If you’re looking for a primer for the Rouff Mortgage 500, check out our preview here. If you’re looking for some race day recommendations, I’ve got you covered for both FanDuel and DraftKings which are the two primary sites that host DFS competitions. Finally, if you play season-long fantasy, I’ll try to give you a wide array of ideas on who to roster or not roster this week, but obviously, the final decision is yours related to how your league is scored.
One note: Keep in mind that qualifying position (QP) is very important with regard to NASCAR fantasy. For comparison’s sake, FanDuel rewards laps led with only 0.1 point but you earn or lose 0.5 points for place differential. On DraftKings, it’s even more stark: Laps led is 0.25 points whereas place differential is +/- 1 point.
Now that qualifiers are done and Ryan Blaney sits in pole position, here are the drivers I am focused on for today’s race:
Rouff Mortgage 500: Race Day Values
FanDuel Values
| Driver | Salary | QP |
|---|---|---|
| Bubba Wallace | $4,000 | 27 |
| Chase Elliott | $12,500 | 19 |
| Joey Logano | $12,000 | 10 |
| Kevin Harvick | $10,000 | 16 |
| Austin Cindric | $7,300 | 8 |
DraftKings Values
| Driver | Salary | QP |
|---|---|---|
| Chase Elliott | $10,700 | 19 |
| Joey Logano | $10,400 | 10 |
| Brad Keselowski | $8,200 | 18 |
| Martin Truex, Jr. | $9,800 | 20 |
| Aric Amirola | $7,900 | 5 |
Creating the balance of contenders and drivers who should have a good showing is the key to NASCAR lineups. After the qualifiers yesterday, the field shook out in a manner that makes this slightly easier (Chase Elliott) and a little trickier (Aric Almirola) as both of those drivers appeared in my preview. Elliott’s qualifying position of 19 gives him what seems to be a perfect amount of positional gain opportunities while remaining within contention of victory. (For good drivers, this could be any position, of course, but 19 feels like the best of both worlds.)
Almirola’s outlook was made just slightly trickier in that his qualifying position of fifth gives him the opposite problem when it comes to positional movement. However, it does put him in contention with potential for leading some laps, including the last one.
Kevin Harvick remains a solid play on both sites as his track record in Phoenix shines brightest among the group. His salary and qualifying position make him appealing as a lineup builder.
One thing I forgot to mention last week is for those who are playing in GPPs with multiple lineups, the need to stretch/take risks and find some lower-rostered drivers is imperative to winning. My top three choices who are predicted to be in less than 10 percent of total rosters are: Austin Cindric, Austin Dillon, and Ty Dillon.
With all that in mind, here are two lineups, one for each site, that I think will do well and hopefully bring home some cash. Thoughts? Discussion? Hit me up on Twitter @thewonkypenguin. And, as always, good luck!
Top DFS Lineups for Rouff Mortgage 500
FanDuel Lineup
| Driver | Salary |
|---|---|
| Chase Elliott | $12,500 |
| Joey Logano | $12,000 |
| Kevin Harvick | $10,000 |
| Aric Almirola | $8,800 |
| Bubba Wallace | $4,000 |
| Total | $47,300 |
DraftKings Lineup
| Driver | Salary |
|---|---|
| Chase Elliott | $10,700 |
| Martin Truex, Jr. | $9,800 |
| Denny Hamlin | $10,100 |
| Brad Keselowski | $8,200 |
| Ty Dillon | $5,900 |
| Todd Gilliland | $4,900 |
| Total | $49,600 |