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More adjustments will need to be made from the DFS NASCAR perspectives as we approach an unprecedented second consecutive race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. We just executed the customary exercise of focusing through the longest race of the season in the Coca-Cola 600. Now we get the shortest event of all time at the site.
The Alsco Uniforms 500 will run for 312 miles and 208 laps, after the CC600 lasted for 607.5 miles and 400 laps. So while we can extrapolate a lot of info from Sunday’s race, we will have to alter our expectations a bit. A new major change will be a revised pricing approach from DraftKings that goes into effect for Wednesday’s lineups.
TV numbers continue to be healthy for NASCAR, which has drawn the highest ratings of the day for all of the three races so far this season, including beating out the final two episodes of “The Last Dance” the previous Sunday. After this week’s Wednesday Cup event, there is only one more midweek race (June 10) now scheduled for the rest of the season.
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Alsco Uniforms 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway Tips and Strategies
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The shortened length of the race means less concerns on tire wear and fuel management, issues which did not seem to be quite as prominent as usual in Sunday's CC600. Most teams seemed to be well prepared for the length of the event. There will also be much lesser concerns about varying track conditions throughout the race.
That will not make the outlooks purely more predictable based on Sunday’s results. Drivers and teams who were not happy with the way they ran in the CC600 will be focused on making key adjustments for Wednesday night. Drivers who run into trouble or make mistakes won’t have as much time and breathing room to compensate and move back through the field.
In the past at the CC600, we have seen varied results in terms of laps led. In 2018, Kyle Busch led for 377 laps at Charlotte. In the past two events, 19 different drivers have led laps. Wednesday’s race should produce a dominant car or two for a good chunk of the night, but there could be some aggressive jostling towards the end of the race, when a unique sense of urgency will likely set in as drivers gun for the win in this shortened Charlotte event.
DFS News Flash: DraftKings Changes Pricing Structure
The biggest DFS news piece for Wednesday’s Cup race is that DraftKings has changed its overall approach to driver pricing. As DraftKings continues to make savvy adjustments to their contests with much more attention now on DFS NASCAR, both new and experienced players will have to go with the flow and change their approaches to lineup building.
In the past, DraftKings would price drivers based strictly on overall and recent results. Now DraftKings is making you pay high prices for the all-important drivers who start near the back of the pack and are top picks for Place Differential production. The best examples of this new pricing are Jimmie Johnson and Clint Bowyer. In past weeks on DraftKings they would not be priced close to $10,000. For Wednesday’s event, they are the two most expensive drivers on the site. Also, Denny Hamlin is a price boosted PD choice we cannot overlook at $11,200 on DraftKings, as he starts 29th.
You have to pay up big-time now if you want the better drivers with the best PD potential. Johnson has a $12,300 tag, while Bowyer is at $11,800. Their prices on FanDuel, which is sticking to the customary pricing models, are more reflective of what DFS players have become used to. Johnson is the eighth highest priced driver at $11,200. Bowyer is 14th at $9,000. The scoring for PD is different on both sites (one point on DraftKings, 0.5 on FanDuel) but is still a notable difference-maker on both platforms.
This heavily alters approaches to building DraftKings lineups, and more clearly separates the sites in terms of assembly. The RotoBaller DFS NASCAR lineup optimizer has reflected the distinctive values accordingly, so it becomes even more of an essential tool for Wednesday’s slate if you are playing on both sites.
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You will also notice that some of the highest priced drivers in recent weeks and the past are now better values. Martin Truex Jr., a consistently dominant force at Charlotte, is priced at $9,400 and is a must-start from the 15th position on the starting grid. In his last seven Charlotte races, Truex has three wins and five Top 3 showings. He finished sixth on Sunday. Kevin Harvick, who was one of the highest priced drivers on the site in the first three races, is another driver that should be a top choice. He finished fifth in the CC600 and is a three-time Charlotte winner. He is a tremendously appealing pick at $9,200 when you consider he has placed in the Top 5 in all three races since the Cup series resumed action,
Both drivers offer only moderate PD upside but are great choices to move near the top of the pack and challenge for a win or a Top 3-5 finish. Truex is the highest priced driver on FanDuel at $14,000, but is well worth it based on CMS being one of his very best tracks. Harvick is a decent choice at $12,300 but a much better play on DraftKings.
One possible DraftKings build that you should consider is to combine Johnson and Truex with Alex Bowman, who starts on the front row and is priced at $8,700. He led for 164 laps on Sunday and you should have at least one notable driver who starts near the front and can lead many laps. Then you can consider Ryan Blaney at $7.900. He starts 18th and finished third Sunday. You can round out that lineup with Ty Dillon at $6,300, who starts 25th and is always capable of a respectable finish. Corey LaJoie is a top bargain target for Charlotte, as he starts 23rd and finished 12th in the 2019 CC600.
Of course, that is one example of a DraftKings lineup build for Wednesday, and you can also rotate in other drivers in similar price ranges as you assemble multiple lineups. You can also frontload some lineups with Johnson and Bowyer, or construct nicely balanced lineups anchored by Truex and Harvick. He is also a solid choice at the $12,000 tag on FanDuel.
Hamlin is also a very good pick at $12,000 on DraftKings. Bowman is a sound FanDuel option at $12,200, as is Blaney at $10,400. Lajoie is an outstanding bargain target at $4,000. Chase Elliott ($9,700 DraftKings, $13,000 FanDuel) finished second in the CC600. Kyle Busch ($10,500 DraftKings, $13,700) has not run his best race yet since action resumed. Ryan Newman ($7,500 DraftKings, $7,000 FanDuel) is a very intriguing PD option starting from 27th.
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