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The NASCAR Cup Series is in Chicago this weekend for the second race on the street course. Last season, Shane Van Gisbergen shocked the NASCAR world by winning here in his first career start. Can he do it again in 2024?
Last week, the Cup Series was in Nashville. Joey Logano conserved fuel to an almost unbelievable level to end up in victory lane, withstanding restart after restart down the stretch. It was definitely a strange race, with the finishing order reflecting that. Zane Smith finished second. Ryan Preece had a top-five. Daniel Hemric had a top 10.
Below are my NASCAR DFS lineup picks for the Grant Park 165 on DraftKings and FanDuel this week. This slate locks on 7/7/2024 at 4:58 p.m. EDT. If you have any questions or want to talk about NASCAR, you can find me on Twitter at @juscarts.
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Kyle Larson
Starts First - DK: $10.5K, FD: $14.0K
It looked like Kyle Larson might have something for Shane Van Gisbergen early in Saturday's Xfinity Series race. Unfortunately, once the two were both mired back in traffic, Larson couldn't get to the front as fast. He did eventually get up to the front though, finishing third behind SVG and Ty Gibbs.
Larson has a great shot to get the win on Sunday as he starts from the pole, giving him a chance to lead laps early like he did on Saturday. He has a much better car than Van Gisbergen and will be likelier than not to hold the Aussie off, at least for a time. Obviously, it's a long race and anything can happen, but Larson looks like the favorite.
Shane Van Gisbergen
Starts Fifth - DK: $10.0K, FD: $13.5K
Shane Van Gisbergen has touched this street course twice. He's won both of those races. Last year, Van Gisbergen won in his first career Cup Series start at this track, taking advantage of the weather and using his Australian Supercars experience to outlast the competition.
That was fun, to win in the @WeatherTech Chevy at their home race is great! 😀👍 Had such a good time racing @KyleLarsonRacin in the first stage and a wild ending coming through the pack at the end. Cup race tomorrow, looking forward to it! pic.twitter.com/fUdfwdQIes
— Shane van Gisbergen (@shanevg97) July 6, 2024
Then on Saturday, he returned here in the Xfinity Series. SVG qualified on the pole and spent the early part of the race battling Kyle Larson at the front of the field. Pit timing saw him wind up mired back in the field, but he methodically worked his way to the front again, taking the lead on Lap 48 from Jesse Love.
Van Gisbergen is just so good at the technical aspects of the sport. He doesn't have to bump guys out of the way. Instead, he has perfect timing and can hit the right spots, get the right position, and get past anyone.
A.J. Allmendinger
Starts 37th - DK: $9.0K, FD: $10.5K
2024 hasn't been a great season for A.J. Allmendinger. In the Xfinity Series where he's running full-time, Allmendinger has an average finish of 14.6; in comparison, his average finish was 6.6 during his last full season back in 2022. And while he has top 10s in both his Cup Series starts on road courses this season, he never really felt like a threat to win in those races.
One of the favorites going into the weekend, AJ Allmendinger, will start 37th tomorrow. #NASCAR
— Dustin Albino (@DustinAlbino) July 6, 2024
This part-time Kaulig car he's in Sunday had no speed in qualifying, which has Allmendinger starting back in 37th. But when it comes to DFS, that's good news. While I don't know if he has the juice for a top-five run or even a top-10 run, Allmendinger should be good for 20-plus place differential points.
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— brent buckner (@tenndolly2) August 7, 2023
Austin Cindric
Starts 21st - DK: $7.5K, FD: $7.0K
Since winning at Gateway, Austin Cindric hasn't finished better than 15th, but a visit to the streets of Chicago could be a cure for this No. 2 team. Cindric is known for his road course racing prowess, which includes a fifth-place finish here last season. Cindric has a chance to get 10-15 place differential points if things break correctly for him.
Joey Hand
Starts 38th - DK: $6.9K, FD: $5.8K
This article is really heavy on non-full-time drivers. That wasn't my intention when I started it, but there just happened to be some intriguing place differential plays among those drivers.
NEWS: #Stage60 returns with Joey Hand and @BuildSubmarines for Chicago Street Course
MORE👉https://t.co/QHii4yDH9q pic.twitter.com/ShDqirW1p5
— RFK Racing (@RFKracing) June 12, 2024
Take Joey Hand, for example. He starts way back in 38th on Sunday and didn't have much speed on Saturday, but he's also in the best equipment he's ever run Cup in, and he had a pair of top 25s in 2022 for Rick Ware Racing back when that team was supremely bad. The 45-year-old driver has a ton of road course racing experience, including winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 24 Hours of Daytona.
Austin Hill
Starts 34th - DK: $5.8K, FD: $5.0K
Austin Hill's first two starts of the Cup Series season for RCR have been disasters as he finished 38th at Texas and 33rd at Kansas. Still, his experience at this track could come in useful on Sunday, making him an intriguing value place differential swing. He has finished fifth and seventh in his two Xfinity Series races at this track.
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