NASCAR DFS picks 9/8/19: Big Machine Vodka 400
This week the NASCAR circuit heads to historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Which driver will break through and kiss the bricks and which drivers will make some DFS players some money? Let’s take a look.
Last week at Darlington, Erik Jones broke through for a surprising victory at the Bojangles Southern 500. Denny Hamlin came back down to Earth and my pick to win, Kyle Larson, came oh so close to grabbing his first win of the season. A couple of my sleeper picks didn’t quite pan out last week, but the core of the lineups performed well.
This week at the Brickyard, the Cup Series does not qualify until Sunday morning. So without knowing the starting lineup, predicting position differential will be very difficult, but practices have been completed so I will do my best to highlight some solid options to build your lineups around.
Top Contenders
Kyle Busch
Kyle Busch will rarely not find himself on this list. He is just so good at so many different tracks that he has earned the right to be the highest priced driver on both platforms. Indy is yet another track where few have been better than Kyle Busch.
Only Jimmie Johnson has more wins than Kyle at the Brickyard of current drivers in the Cup Series. Kyle has led the most laps of active drivers at the track, and just one driver has a better career average finish. Over the last two years, Kyle has led the most laps but has had trouble finishing towards the front with an eighth place and a DNF 34th place finish.
After a real rough stretch, Kyle has been finding his groove lately finishing in the top six each of his past three races, despite starting towards the back in all three. Obviously, that leads to even more fantasy points with the place differential, and regardless of his starting position, I’d expect to see Kyle Busch in the top three all race long.
He was solid but not lightning quick in practice, owning the seventh fastest lap and 10-lap average in final practice. This is one of Kyle’s better race tracks, despite his recent poor finish, and I would not be surprised at all if he grabbed his first victory in 12 races.
If there is one driver who has been the most dominant at Indy in recent years (at least in terms of finishing position), it has been Brad Keselowski. Over the past two years, Brad has an average finish of 1.5, getting a win and a second place finish in his last two races.
Brad was fast in both practices, posting the third fastest speed in first practice and the second quickest 10-lap average in Happy Hour. Again, we don’t know where he will qualify at this point but I expect Brad to be up front all race long.
Ownership for this race may be hard to predict as well, especially before qualifying. Brad’s recent success at the track and his relatively cheap cost compared to other high-end drivers may make him a popular selection. But there may be other drivers slightly more popular to pick, and Brad could end up being a solid pivot from a guy like Kyle Busch.
Kurt Busch
Kurt doesn’t have the best track record at Indy, but has shown a ton of speed so far this weekend. He was second fastest in first practice and had the best 10-lap average in final practice. We will see where he qualifies, but the 1 car seems to be pretty fast.
In last year’s race at Indy Kurt finished in sixth place, earning stage points in both stages with second and fifth place stage finishes. A solid run up front a season ago and his new found speed this weekend bode well for a great finish in this race for Kurt. He has performed well all season and his salary is barely in the top 10, making him a great, cheaper option to build your lineup around.
Honorable Mentions
Kevin Harvick, Kyle Larson, Erik Jones