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After a LONG week off from eNASCAR Pro Invitational racing due to the Easter holiday, we are officially back at it, and heading to virtual Richmond to watch the guys drive fake cars on fake racetracks. The first DraftKings eNASCAR contest in history was a huge success with DK maxing out their main tourney (not to mention the millions of people that tuned in on FS1). While we await the return of real NASCAR racing, I'm fine with scratching my DFS itch with this product, because it's far better than making lineups with dudes playing a game in magical forests fighting each other (LOL is garbage, and I dont care what you have to say about it because I'm salty that I won no money after sitting in third place in a tourney for an entire day).
Getting back to the sport itself, It's been a very tough week for NASCAR fans due to the Kyle Larson incident that happened on Easter night. Twitter has been a madhouse full of divided fans, and it hurts to see it happening. What Larson did was wrong, and I feel that what has happened to him since then was just, because in 2020 there is no place for the use of racial slurs (We as human beings are better than that). NASCAR can and will bounce back from this, but this should be a huge lesson to everyone that its time we as a species be better to each other.
Before you make your picks this Sunday, it's important to note that DraftKings will be locking up lineups shortly after the field is set around 1 PM ET. Certain non-cup, and cup series drivers won't be sure bets until they qualify into the race on Sunday morning (Some big names in this qualifier are Earnhardt Jr., Bobby Labonte, Landon Cassill, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Daniel Suarez). Be sure to wake up early on Sunday and check my twitter page for updates (@GarageGuyChase).
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DFS Lineup Picks - DraftKings
Be sure to also check out all of our other weekly NASCAR DFS articles and analysis to help you set your optimal DFS lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
Clint Bowyer #14 (DraftKings - $8,100 | iRating - NA)
Bowyer stacked up some solid points two weeks ago at the Food City Showdown, and also made Bubba Wallace rage quit the race (EL OH EL). Wallace may not take iRacing that serious (and is a reason I avoid him in these contests), but Bowyer has a way about him where he can compete, and still act like he doesn't really care. Bowyer is one of my favorites this week due to him usually starting towards the rear, and his good DFS production at the real Richmond Raceway.
Kyle Busch #18 (DraftKings - $8,500 | iRating - NA)
Busch was looking like a brand new iRacer at virtual Bristol until he got caught up. Many are noticing that he's improving, and some are even saying that he's going to even win one of these races before long. Busch has an excellent record at the real Richmond Raceway with two wins and 427 laps led since 2018, so dont be too afraid to throw him in some of your lineups.
Jimmie Johnson #48 (DraftKings - $6,100 | iRating - NA)
Seven-Time will most definitely have his work cut out for him on Sunday, but I'm taking a shot on him. Johnson actually finished ahead of where he started two weeks ago at virtual Bristol (like four spots, but hey great job guy) and for his price on DraftKings, I'm willing to roll the dice on him doing it again. Johnson has been a solid play since 2015 at the real Richmond when it comes to place differential, so pairing him with some heavy hitters could be a jackpot move.
William Byron #24 (DraftKings - $11,000 | iRating - 6502)
I dont even know why I have to write about Byron anymore, but some of you might be new here so here we go. Byron won the last Pro Invitational at virtual Bristol while leading 116 laps (yes that dude did that). Byron has already started practicing for Richmond, and has been starting and finishing in P1 (this concludes my not so necessary paragraph on why you should start William Byron).
Timmy Hill #66 (DraftKings - $10,600 | iRating - 6541)
Tim Robbins, Tim Allen, Tiny Tim, Timmy The Tooth, dont matter, Timmy Hill goes in your lineups. Hill hasn't finished a race outside the Top 5 since we started these Pro Invitationals, and with him putting in the same amount of work as Byron leading up to the race, you can't go wrong with playing him. Look to stack Hill with Byron this week, or split them up with some of these other names, because I can guarantee one of them will be in the winning lineup.
John H. Nemechek #38 (DraftKings - $9,600 | iRating - 2885)
Nemechek was my golden goose at virtual Bristol, but ultimately it wasn't enough to bag a tourney with the Byron/Nemechek stack. However, Nemechek's second-place finish was enough to turn some heads, and get folks paying attention to the young cup series rookie. On Friday night, Nemechek competed in a practice race with Byron where he started P19, and finished in P6 (place differential is looking good *insert heart eye emojis here*).
Austin Dillon #3 (DraftKings - $5,600 | iRating - NA)
Dow Dillon hasn't really shined too bright in iRacing thus far, but with the series headed to a track he typically makes solid moves at in real life, I'm giving AD a shot. Dillon gained 9 spots at virtual Bristol two weeks ago, and if he gets another start towards the rear, it would be even sweeter to put him in your lineups. In the real world, Dillon has averaged 41.3 FPTS over the past four races at this track, and has proven he can work his way through the pack.
Denny Hamlin #11 (DraftKings - $9,300 | iRating - 4143)
The man that terrifies his children by cussing when he wins virtual races is officially on my fantasy radar this week! Hamlin came out of nowhere two weeks ago at virtual Bristol, and made me realize I made a huge mistake by fading him (I learned my lesson dont give me any crap). Hamlin doesn't have much recent practice data on the iRacing server as of now, but when he's running Richmond in the real world, he averages around 50 FPTS, and also has three Top 5 finishes in the past four races.
For any and all fantasy NASCAR questions, find me on Twitter @GarageGuyChase and subscribe to the Garage Guys Fantasy Sports Podcast for Fantasy NASCAR and Fantasy Football talk. Good luck RotoBallers!
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