Matt Vecchio 
Welcome to the NASCAR DFS Truck Series for Thursday night’s race from the REAL Bristol Motor Speedway (not that dirt-covered trash version)!
Another week, another Truck Series pre-qualifying article. It’s tough to get these out post-qualifying weekly, so I appreciate everyone who reads my articles and is patient with the process.
Bristol is a mini-demolition derby most days in the Truck Series and last season at this race it was no different. In 2021, there were nine cautions for incident involving 24 trucks. Also in that race, only 18 trucks finished on the lead lap. Usually, in these types of races, you want to load up on drivers starting in the back but last year that would not have worked. Only one driver starting in the top 10 was involved in a wreck and failed to finish the race (Austin Hill – P10). Eight of the top 10 from the 2021 race started inside the top 10. Bristol is not an easy place to pass and the best trucks (and cars) typically stay up front all race and avoid the carnage of drivers trying to race through the field.
With Bristol being a short track that means we have a lot of dominator points available. Thursday’s race will be 200 laps with 140 dominator points available. With there being so many dominator points, it will be essential to get your dominators right. We have to go back to 2019 to find the last time one driver didn’t lead over 100 laps of this race. In 2020 and 2021 one driver dominated and I think that is possible on Thursday with how 2022 has gone.
NASCAR DFS: Top Tier
Since I don’t have any practice speeds or qualifying positions to work with I will just do a simple breakdown of the driver in each tier I think could be viable.
Starting with potential dominators, John H. Nemechek ($12,000) and Zane Smith ($11,600) are the cream of the crop and will most likely be in contention to win and dominate this race. Some other drivers who could lead laps in this race:
- Chandler Smith ($10,700)
- Ty Majeski ($10,200)
- Carson Hocevar ($9,500)
All three of those drivers have led a lot of laps throughout the season and could do the same on Thursday night.
Depending on where Grant Enfinger ($10,500) and Christian Eckes ($9,000) qualify they could be great place differential options in this tier. The last driver I will most likely have an interest in is Corey Heim ($11,100).
NASCAR DFS: Mid Tier
Parker Kligerman ($8,700) is always a good play when he’s in the field and I don’t see Thursday being any different. After Kligerman, all three of Matt Crafton, Derek Kraus, and Tyler Ankrum are bunched together in salary and I don’t really have high hope for them unless one or more put down some decent practice speed and qualify poorly.
Matt DiBenedetto ($8,000) is the better option for me in this price range on Thursday. DiBenedetto has only one finish outside the top 20 in his last 10 races and should be a top 15 truck on Thursday night.
Colby Howard ($7,400) and Chase Purdy ($7,200) are the best options in the $7K range for me. Both drivers sometimes put up exceptional qualifying efforts so if they start inside the top 10 I may come off them both.
NASCAR Value Rankings
- Rajah Carruth ($6,500)
- Timmy Hill ($6,300)
- Chris Hacker ($5,300)
- Jesse Little ($6,000)
- Lawless Alan ($4,900)
- Dean Thompson ($5,600)
- Kaden Honeycutt ($5,500)
Make sure you head to the Win Daily Sports Discord for up-to-date info and help from our pros! Head over to Twitter and give the @WinDailySports account and me (@MVecchio81) a follow for all things Fantasy Sports! You can find more FREE NASCAR content over at WinDailySports.com!
Make sure to check out my NASCAR DFS Tutorial to ensure you are ready and understand how I break down the races and build lineups (https://windailysports.com/nascar-dfs-pit-stop-2021-introduction-to-nascar-dfs/).
There were a lot of changes in the cars and what driver is in what car/truck in 2022, check out my What’s new in 2022 article (https://windailysports.com/nascar-dfs-whats-new-in-2022/)
