NASCAR DFS Pit Stop: Coca-Cola 600 – Cup Series From Charlotte

Welcome to NASCAR DFS Pit Stop for Sunday’s Coca Cola 600 from Charlotte Motor Speedway!  I just want to take a minute to thank all the current and retired military personnel for their service!  

NASCAR’s longest race of the year headlines the weekend of racing at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Sunday’s Coca-Cola 600 is the 13th race of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season. The ‘600’ has been a Memorial Day weekend tradition for decades and most drivers consider it one of the sport’s crown jewels.

It also is a highlight of a full day in motorsports featuring some of the biggest races in the world, like the Indianapolis 500. Kyle Busch is the defending race winner and the Joe Gibbs Racing driver has three wins on the board this season.

NASCAR DFS – Betting Odds

Kyle Busch  +225
Martin Truex Jr.  +500
Kevin Harvick  +550
Brad Keselowski  +600
Joey Logano  +600
Chase Elliott  +800
Ryan Blaney  +1200
Denny Hamlin  +1200
Kyle Larson  +1800
Clint Bowyer  +2000
Kurt Busch  +2000

NASCAR DFS – Leaders of the Pack

Martin Truex Jr. ($10,600)

Qualifying Position: 14th

Truex Jr. has finished in the top 5 in six of the last seven races at Charlotte, including two wins. Truex finished second last year in this event but did not lead a lap after leading 392 and 233 in the last two Coca-Cola 600s, respectively and in the last 4 (point) races this season Truex also has 2 wins. Truex is definitely one of the favorites in this race, even with the P14 starting spot.

Chase Elliott ($10,200)

Qualifying Position: 12th

Chase Elliott has posted two top 10’s and an average finish of 18.3 in his six starts at Charlotte, but he is coming off his best finish at a 1.5-mile track this season with 9th place finish at Kansas. His average finish in the last three races at 1.5-mile tracks is 8.7.

Elliot comes into Charlotte with 3 straight top 5 finishes this season, including his win at Talladega. The Hendrick Motorsports cars all have been improving week-to-week and Elliot is the best of the bunch and should be a threat today.

Brad Keselowski ($10,100)

Qualifying Position: 21st

Keselowski has finished in the top 10 in five of his last seven starts at Charlotte and has an average finish of 14th in the last 5 races here. This season, Keselowski has been solid with  four finishes of third or better at 1.5-mile/2-mile tracks, including two wins at Atlanta and in Kansas.

Other Options: Kyle Bucsch ($11,200), Kevin Harvick ($10,800)

NASCAR DFS – Middle of the Pack

Kurt Busch ($8,900)

Qualifying Position: 11th

Busch has finished in the top 10 in the last 4 Coca-Cola 600s at Charlotte. This season with Chip Ganassi Racing, Busch has posted a top 10’s in 8 of the 12 races this season and has recorded an average finish of 7.0 in the last three races at 1.5-mile tracks. The older of the Busch brothers is yet to find victory lane, but Kurt does have one win here in Charlotte.

Jimmie Johnson ($8,300)

Qualifying Position: 15th

Charlotte is JJ’s home away from home, or at least it used to be. Johnson has 8 careers wins in 34 races here, and has finished seventh or better in four of the last five races at Charlotte. Johnson has led 195 laps here as well in the last 5 races and has an average finish of 6.6 in that same span. While Johnson has not had a great season, if there is one track that could snap his winless streak, this is it.

Other Options: Ryan Blaney ($9,000), Alex Bowman ($8,100), Daniel Suarez ($8,000)

NASCAR DFS – Back of the Pack

Ryan Preece ($6,500)

Qualifying Position: 24th

Preece and the #47 team have brought a very fast car to the track this weekend, despite the P24 starting position. This car ran inside the top 15 in practice and Preece could definitely find himself with a top 15 and over a +10 in place differential points.

Daniel Hemric ($5,900)

Qualifying Position: 10th

I would usually never suggest rostering Hemric, let alone roster him myself, but this week the #8 RCR Chevy is fast, very fast. Hemric had the 2nd fastest lap in final practice and the 3rd best 10 lap average. As long as Hemric stays with the lead pack there is a good chance he stays out of trouble and gets himself a nice top 10 finish

Bubba Wallace ($5,700)

Qualifying Position: 29th

Usually I ignore All Star performances because they generally mean nothing in sports, but what Bubba Wallace did last week in Charlotte may be a sign of what he can pull of this week. The #43 car has the potential to be a top 20 care this week, if Bubba can keep it out of trouble.  Wallace also finished 16th in his only career regular season race at Charlotte (2018).

Other Options: William Byron ($7,400), Paul Menard ($6,900), David Ragan ($6,000)

NASCAR DFS – Place Differential Play

Denny Hamlin ($9,200)

Qualifying Position: 20th

Hamlin is not having a good run of things, but he is one of the best drivers in the Cup series currently on one of the best teams. Hamlin has finished in the top 5 in five of the last six races at Charlotte, including a third-place finish in this event last year.

In the last three races this season at 1.5-mile tracks Hamlin has posted a 9.0 average finish, including a win at Texas. Also Hamlin owns a 6.6 average finish here in Charlotte over the last 5 races with 116 laps led.

NASCAR DFS – Lineup Build

My top two drivers this week are Elliott and Truex but after them there are plenty of driver you can fill out the lineup with. I know some people will be hesitant to roster Hemric but with how fast he, and the rest of the Chevy’s have looked this weekend there’s a chance he does real well.

I kind of feel like this is going to be the 48’s race and he will find a way to lead some laps and get a top 5, so I am going to plug Johnson in as well today.

Thank you for reading my NASCAR DFS Pit Stop article this week and make sure you look for my Xfinity Series and Truck Series articles each week they race as well. Be sure to check out Fantasy CPR daily for all your DFS needs, and remember all content is ALWAYS FREE here!