The Dinger came out of completely freaking nowhere with a top-three qualifying lap and I’m here for it.
While he may not be able to stay there for long, it is hard to pass in this Next Gen car, so I think if he can hang around he could steal a top 10 or 15, and that’s where his true value comes from.
Prop Bets and Locks
- Top three in points (Hamlin, Byron, Chase Elliott) all finish in the top five (+812): Of course, Hamlin and Elliott will start in the top five Saturday night, and Byron in 14th, but I think the No. 24 will get there on a good strategy play. Elliott is the one who has me worried after an abysmal run at Watkins Glen. I think this a safe parlay with awesome upside though, so I’d pick it.
- Austin Dillon (+4000) to win: When I logged into Sportsbook this morning, 260 people had taken this bet. I’m not, but I’ll say this: even if you throw down a $5 bill on this, and he somehow pulls it off, you win big. It’s a fun bet. You know, maybe I will take this wager.
- Wallace (+100) over Kyle Busch: If you had told me that this Head to Head wouldn’t even be close a few years ago, I wouldn’t have believed it. Wallace is heading the right direction, KFB sadly just isn’t. I’d take No. 23 100 times out of 100 in this matchup.
Garrett joined Frontstretch as a news writer in 2023, and became a fantasy racing and betting writer in 2024. Hailing from the heart of coal country in southern West Virginia, he's a married father of three and currently enrolled in the Physical Therapy Assistant Program at New River Community Technical College in Beaver, WV.
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