The field is set for Saturday’s race at Bristol with Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin on the front row. Using the Awesemo expert projections and ownership rankings for NASCAR DFS today, I’ve found some of the best values and plays on the slate. Thus, let’s delve into the top NASCAR DFS picks on DraftKings and FanDuel for the Bass Pro Shops Night Race.
NASCAR DFS Picks: Bass Pro Shops Night Race
Denny Hamlin, 2nd ($9,900 DraftKings, $12,000 FanDuel)
For the third week in a row, Hamlin finds himself starting second at a track utilizing the high-horsepower package. At Darlington, Hamlin led 146 laps and finished first. Last weekend at Richmond, Hamlin led 197 laps and finished second. Considering how well he, and Joe Gibbs Racing, have been running in this 750-horsepower setup, there’s no reason to believe the trend bucks and Hamlin doesn’t utilize his starting position and lead a swath of laps on Saturday night.
For box-score hunters, Hamlin’s averages will keep his ownership lower with four finishes of 14th or worse in his past six Bristol races. However, sandwiched in between those results are a win in the fall race of 2019 and Hamlin was a few laps away from repeating as the Spring 2020 winner before Joey Logano took the two of them out on Lap 490.
Kyle Larson, 5th ($11,300 DraftKings, $14,000 FanDuel)
A return to a banked oval puts Larson back atop the list of potential dominators. For the season, in the four races where the high-horsepower package was used at a track with high banking (Darlington 1 and 2, Dover, Nashville), Larson has a win, finished in the top-five in all four races, and is averaging an absurd 170.8 laps led and 88 fastest laps per event.
As per his history at Bristol, before missing out on both of last year’s Bristol events, he had top-six finishes in three of his past four races there. In two of his past six Bristol events, he’s hit the 200-lap-led mark twice.
Kyle Busch, 9th ($11,500 DraftKings, $13,500 FanDuel)
117-0-71-30-100-59: Those are Kyle Busch’s laps led totals at Bristol dating back to 2018.
1-20-1-4-4-2: Those are Kyle Busch’s finishes at Bristol dating back to 2018.
Busch never seems to lead the most laps at Bristol of late. However, he continues to work his way to the lead and finish high. Both of those factors are fantastic prospects as per his chances of being a potential dominator. Any worries about Busch’s performance in the high-horsepower package this season are probably not worth overweighting due to the preponderance of laps. In last week’s 400-lap race, Busch was as high as third before having to go to the rear for a pit-road penalty. With 100 more laps, at a track Busch has eight career Cup victories at, Busch should make his way to the front once more.
Tyler Reddick, 13th ($7,600 DraftKings, $8,500 FanDuel)
Reddick will start his Saturday evening on the outside, looking in, of the playoff picture down just five points to Kurt Busch and Alex Bowman. With such a small gap, Reddick won’t have to take a big swing to advance, he just needs to race smart while being aware of where Busch and Bowman are.
In his last race at Bristol, Reddick started 17th and ended his night in fourth, picking up 19 fastest laps in the process. The high banks of Bristol suit Reddick’s driving style allowing him to hug the walls and carry speed down the short straightaways. In Reddick’s last Xfinity start at Bristol, he started in the rear (38th) and won.
Ross Chastain, 17th ($7,800 DraftKings, $9,500 FanDuel)
For the past two weeks, the Konami Code has been to play Chastain in cash and tournaments. He continues to excel in the high-horsepower package, regardless of track size, shape or banking. In back-to-back weeks he’s finished third at Darlington and seventh at Richmond. Despite these top-10 finishes, he gets pushed back to this familiar range due to the playoff drivers getting guaranteed top-16 starting spots.
This will be the last week DFS players will get Chastain with optimal lineup upside alongside a safe floor for cash. Don’t be shocked if Chastain starts 13th next Sunday at Las Vegas.
Ryan Newman, 24th ($7,000 DraftKings, $5,800 FanDuel)
As the sun appears to be setting on Newman’s career, Bristol may be his last hope of going out with a bang. However, in this case, a bang may be nothing more than a top-10 for the No. 6 crew. Regardless, Newman still excels in one aspect of racing — blocking. Once he establishes track position he can hold that position. Few tracks allow for that opportunity quite like Bristol where Newman can patrol the bottom keeping faster drivers behind him.
Before his fall 2019 race where he ended his day in 25th, Newman had compiled seven straight top-15 finishes at Bristol. A similar finish would be a win for Newman, at least in terms of DFS.
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