The longest race of the NASCAR season is in the books. Anybody that had money on Jimmie Johnson in the Coca-Cola 600 is likely still shaking their head. Johnson was in position to cruise to a victory in last week’s race before he ran out of gas with a couple of laps to go and allowed Austin Dillon to pass him for the eventual win. For as bad as things were for Johnson last week, the disappointment should serve as added motivation heading in to this week’s AAA 400 Drive For Autism from Dover International Speedway. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for this week’s DraftKings NASCAR daily fantasy leagues.
Jimmie Johnson, $10,200
No driver has been better at Dover than Johnson over the years. The driver of the No. 48 car has delivered a series-best 10 wins at the Monster Mile with an average finishing position of 9.53. Johnson and his team should be motivated to perform at as close to perfect as possible following last week’s embarrassment in Charlotte. Johnson seems overdue for a win and he is worth investing in at just over $10K in this week’s DraftKings competitions.
Kyle Larson, $10,100
No driver has been more consistent this season than Larson, who has placed in the top-10 in seven of his 12 starts including a win. Larson also has a decent track record at Dover where he has placed in the top-11 in five of his last six starts. The combination of his consistency and his track performance makes Larson an excellent pick in this week’s DraftKings competitions for the AAA 400 Driver For Autism.
Kyle Busch, $9,800
Busch has had a ton of bad luck so far this season but he won the All-Star Race at Charlotte and should feel fairly comfortable this week at the Monster Mile. Experience will be important this week and Busch grew up racing on the high-banked concrete track at Dover so he knows how to handle it. A year ago, Busch qualified third in this race and led 102 laps on the way to a runner-up finish. Busch is another driver that seems overdue for a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup race win. Even if he falls short of that goal he should be in the mix with a top-10 finish.
Kasey Kahne, $8,000
Kahne is coming off a rough start at Charlotte but he posted three straight top-20 results before that and should be confident that he can bounce back heading in to this race at Dover. The driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet placed fourth in this race a year ago so he has proven he can handle the Monster Mile. With a focus on experience and poise, Kahne could turn out to be a decent value pick at $8K for this week’s DraftKings competitions.
A.J. Allmendinger, $6,700
With just under $12K left over to address our final two positions, it only makes sense that we will take a chance on two drivers with high upside. Allmendinger placed 22nd in Charlotte before dropping back to 30th in last week’s Coca-Cola 600. However, he has been fairly reliable based on his ultra-low price tag including a pair of surprise top-10 finishes in the Daytona 500 and at Martinsville. Allmendinger placed 23rd in last year’s AAA 400 Driver For Autism. If he can duplicate that performance for us this year, it will make him an excellent value pick in DraftKings tournaments.
David Ragan, $5,000
Ragan’s ultra-low DraftKings price tag gave us the flexibility that we needed to load up with the top four picks in our lineup. Ragan has just one top-10 finishes this season but he has consistently run in the top-25 and that is more than good enough for a driver that is available at just $5K. Count on Ragan as a strong sleeper value pick for this week’s race in order to load up on some of the top talents on the board in DraftKings competitions for this week’s AAA 400 Driver For Autism. We don’t need a lot out of him and we definitely don’t expect him to win the race. However, a nice Top 10 finish would really help us out.
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