Daily Fantasy Nascar Picks
Coca Cola 600

DFSR is proud to bring you our newest contributor Chris Durell. He'll be bringing weekly Nascar picks, analysis and breakdowns to help you cash on DraftKings. If you are new to DraftKings Nascar DFS be sure to click on the banner below.

Coca Cola 600

Charlotte Motor Speedway – Concord, North Carolina

Not sure about you, but I have been waiting for this moment since I started playing daily fantasy sports. The introduction of daily fantasy NASCAR has arrived. Thank you Draftkings. I have been playing year long fantasy Nascar for about 4 or 5 years now and have played Yahoo leagues as well as Nascar.com Fantasy Live leagues. Daily Fantasy Nascar on Draftkings is best compared to the Nascar.com Fantasy Live game. So if you are familiar with setting a team for that setup you should easily be able to jump right in to DFS Nascar. If you have never played fantasy Nascar before I will run through the points system Draftkings will be using. First off here is the link to see the Points Structure Draftkings uses. Besides the points received for finishing position each driver will also receive points for Place Differential. This means if your driver starts 10th and finishes 2nd he will receive 8 points and if he finished 18th he would lose 8 points. Drivers will also receive .5 points for every fastest lap they record during the race. Pretty straight forward. They will also receive .25 points for every lap they lead during the race. Finally, drivers will receive +/- .25 points for Pass Differential. This is a simple calculation:

(amount of cars driver has passed) – (amount of times cars passed your driver)
*All passes must be during Green Flag run on track
An example of this would be if you chose Tony Stewart and he passed 38 cars during the race and he was passed 30 times (+8 differential x .25 points = 2 points)

This type of scoring presents a tremendous amount of strategy to the game. If you choose a driver who starts up front and dominates the race (Harvick or Jimmy on 1.5 mile tracks) you will most likely get good points for finishing position, some fastest lap points, and depending on cautions and driver/crew chief strategy you may also get some pass differential points but that upside is limited as the car will be up front all race. Another interesting strategy would be picking a driver who start outside the top 20 but had fast laps in practice or a driver who may be in backup car and starting from rear. This presents huge upside for pass differential and if the driver can work his way to the front and win or at least top 5 you should be able to pile up the points. However, by starting from the back you limit the laps led upside. Combine just these 2 strategies with the fact there every track is different and every teams strategies at these tracks are different and you get alot of ways to skin the cat. For instance, some teams at the Super Speedways like to hang out at the back and avoid “The Big One”. This limits their upside for pass differential, laps led, and fastest laps.

What I am trying to tell you from all this information is that DFS Nascar isn’t just picking 6 drivers who fit under the salary cap. Yes, that strategy can work at times but won’t be a consistent approach. It will require research into many different areas to become consistent at this. You're in luck! I am here to help give you some very useful information and my insight into each race and try and help find the studs and values for each race. I will be looking at past history at current track, current form, lap times during practices, qualifying order, salary, vegas odds, and more. I will be writing my article for a Wednesday post on the site. In the initial article I will preview the track and race that weekend as well as highlight a few picks in different tiers based on track history and/or current form. As there is a lot of information that isn’t available until practices and qualifying is over I will be updating the article after these events are complete. On most tracks there will be 3 practices and a qualifying session. For example, this weekend at Charlotte first practice is Thursday afternoon followed by qualifying same day. Saturday drivers get 2 more practice sessions and then the race is on Sunday. I really concentrate on Final Practice or Happy Hour as it is referred to as most teams will have their cars setup and tuned for the race. I will update the article with a list of practice speeds, fastest laps, 10 lap run avg speed and so on. I will make final picks and re post article. As always, please follow me on Twitter(@Jagerbombs9) if you have any questions about drivers or stats during the week or if you just want to BS. Ok, now onto the the first article!

Welcome Nascar fans and DFS players alike to the first ever DFS Nascar event held at Draftkings.com. The first race will be the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Charlotte is the home of Nascar as a high % of the teams have their home shops within an short drive of the track. The Coca Cola 600 is the longest race during the season at 600 miles and 40 laps. The Sprint All Star race was held here last weekend so the drivers have had a lot of track time to figure out their setups for the race this week. Denny Hamlin came out on top and won the million dollars at the All Star Race but don’t just pick him this week because of that. The All Star race setup is a bit different than other races. They run 4 segments and take the average finish in those 4 to determine final 10 lap starting order. Yes, there is good information to take away like lap times and fast laps however we don’t see any long runs which can be key for some teams during the race. Whenever there is a points race at a 1.5 mile track you start the conversation with 2 names. Kevin Harvick and Jimmy Johnson. Combined they have won the last 7 races on 1.5 mile tracks. Absolutely dominant. This would be why they are the top 2 in salary this week. I will start almost every lineup this week with one or the other. It will be very tough to take both in a lineup without capping your upside. There isn’t a lot of value near the bottom to do stars and scrubs so I would recommend balanced lineups where you can get 4-6 drivers who all have a chance at winning. If you are looking to employ a risky strategy I would hold off for the Daytona and Talladega as well as the short tracks. Below are my initial picks for each Tier. Check back on Saturday around 2pm et for my update once all drivers have completed final practice.

Tier 1 Targets (DK Price $11,000-Max)

Kevin Harvick - $14,200
Sprint Cup Standings – 1st
Qualified - 8th
My #1 ranked driver this week is a no doubter. Harvick has been awesome this year in 11 starts. Two wins, 8 top 5's, and 10 top 10's. He has a 46 point lead on Truex for 2nd not quite a 1/3 into the season. When looking at his track history at Charlotte Motor Speedway it is best in the field since 2010. He has 3 wins, 4 top 5's and 8 top 10's with an average finish of 6.0. He has been fast all year and is at his best on 1.5 mile tracks. I will have high exposure to Harvick in both Cash and GPP.

Jimmy Johnson - $13,200
Sprint Cup Standings – 3rd
Qualified - 13th
I found it hard to choose between Harvick and Johnson at Charlotte so I am writing about both. Besides 2 bad races Johnson has been as dominant as Harvick. This is tough for me to write as my dad is a hardcore Jimmy Fan and I am a fan of Kyle Busch so take me seriously here! He has 3 wins in 11 starts, 7 top 5's, and 7 top 10's. He has 7 wins here in his career and in his last 10 starts here not including the All Star Race he has 1 win, 4 top 5's, & 4 Top 10's with an average finish of 16.0. Add the fact the Harvick or Jimmy has won the last seven 1.5 mile track races and I can see me splitting my lineups this week with both of them.

Matt Kenseth - $11,300
Sprint Cup Standings - 7th
Qualified - 1st
My final driver in Tier 1 this week is Kenseth. He comes in as the cheapest in my 1st tier and I definitely see some value in using him this week. First off he has 1 win, 3 top 5's, & 6 top 10's. Three of those top 10's have also come at 1.5 mile tracks. In his last 10 races at Charlotte, Kenseth has 1 win, 3 top 5's, and 6 top 10's to go with an average finish of 9.5. I have already constructed a lineup I absolutely love with Johnson and Kenseth at the top. Roll him out this week!

Tier 2 Targets (DK Price $9100-$11,000)

Kyle Busch - $10,300
Sprint Cup Standings - N/A
Qualified - 17th
Kyle returned, after an injury layoff, to the #18 M&M's Toyota last weekend for the All Star Race and finished 6th. Not too shabby for not being in a race car since before Daytona. His motivation will lie in the fact he needs to get inside the Top 30 in standings and have a win by years end to qualify for the Chase to the Sprint Cup Playoffs. I like his chances(slightly biased as he is my favorite driver). I like him to start things off this week at the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte, a track where he has had success in the past. In his last 10 starts here he has 7 top 5's and 8 top 10's. Kyle's playoffs start now so expect him to give it 100% every week from here on out.

Kasey Kahne - $10,100
Sprint Cup Standings - 10th
Qualified - 33rd
Next up in tier 2 is the #5 car, Kasey Kahne. He has shown flashes this year but hasn't been able to finish yet. He has 1 top 5 and 3 top 10's so far. No better track for him to get it going than Charlotte Motor Speedway. Kahne has 4 wins lifetime here and in his last 10 races here has 1 win, 4 top 5's, & 6 top 10's to go with an average finish of 11.3.

Jamie McMurray - $9300
Sprint Cup Standings - 8th
Qualified - 22nd
A nice value this in Tier 2 is McMurray. So far this year he has 2 top 5's and 4 top 10's. He started the year going 40th at Daytona and then 27th at Atlanta. Since then he hasn't finished worse than 21st. In his last 10 races here at Charlotte he has 1 win, 4 top 5's & 4 top 10's to go with an average finish of 15.1. Great pick for both cash and GPP this week.

Tier 3 Targets (DK Price $7900-$9000)

Austin Dillon - $8200
Sprint Cup Standings - 25th
Qualified - 11th
Austin Dillon is my top pick in Tier 3 this week. He only has 1 top 10 this year but 6 top 20's. He has raced this track twice in the Sprint Cup series and has an average finish of 14.5. Not bad for such a young driver.

AJ Allmendinger - $8100
Sprint Cup Standings - 19th
Qualified - 30th
When you get down to these prices it is very tough to find drivers that can get a top 20. I may have found one who can do better than that. The Dinger is probably the best comeback story in the sport in years. After overcoming personal issues and a suspension from the sport he back full time in a Sprint Cup Series car. He has got 2 top 10's in 2015 and has finished 14,17,13 his last 3 races. Both of his top 10's this year have come at 1.5 mile tracks as well. In his last 8 starts at Charlotte he has 1 top 5 and 2 top 10's to go with an average finish of 17.9. I will be using AJ in GPP lineups to fit in Harvick and Johnson at the top.

Tier 4 Target (DK Pricing MIN-$7800)

Trevor Bayne - $7700
Sprint Cup Standings - 29th
Qualified - 27th
Bayne was the only guy sub $7800 I even feel a little comfortable with rostering. He has 2 top 20's on the year and has raced here 5 times in the past with 2 top 20's and an average finish of 22.6. I will try one Stars and Scrubs roster and fit Bayne in. Maybe!!

***Update #1***
Practice Session 1 Top 10
To see the complete list click HERE
1. Carl Edwards
2. Jimmy Johnson
3. Kasey Kahne
4. Kevin Harvick
5. David Ragan
6. Brad Keselowski
7. Jamie McMurray
8. Kyle Larson
9. Austin Dillon
10. Denny Hamlin

Qualifying Order Top 10:
To see the complete list click HERE
1. Matt Kenseth
2. Joey Logano
3. Carl Edwards
4. Greg Biffle
5. Denny Hamlin
6. Brad Keselowski
7. David Ragan
8. Kevin Harvick
9. Kyle Larson
10. Martin Truex
*Note- #5 Kasey Kahne blew a tire in qualifying and will start P.33. This could be a good chance to lock in some Pass Differential Points on Draftkings as he was fast in practice and should make his way to the front fairly fast.

Final Update
Practice #2 Top 10
For complete list click HERE
1. Kurt Busch
2. Matt Kenseth
3. Jimmy Johnson
4. David Ragan
5. Brad Keselowski
6. Kyle Busch
7. Jamie McMurray
8. Jeff Gordon
9. Kasey Kahne
10. Joey Logano

Final Practice Top 10
For complete list click HERE
1. Kurt Busch
2. Kasey Kahne
3. Paul Menard
4. Greg Biffle
5. Matt Kenseth
6. Martin Truex Jr.
7. Ryan Blaney
8. Brad Keselowski
9. Carl Edwards
10. Kevin Harvick

I am really liking the speed that Kurt Busch has been displaying this weekend so far. Matt Kenseth is also showing top speeds after grabbing the Pole for Sunday. Kahne, who had tire issues in practice, will start 33rd and has also been in the top 10 speeds in practices so I really like the value with him being able to get extra passes as he works his way to the front of the pack. He should also have a chance to get some laps led in the 2nd half of race as well as fastest laps. Be careful with Bayne and Allmendinger as they both posted practice times outside the top 20 in final 2 practices. Good luck this week!

Chris Durell has been playing Daily Fantasy Sports for three years and fantasy in general for more than a decade. He is active player in college football, NFL, NBA and of course PGA. He lives in Saskatchewan, Canada with his wife and two daughters. You can follow him on Twitter at @jager_bombs9 for advice, strategy, answers to any PGA questions and how he copes with the winters up north.

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