DraftKings Preview

AustYn

The inaugural Enjoy Illinois 300 at the World Wide Technology Raceway will take place today and in terms of data, we do not have a lot to make a DFS lineup. One thing I would like to highlight from last weekend at Charlotte is the dominance out of TrackHouse Racing. Ross Chastain and Daniel Suarez were above and beyond the fastest cars on the track and even though Denny Hamlin won the race, Ross Chastain had the fastest car. Chastain is quickly rising to be mentioned as the best driver in the NASCAR Cup Series. Another quick opinion on the racing so far in the 2022 season, is that I am not a major fan of this car. I get it…the old “screamers” aren’t coming back and long-gone are the days where drivers actually had to have throttle control, car control, etc…. not that they don’t need car control now, it is just different. Everything on this new car seems snappy and sluggish. You can call me old-school, but I just cannot stand this car. While watching the Coke 600, it was quite disappointing to see drivers in the corner get a little loose and seeing the throttle response being that of a 4-cylinder car on the interstate…because you would get blown away. I equate it to watching a restart at a superspeedway, it takes forever for the cars to get up to speed. Maybe it is purely for safety and fan experience, but I see it as deadening a skill in stock car racing that will never come back…also, I am playing “arm-chair driver” so I am not a legitimate source, but I wish these cars actually had raw speed…instead I just see a lot of crashes, wasted dollars and time on a car that isn’t that great.

Now enough of my rant, let’s talk about the track. WWT Raceway is a 1.25 mile-track that was clearly designed with Darlington and Phoenix in mind. The racetrack is relatively flat and a little on the slower side, with speeds averaging 135 mph or so. Teams will have 10 sets of tires at their disposal (1 set from Q) and in practice, tire wear did not seem to be a major factor. I will be picking drivers who can maintain their equipment though. Again, going back to this new car…my strategy will be the same as I have always tried to imagine a long, green flag run race. The Cup Series does not feature near as many wrecks as the lower series’ (The Coke 600 didn’t help that though) and I think track position is so important. That is why you cannot always look at drivers starting 30th or worse, as they may stay there. It is so hard to pass a Cup driver and I don’t think WWT Raceway will offer a lot of passing chances. This race will also be short at 240 laps so keep that in mind. Goodyear is bringing the same tire that was used at Phoenix and Richmond. With a lack of history (none in Cup) I will be looking at Practice and performance at Phoenix, Darlington & Richmond.

Top Pick: Ryan Blaney ($9,600) Starting 5th

My choice to win this race is Ryan Blaney from Team Penske. His practice speeds were great, as he was 2nd in 10 laps averages and 2nd in overall speed. Starting in 5th and his price point being under $10k is a major factor in my decision here. Yates engines look really fast this weekend and I look for the #12 to be out front for most of the day. He dominated the Richmond & Phoenix races despite not winning, by leading over 100 laps at each place and being that the same tire is being used at WWT as those places, look for that trend to continue.

Supporting Cast: Erik Jones ($7,300) Starting 21st & Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ($7,700) Starting 27th

Even though I am all in on Ford this weekend, look out for the #43 of Erik Jones. In 5 lap averages, he was top-5 out of all drivers and the Petty GMS team has shown flashes of brilliance this season. Jones does have experience here in the truck series and his results were just okay, but I like a top-15 today. Hopefully I get less than 10% ownership with this pick. For my other sleeper choice, I have JTG’s Ricky Stenhouse Jr. You would have to be crazy to not factor in the #47’s perfromace as of late for this event. Ricky has recorded 4 straight-top 10’s and is slowly creeping into the top-20 in points after a horrid start to the season. If I can get 2 top-15 finishes with my cast, I will be a winner this weekend.

FanDuel Preview

Yacs

Take everything you know about this track history and throw it out the window. Just kidding, there is no Cup Series history at this track. This is the inaugural race at WWT Raceway and things will be interesting today. There have been NASCAR races here and there are 9 drivers that have taken a checkered flag in some capacity at this track. It is a unique 1.25-mile track and the racing will be interesting today. It drives like a short track but is just bigger.

I don’t have a lot to say about this track, but I’m ready to see how these Cup cars do on this track. The shape immediately reminds you of Darlington, but it’s flatter in the turns. Also, I think it drives kind of like New Hampshire if the turns were uneven distances. It will be hard into the straightaways and slow in the turns. I don’t know how much tires will play a factor, but they have practically been an issue of concern in every race, so I don’t see why this would be any different. I think you’re going to want to play this week pretty conservatively. You don’t want too many drivers having to make a climb, but at the same time, you need a couple guys that can do it. Let’s see what FanDuel has got for us today.

The Previous Winner: Kyle Busch ($13,500) Starting 12th, Kevin Harvick ($8,000) Starting 20th, Ross Chastain ($11,500) Starting 10th

These three drivers will probably be a little higher on the ownership side, but you want guys that have race experience and more importantly, winning experience at a new track. Busch is the second most expensive driver this week and I feel like he is always the safest pick at a new track. I have yet to see a track where he struggles at and if he stays out of trouble, he likely will be around the top today. As for Harvick, he’s the only driver in the field to win in both a truck and Xfinity car. Also, he’s been the best value pick all season long. He’s been the best DFS driver all season long and is an absolute steal at $8,000. Chastain has been the best driver basically all season long in each race. The results haven’t showed it each time, but if you watch, he is always running in the Top 5, no matter the track. I’ve picked him a lot this year, but I feel like I can’t afford not to.

The Value Pick: Austin Dillon ($6,000) Starting 29th

The 3 car is going to have to be our big climber today with his starting spot, but I know he’s capable of it. I was surprised to find out that he has on raced one time here. I would’ve thought he would have had more appearances here, but that one race was a truck race in 2010. He finished 7th. Dillon always seems to find himself in the mix of races when you would least expect it and I think this week will be no different. His practice speeds won’t wow you, but they usually don’t. He gets it done during the race. Look out for the 3 car today.

Final Pick: Joey Logano ($10,000) Starting 7th

When in doubt, go with Joey Logano. He doesn’t have a victory at the track, but this is his kind of track. He dominated at Darlington and this track is similar. He also beat the entire field by over a tenth in practice, so no doubt he’ll be fast today. His only race appearance here was in 2008 where he finished 2nd. Look for him to be good yet again today and I think he could be your race winner.

NASCAR Enjoy Illinois 300 DFS Preview