The NASCAR Spring Cup Series shifts to Fontana, California for the Auto Club 400 this week. The big names have dominated this event in the past, including Jimmie Johnson, who won here in 2016. We took the time to break down the DraftKings driver pool in order to figure out the perfect blend of talent and strong value picks. Here is a look at the optimal lineup for this week’s DraftKings NASCAR daily fantasy leagues.
Kyle Busch, $10,500
Busch came extremely close to securing his first win of the season last week. He should have an excellent chance at getting the job done this week. Busch has posted three wins at the Auto Club 400 and his experience should help when he hits the course at Fontana. Busch has been snake-bitten early on this season. He did have a second-place result at The Clash at Daytona but he then finished 12th at the Can-Am Duel, 38th at the Daytona 500, 16th at the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Atlanta, 22nd in Las Vegas but did come in third last week at the race in Phoenix. It seems like it’s only a matter of time before he finally captures that elusive win. Remember, this is a guy that won four times last year while finishing in the top five 17 different times.
Jimmie Johnson, $9,800
Johnson might be off to a slow start this season but he has been dominant at this event, so maybe he gets on track this week. In 22 career starts here, Johnson has six wins and 13 top five finishes. In fact, Johnson’s early season struggles have lowered his DraftKings price tag, making him an even better value this week. Johnson is a threat to win the Auto Club 400 every year so he should be a lock in your lineup this weekend. It’s a little bit more than we want to pay but we’re banking on his history here.
Denny Hamlin, $8,500
There is only so much money to spread around throughout our lineup so it makes sense to take a chance on Hamlin at a decent price here. Hamlin finished third at this event a year ago so he could build off that positive experience this week. Hamlin is coming off back-to-back top-10 finishes so hopefully he can add another to his resume this weekend.
Kurt Busch, $8,200
The younger Busch brother is one of the better value plays on the board this week at just $8.2K. Kurt has placed in the top-five in three of his last four starts at this track. Busch has finished outside of the top-20 in each of his last two starts but that might just mean he is overdue for a strong outing. He definitely has the track record for success if you are worried about his slow start to the season. The combination of his resume at Fontana and his relatively low price tag makes him the perfect value pick this week.
Paul Menard, $6,800
Menard has been excellent in the Xfinity Series. It might be only a matter of time before he breaks through in the Sprint Cup Series. Menard finished fifth in the Daytona 500. While he hasn’t finished in the top-10 since, he has registered three consecutive top-25 results. Menard placed 15th in the race a year ago. At $6.8K, he is definitely a strong value pick with high upside.
Danica Patrick, $6,200
It’s hard to balance out our lineup with so many high upside plays but Patrick might be the best option. Patrick has struggled out of the gate this season but she did finish 22nd at Phoenix last week. Patrick placed a disappointing 31st at this race a year ago, but we are willing to look past it. With $6.2K left over for our final roster spot, the hope is that Patrick can find a way in to the top-25 at the Auto Club 400 this weekend.
Next 5 Races
STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway – Sunday, April 2
O’Reilly Auto Parts 500 at Texas Motor Speedway – Sunday, April 9
Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway – Sunday, April 23
Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway – Sunday, April 30
Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway – Sunday, May 7
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