Welcome to the NASCAR DFS Truck Series for Saturday’s Truck Series CRC Brakleen 150 from Pocono Raceway. Friday’s practice and qualifying were rained out so we have no data to look over to get a feel for how these trucks will handle. Luckily, there is previous data from prior races that are relevant so we have that at least. For those who don’t know, Pocono is its own beast. It isn’t an oval or a road course, it’s a triangle, a tricky triangle to be exact. Pocono is a 2.5-mile track unique in ways other than its shape. Each of the three corners is modeled after different tracks but only one is consistent with a track NASCAR still runs at. Turn two, or the Tunnel Turn, is modeled after Indianapolis Motor Speedway and is widely known as the most difficult turn among drivers.
With this track being so large, there aren’t a lot of laps in this race, only 60 to be exact, which means we only have 42 dominator points available in this race. You all probably know where I am going with this, yep, we are not hunting dominator points this week. Instead, like with road courses, we want to look for drivers with good place differential upside as well trucks that could finish well.
There is some great value in this field with the starting grid being set by the NASCAR formula so stacking up three drivers from the top tier is easy to do. I expect the majority of my builds to consist of three from the top tier, one mid, and two value for this race.
Starting Position: 31st
Austin Hill is going to be the highest-owned driver on Saturday and I really can’t fault anyone for playing him. This truck (#7) is listed as a Spire Motorsports entry, but I am thinking RCR will have some help in preparing this truck for Saturday. Hill is coming off back-to-back top 5’s at Pocono in Truck Series and I expect him to finish in the top 5 again on Saturday.
Starting Position: 1st
I know I wrote that we aren’t chasing dominator points in this race, but there is no reason you can’t roster a driver who gets a significant amount of them and win this race. Zane Smith is that driver in my opinion. Smith leads all Truck Series regulars in average laps led per race (23.1 P/R), average fastest laps (12.1), and average finishing position (6.1). Smith is also the only driver in the Truck Series to average a top 10 finish on the season as well. Without seeing these trucks on track, Smith is my pick to win on Saturday.
Starting Position: 22nd
Preece will probably be the second highest-owned driver behind Austin Hill on Saturday but if you wanted to be different and fade him I can understand that. I plan on being heavily exposed to both Hill and Preece, but I also make 20 lineups. Preece has not finished lower than 11th in any of his previous six races in this truck in 2022 and has led at least three laps in five of his six races. In his last race in this series at Nashville, Preece dominated on his way to victory. I see Preece as a top 5 truck on Saturday with an outside chance at winning.
Other Options: Corey Heim ($10,400 – P17): Heim is another driver with some great place differential in the #51 KBM Toyota. John Hunter Nemechek ($11,100 – P12): JHN is another driver that could dominate this race, but he will need to lead some laps and finish top 3 to pay of this price tag. Carson Hocevar ($9,800 – P3): – Hocevar has some dominator potential, but at his price if he can finish in the top 5 we will be happy. I expect Hocevar to be low-owned making him a good GPP option.
Starting Position: 16th
DiBenedetto has never raced a truck at Pocono, but he has done fairly well here in a Cup Series car the last three seasons. In six races here since 2019, DiBenedetto has five finishes of 18th or better including a 6th place finish in 2020. While I think Matty D will be highly owned, you can roster him with three $10K+ drivers if you use the right value plays and I think that build will be different.
Starting Position: 18th
Gray is another driver who will carry some ownership in this tier, but not enough (around 20% projection) to warrant a fade. Gray has finished 16th and 12th in his two career races at Pocono and could better both those finishes on Saturday. It has not been a good run for Gray in the last few races, but this is a good truck and he will have Ryan Preece as a teammate this week so that should help him out with the setup for this truck. Tanner Gray has top 10 upside but realistically is a top 15 truck for me.
Starting Position: 36th
I fully expect Fogleman to be the highest owned driver in this tier but he is the safest play in this tier. After wrecking out in his first career Pocono race, Fogleman bounced back in 2021 with a 21st place finish. Fogleman starts dead last and if he can keep his truck in the race he should be a top 25 truck. I see a few trucks that he should be able to pass early and then ride the attrition wave to a solid day for his salary.
Other Options: Ben Rhodes ($8,900 – P11): Too cheap!, Tyler Ankrum ($8,500 – P14), Matt Crafton ($8,000 – P13)
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 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/).
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/)
Welcome to the NASCAR DFS Pit Stop for Saturday’s Xfinity Series race from Loudon, New Hampshire!
I can say one thing for absolute certainty about Saturday’s Crayon 200, somebody other than Christopher Bell or Kyle Busch will this race for the first time since 2015. Toyota’s, specifically JGR Toyota’s. have dominated the Xfinity Series in Loudon dating back to 2008. Since then, Toyota has won 11 of 13 races and that dates so far back that Dodge was still fielding teams in the series when this dominance started. All three of the JGR Toyota’s should be in for a great run on Saturday with all three fairing well in previous trips here or on similar track types in 2022.
Since we are on a short track this week that can only mean one thing, DOMINATOR points are in play! In the Xfinity race on Saturday, there are 200 laps which translates into 140 dominator points to be earned. These points will be critical, so my suggestion for building lineups will be to focus on picking your dominators and then looking at PD plays for the mid and value tiers.
With 140 dominator points available we will need to find potential dominators. There are about 3-4 drivers I have pinpointed as dominators for this race. With how pricing worked out, we can fit three top-tier drivers into our lineups, 2 dominators with one other driver. After that, we can look at 2 value and one mid-tier to round out our lineups.
Starting Position: 10th
Byron is the highest-priced driver in the field on Saturday, but he is still viable for both cash and GPP. Starting from P10, Byron has the best PD upside in this tier but he also is one of the few drivers I see with dominator potential. In Friday’s practice session, Byron was third fastest in single lap and had the best 10-lap average. Chevy’s have not had great luck here recently in the Xfinity Series, but Byron will be among the most skilled drivers in the field and will be in some of the best equipment.
Starting Position: 1st
Last season Berry ran his first career race in the Xfinity Series at Loudon and it was a success. In that race, Berry started 21st but finished 8th. Berry wasn’t showing great speed in practice finishing 14th but in 10-lap average, he was 2nd quickest. Berry starts on the pole and is going to be a potentially low-owned dominator in this race on Saturday. While Byron and the JGR cars will be more popular, and safer, Berry could be the difference maker in DFS. I view Berry as a top 5 car and one of the favorites to win.
Other Options: Justin Allgaier ($10,100 – P3) – Allgaier is another driver I can easily see dominating this race on Saturday and should come in at lower ownership like his teammate Berry. Sam Mayer ($9,300 – P12) – Great PD upside here for a driver with top 5 upside. AJ Allmendinger ($9,600 – P7) – Kind of hard to rule out a driver who has led laps here in the past and has been consistent all season.
Starting Position: 17th
Dillon had a momentous day off the track as PettyGMS announced he won’t be back in the Cup Series #42 in 2023, but on track, Dillon had a good day. In Friday’s practice session, Dilon looked fast in the Big Machine Racing #48 Chevy. In single lap speed, Dillon was 7th fastest, and in 10-lap average, he was 4th best. I didn’t see anything in his qualifying lap that would worry me on Saturday and I view Dillon as a top 10 car with top 5 upside.
Starting Position: 23rd
Jeb Burton has a fast car coming into Saturday’s race and should not be overlooked. Burton is a great cash game play, but can also be used in GPP’s if he fits your builds. In Friday’s practice session, Burton showed incredible speed and ability to get around this track putting up the 4th fastest single lap. Similar to Ty Dillon, Burton didn’t have any issues in qualifying so I think he has plenty of upside on Saturday.
Starting Position: 2nd
Hemric, similar to Berry, will most likely have next to no ownership on Saturday and has some dominator potential. Hemric is just a tick lower than Byron/Gibbs/Berry/Allgaier for me, but the potential is there. In his Xfinity career, Hemric has faired well at Loudon finishing 12th or better in each of his three career races here including his 3rd place finish last season. Hemric didn’t look fast in practice, but he said after qualifying that his team made an adjustment between practice and qualifying and it showed.
Other Options: Derek Griffith ($7,000 – P22) – Another driver who has a fast car but a bad qualifying effort. Brandon Brown ($7,600 – P19), Myatt Snider ($7,100 – P25)
Make sure you head to the Win Daily Sports Discord for up-to-date info and help directly 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 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/).
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/)
Welcome to the NASCAR DFS Truck Series for Saturday’s road course race from Mid-Ohio! This is the first time the Truck Series will be hitting the track here in Lexington, Ohio. Mid-Ohio is a 2.258-mile, 13-turn course that has held eight Xfinity races in previous seasons. This will be the third, and final, road course race in the 2022 season in the Truck Series. Saturday’s race is also the final race in the Triple Truck Challenge in which the driver who wins earns an additional $50K unless you’re Corey Heim who already won one of these races which means he will earn $150K if he wins.
In regards to the Xfinity race from Atlanta on Saturday, I mentioned earlier this week that I will not have an article out for that race. I will drop some plays post-qualifying about that race in Discord and you can read about the race earlier this season in my Atlanta weekend preview.
With rain causing some spins in qualifying we ended up with some of the top plays in this race qualifying extremely poor. Since this is a road course we are not hunting for dominator points, but instead we need to look for place differential plays and drivers who will finish well. By my count, there are six good place differential plays just in the top tier, so it will be about picking the right ones. Even though there are so many great PD plays in the top tier doesn’t mean there aren’t any in the value tier.
Starting Position: 13th
Smith is a great road course racer and should be considered one of the favorites on Saturday. In Friday’s practice session, Smith put down the fastest single lap and looked to have a great grasp on the track. In five career Truck Series road races, Smith has four top 10’s and won the race earlier this season at COTA.
Starting Position: 31st
Chandler Smith is the ultimate place differential play in Saturday’s race and will most likely be highly owned. Smith has been great in the two previous road course races in 2022 finishing 5th in both. In Friday’s practice session, Smith was not great finishing with the 18th best lap but I am not concerned.
Starting Position: 2nd
Kligerman is one of the few drivers starting near the front that I believe can finish near where he starts. In six career road course races, Kligerman has four top 10’s and one top 5 finish. Kligerman does not run full-time in the Truck Series, but whenever he is in the 75 truck he is a factor and runs inside the top 10. Can Kligerman steal the win here, of course, but I think it’s more likely for him to finish with a top 10.
As for the remaining drivers in this tier (all are in play):
Ben Rhodes (10,400 – P15)
Ty Majeski ($10,000 – P21)
Christian Eckes ($9,000 – P20)
Stewart Friesen ($9,200 – P19)
John Hunter Nemechek ($10,900 – P4)
Carson Hocevar ($10,200 – P3)
Corey Heim ($9,600 – P1)
Starting Position: 17th
Grala is a road course expert and has had some great finishes over the past two seasons in the Truck Series at this track type. In five races since 2021, Grala has yet to finish lower than 14th in any race and has finished as high as 2nd last year at COTA. In Friday’s practice session, Grala put up the 14th best time but I think he will finish better than that on Saturday. Grala is priced perfectly to fit with three top-tier drivers if you choose that build type.
Starting Position: 12th
Enfinger is not a world-class road course driver, but he is capable of a good finish. This season in two road course races, Enfinger has finished 11th and 10th. In Friday’s practice session, Enfinger looked really fast and it showed on the pylon as he put up the 4th best time. Enfinger has a top 5 truck, and he will need all the points he can get so look for this team to play strategy to get themselves near the front to be in contention for the win at the end.
Starting Position: 23rd
In five road course races over the past two seasons, Kraus has one top ten and an average finish of 17.6. Those aren’t outstanding numbers, but Kraus is another driver who needs points to get himself in the playoffs so he could play pit strategy to get near the front. In Friday’s practice, Krause was right outside the top 10 putting up the 11th fastest lap.
Other Options: Matt DiBenedetto ($8,200 – P6), Connor Mosack ($7,500 – P11), Matt Crafton ($7,800 – P5)
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 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/).
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/)
Welcome to the NASCAR DFS Pit Stop for Saturday’s Xfinity Series race from Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin! This course is one of my favorite road courses on the NASCAR circuit because it usually has a competitive and fun race to watch. Road America is a 4.048-mile, 14-turn road course and one of NASCAR’s fastest courses.
I believe I have a good feel for the field in this race after watching practice and qualifying on Friday. There are some really good cars starting at the back, especially the car starting 38th. There is also some good value in this field which is what I really was hoping for because stacking the cars at the top of the salary range is where I want to load up. With this race only being 45 laps, do not focus on dominator points. I would rank that as the third most important stat after place differential and finishing position. Last season in this race no driver led more than 12 laps and the winner (Kyle Busch) led only 5 laps.
I briefly mentioned it above, but like with most weeks in the Xfinity Series, I want to build around drivers in the top pricing tier this week. There are some good plays in the mid-tier, but with the drivers at the top of the salary chart this week we might only be rostering one per lineup. Stars and scrubs will probably be the popular approach so getting a mid-tier driver into your lineups might be the best chance at differentiating your lineup from the field.
Allmendinger is the top overall play on this slate and should be in all contest builds. He will be in the 50-60% range in tournaments and probably over 75% in cash games. I don’t see a reason to fade the best driver on this track type in the field no matter what contest you’re in. Allmendinger put up top 5 laps in practice but had brake issues and could not make a qualifying attempt. On Saturday, Allmendinger will drive through the field, he will finish in the top 5, and could even pick up some dominator points in the process.
Larson is my pick to win this race after seeing the dominance he displayed in practice and qualifying. Larson will be in the #17 car for HMS on Saturday but this isn’t just any Xfinity car. This car is a Cup car that Larson drove last season in road course races. I don’t see anyone beating Larson, other than Larson himself, on Saturday.
Both Reddick and Custer have fast cars and put up great times in both practice and qualifying. Custer actually had the fastest time in practice on Friday meanwhile, Reddick was 5th. Both of these drivers have earned their respective teams their first-ever Xfinity wins in 2022 and will be in contention on Saturday. With Allmendinger and Larson both projecting to be extremely high owned, both Reddick and Custer should come in at low ownership and make for outstanding GPP plays.
Ty Gibbs ($11,100 – P2): Gibbs is excellent on road courses and could be the one driver to overtake Larson for the win. In practice, Gibbs was 3rd fastest.
Justin Allgaier ($10,200 – P15): Allgaier was not exceptionally fast in practice and is starting mid-pack but I am not concerned because this team usually makes the right adjustments in race to fix his car. Allgaier is not a top-tier road course driver, but he does have six top 10’s in the last three seasons.
Noah Gragson ($10,300 – P7): Gragson is another driver who might go under the radar because of the drivers in this tier, but make no mistake this is a good road course driver in top equipment. Gragson has six top 10’s and two top 5’s in 9 career Xfinity road course races. In between practice and qualifying, Gragson spent time discussing the track and his car with Larson, or at least that’s what one can assume as they were sitting together. Picking the brain of one of the top drivers in all of NASCAR can never be a bad thing and I expect a top 5 from Gragson on Saturday.
Starting Position: 22nd
Hemric is a great play on Saturday, and I would actually rank him ahead of Gibbs, Allgaier, and Gragson. In practice, Hemric was running near the front all session and ended up with the sixth-best lap time. Unfortunately, qualifying didn’t go his way. While tracking as the 5th best time, Hemric got loose and went a little off track, but that completely ruined his lap and did not have time to run another lap and is stuck starting towards the back. Last season at RA, Hemric finished 2nd and he has been good on road courses in 2022. In Portland a few weeks ago, Hemric finished 6th, his second-best finish in 2022.
Starting Position: 32nd
Snider was in the mid-20s in practice so on the surface there doesn’t appear to be much upside with him. In two road course races in 2022, Snider finished 6th at COTA after starting 21st, and in Portland, he finished 2nd after starting 25th. Snider could pick up some ownership, but at his salary, I don’t think he will be unplayable in GPPs.
Starting Position: 26th
Dillon is in the #6 car for Johnny Davis, but similar to Larson this isn’t just any old car. The chassis for this car is an old RCR chassis and it is being assumed that RCR helped prepare this car. Dillon was right around the top 15 in practice on Friday but had a slip-up in qualifying that left him starting much further back. Dillon is a top 15 car in my eyes and with attrition, could steal a top 10.
John Hunter Nemechek ($8,600 – P35) – JHN should be better than this on Saturday, but with him starting so far back he will be chalk. If you are playing cash games, then lock in Nemechek but in GPP’s I will be fading him. He was not fast in practice and could bust and end up as bad chalk.
Other Options: Alex Labbe ($7,000 – P18), Andy Lally ($7,900 – P23), Ryan Sieg ($7,400 – P27), Landon Cassill ($8,100 – P20)
Make sure you head to the Win Daily Sports Discord for up-to-date info and help directly 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 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/).
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/)
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