NASCAR DFS Pit Stop: Truck Series Knoxville (Dirt) 7/9/21

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Welcome to the NASCAR DFS Pit Stop for the Truck series for the 2021 season! If you’ve been with us before then you know the drill, but if you are new the WinDaily Sports or to my NASCAR content, welcome! I break down the field each week and give you my favorite plays for each race in three different price categories.

Make sure to check out my NASCAR DFS Tutorial to make sure 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/). You will notice that all pricing is for DraftKings in these articles since they are the only site with contests for all three series (Trucks, Xfinity, Cup) and the site I mainly play on. All plays in the Cup Series article will translate to FanDuel if that is where you play.

Listen, everyone, I’m going to be blunt with you all, this whole race sucks as far as DFS purposes go. We won’t know the starting grid until about an hour before the green flag and it is really a crapshoot when it comes to who will do well. I will recommend playing light, don’t empty your bankroll because of a birthday or silly narrative you find…Brian looking at you…but instead, put a little on it and enjoy the action Friday night.

Instead of giving you the usual categories I am going to rank my favorite drivers in two categories. The First will be the Truck Series regulars, and the second will be the dirt track ringers. I will be in discord giving updates after the heat races to any changes that may be needed. One positive is that ALL trucks will qualify for this race so there is no need to worry about any drivers being sent home. We did have practice on Thursday night so I will at least be able to use that as somewhat of a basis on how drivers could run.

As with every week, each tier of drivers is listed in order of preference

NASCAR DFS: Truck Series Regulars

Stewart Friesen ($10,400)

Single lap practice rank: 22nd

Friesen is the class of the field when it comes to dirt track racing in NASCAR. Over his career in the Truck Series, Friesen has raced on dirt five times with three top 5’s and a victory in 2019 at Eldora. Friesen has also led 152 laps in the five races.

Matt Crafton ($9,100)

Single lap practice rank: 2nd

Matt Crafton is one of the better, if not second best to Friesen, in the field of Truck Series regulars when it comes to dirt. Crafton has plenty of experience with eight total dirt track races in his career. Over those races, Crafton has amassed seven top 10’s, two top 5’s, and a win in 2017 at Eldora.

Hailie Deegan ($6,800)

Single lap practice rank: 5th

Deegan didn’t run great at Bristol earlier this season, but she did get a top 20 (19th). In her career before this season Deegan has been superb on dirt. In three dirt races at lower series, Deegan has two second place finishes and a win. On Thursday Deegan was top 5 in practice and really seemed like she had a good feel for the track.

Todd Gilliland ($8,900)

Single lap practice rank: 29th

Gilliland is not generally known as a dirt track specialist but he has done well in his few NASCAR dirt races. Gilliland has run three dirt track races in his NASCAR career and has two top 5’s including a 4th place finish at Bristol (dirt) this season. In practice on Thursday, Gilliland did show some good speed early and looked to have a handle on this track. Depending on how he looks in his qualifying heat, Gilliland has a shot at being our low-owned gem and lead us back to the green like he has done a few times this season already.

Austin Wayne Self ($5,400)

Single lap practice rank: 21st

Self finished 10th earlier this season at Bristol, but that wasn’t a fluke. In his career, Self has run four races on dirt and has an average finish of 12.5 with his worse finish being 18th place. Self could end up being one of the top value plays on the slate depending on where he qualifies.

NASCAR DFS: Dirt Track Specialists

Donny Schatz ($10,700)

Single lap practice rank: 4th

Schatz is one of the most accomplished dirt track racers in the history of the sport. After 31 years of racing on dirt, Schatz is making his NASCAR debut at a track he knows well. Schatz is a ten time winner of the Knoxville Nationals as well has having 300 World of Outlaws wins (3rd most). Schatz has also won ten WoO championships. With all this being said I really think Schatz could be a sleeper pick to win this race. I know the price is steep, but it’s hard to not consider him with his credentials and the speed he showed on Thursday.

Brian Brown ($10,100)

Single lap practice rank: 9th

Brian Brown will be in the KBM #51 on Friday night and while he isn’t as accomplished as Schatz he is a great dirt driver. Brown is a seven time champion at the Knoxville Nationals and set the fastest lap time at Knoxville earlier this year. We know that Brown is in one of the best trucks in the series and should easily compete for a top 5 on Friday.

Kyle Strickler ($7,000)

Single lap practice rank: 19th

Kyle Strickler is replacing Spencer Boyd in the #20 truck this week and is himself a dirt track veteran. Strickler has run two races in the NASCAR Truck Series, both at Eldora. After a wreck in thee 2018 Eldora race, Strickler came back in 2019 and finished 18th. Strickler ran a top 20 practice lap on Thursday and depending where he qualifies he could be a top mid-tier pla

NASCAR DFS: Cup/Xfinity Regulars

There are really only two drivers that are hopping into a truck ride this week that would be viable for me. Chase Briscoe ($11,000) is the top priced driver and will be popular I believe. Briscoe has four top 10’s in four dirt races in his career as well as three top 5’s. Chase also has an average finish of 4th with his worst finish being a 7th place finish.

Josh Berry ($6,900) is a pretty good play for me at this price. Berry is back in the #25 for Rackley W.A.R. on Friday. After practice on Thursday, Berry could be a contender for a top 10 finish after coming home with the 17th fastest lap. If Berry qualifies poorly then at this price for his upside could be key.

Last but not least, well almost least based on his practice times, Michael Annett is hopping into the 02 that Kris Wright usually pilots. Annett did not have a good go of it in practice finishing 39th with only Jennifer Joe Cobb running slower.

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