NASCAR Grant Park 220 DFS Preview
Photo Credit: Sports Illustrated
DraftKings Preview
AustYnThe NASCAR Cup Series is entering a new dimension with its next event on the streets of Chicago, IL for the Grant Park 220. I can honestly tell you…I never believed I would be writing a DFS article for a race like this…let alone in NASCAR. Road course racing is familiar to me, but this isn’t even that. Sure, there are more technical turns involved like a road course, but street courses are…well, for everyday vehicles that people use as daily drivers, not for motorsport like road courses. I’ll cover this in more detail later, but to cover the current events…Ross Chastain won at Nashville last week practically booking his ticket into the playoffs. At this point in the season, you really start to notice the contenders and the ones who will make a run at the end of the year. Martin Truex Jr is leading the points with a nice 18-point cushion over William Byron. Denny Hamlin will start to climb I believe too from the 7th spot as he has upped his performance as of late.
I don’t want to get very technical with this track because frankly, I don’t know that there is a need, but the street course in Chicago is 2.2 miles with various amounts of twists and turns. Goodyear is bringing a unique tire to the track and the tire pressure minimums are around 17-22 PSI for all four tires. To put that into perspective, most cars are 35 psi on the streets. Denny Hamlin claimed the pole and will be positioned beside Tyler Reddick in 2nd to complete an all-Toyota front row. It is no surprise that Toyota is claiming the front row as they have been lights out the past couple of weeks. There will be a couple international drivers trying to spoil the NASCAR regulars party as Shane Van Gisbergen is starting in 3rd place for the Project 91 entry of Trackhouse Racing. The V8 supercars star truly wowed everyone with his p1 practice showing. Jenson Button, a former F1 driver will be piloting the #15 Rick Ware Racing Ford and he qualified 8th today. I have to say...I am impressed with both of these drivers, and I do think you will see them up front all day. One way I am going to strategize for today is by picking drivers who have the most potential to finish above where they started. One way you can do this is in analyzing practice speeds, alongside their starting position. Fast cars will inevitably find a way to pass, and wrecks will be plenty here. I want aggressive drivers at the front and passive drivers towards the back that tend to protect equipment. Throw out all the road course data that you have, because I truly don’t believe it will help in any way today. This race will be unique, and I suspect many cars to be DNF’s.
The Podium
1st : Kyle Larson P7 ($10,600)
(Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) | Getty Images
How can you avoid selecting arguably the greatest driver in the world? Even though Kyle is the highest priced driver this week, the 7th starting position is a high value one to say the least. With only 100 laps, it isn’t as valuable to pick a dominating driver. I still think Larson learns a track faster than anyone on the planet and they will be chasing him today.
2nd : Martin Truex Jr. P11 ($10,400)
(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The 2nd highest driver was top-5 in practice and his qualifying run was just shy of cracking into the top-10. Immediately, Truex will gain a few positions and I think through attrition, you will see the 19 car at the front. Truex has been on a burner lately and his confidence is at an all-time high for this event. Passing cars will help you win in DFS today.
3rd : Denny Hamlin P1 ($8,000)
(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
You’d be hard pressed to find a faster car this weekend…Denny Hamlin is a great value at $8k. Even though laps led aren’t going to be as enticing this weekend, Denny could very well return great value at such a low price. The way this team has performed in recent weeks…I am a little shocked DK has him so low. He has the best position in the house and like F1 races, track position is key.
FanDuel Preview
YacsI never thought I would see a street race in NASCAR’s premier series, but here we are. The Cup Series is racing in the streets of Chicago this weekend and it should be an interesting race, but who knows how it will actually turn out. All we have to go off of is the Xfinity race, because, yes, it is technically a road race, but it isn’t your typical road race or roval. The surfaces is different. The turns and the shifting will be different. Braking zones will be different and being confined to walls will be different. Also, years and years of oil from street cars that have soaked into the surface are present, which will be different. There isn't a lot of room for error.
I’m not going to pretend like I will have the answers for you today, because we will just have to witness the race itself to get a good idea of how drivers will run. My best advice will be to pick drivers who were fast in practice and qualifying. I don’t anticipate a lot of passing will happen. It will be a big game of follow the leader with the occasional caution to shake things up. Hopefully your drivers will not collect the wall or get into trouble because that is the only way you’re going to win this week. FanDuel’s pricing seems to be a little all over the place, but we’ll make it work this week. Let’s check out my lineup for today’s race.
Getty
Front Row: Denny Hamlin ($8,500) Starting 1st; Tyler Reddick ($12,500) Starting 2nd
Rarely in DFS do I suggest picking the drivers that are starting 1st and 2nd, but I think it has to be done here. Like I alluded to in the intro, this race will be a lot of following the leader and there will not be a lot of passing. You want drivers that will maintain their spots and be smart throughout the race. These two guys will do just that. Both are good road racers, and both did well in practice. Also, why is Denny Hamlin only $8,500? Doesn’t make sense.
Getty
Next in Line: Daniel Suarez ($10,000) Starting 5th; Michael McDowell ($9,500) Starting 6th
Again, I want drivers that will maintain their cars and push the limits when they feel it is safe enough to do so. These two guys can do that. Both do well at road courses and both can keep up with the traffic in the top 5/10. As long as they don’t smack the wall or have car issues, they should float around their starting spot all day. It is also worth noting that McDowell has some experience on a street course.
Chevrolet
Wild Card: Shane van Gisbergen ($6,200) Starting 3rd
I can’t tell you how Shane van Gisbergen will finish in his NASCAR debut, but I can tell you that he is fast. He is one of the best road racers in the world and races Australian Supercars. He is a 3-time champ in that series and has won 79 races. Those cars may be the closest thing to a NASCAR Cup Series racecar outside of NASCAR. I think he will do really well today. He is in a Trackhouse car, so I don’t anticipate there being any issues of him maintaining his spot. He just has to go out there and race hard and I don’t think he’ll have any issues with that.