Brandon Braasch & Dale Money | April 18th, 2020
The Iracing Pro Invitational returns this week after the weekend off for Easter. Last race was the inaugural DraftKings contest for Nascar Iracing and our driver picks crushed it. Especially considering the crazy wreck fest that it ended up being. Dale picked William Byron, who won the race and was by far the highest-scoring driver on DraftKings at 83.5 points. We also had Timmy Hill, Garrett Smithley, Ryan Preece, Bobby Labonte, and Matt Dibenedetto. They all finished higher than 13th while scoring no less than 36 fantasy points. We will look to keep the good picks coming this week.
This week the iRacers head to Richmond and the rules will be a little different. There will be no fast resets repairs on the cars and only 30 drivers in the field. The only drivers guaranteed to be in the race will be drivers that were invited and who are all from the Cup Series. That means guys like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Bobby Labonte will have to race their way in. They will have that opportunity in a 25 lap qualifying race prior to Sunday’s race. This week will be interesting with the new rules and fewer drivers on the track. Here we go with our top drivers for this weekend’s slate.
High Salary Drivers
Ryan Preece (10,200 DK and 11,100 FD) – Dale
Preece has been a fantastic option through the first handful of Pro Invitational races. After finishing with an eight-place finish in the opener at virtual Homestead-Miami, he would follow that up the next week with a second-place result. This was amid a hotly contested last-lap battle with fellow NASCAR racer Hill, in which he would also lead nine laps. A week later at virtual Bristol Motor Speedway, Preece finished with a top-six result heading into the Easter Break. Of the drivers involved in the Pro Invitational this weekend, Preece has the second-most points in the current series standings. Which is only 13 points behind leader Hill.
Garrett Smithley (9,100 DK and 11,500 FD) – Brandon
Smithley is one of the better iRacers in the field. He has a lot of iRacing experience and will look to use that to his advantage again this week. With his finishes of ninth, third, and fifth in the first three races he is one of the best fantasy scorers as well. He averages 44 points which is third behind only Hill and Hamlin. Look for Smithley to get another top ten and continue to be one of the highest scorers on DraftKings and FanDuel.
John Hunter Nemechek (9,600 DK and 9,000 FD) – Dale
Nemechek has increased his performance in spades since the debut race at virtual Homestead-Miami, in which the No. 38 driver ended up with a 30th place result. The following race at virtual Texas Motor Speedway, Nemechek would make up for that previous disaster with a quality eighth-place result. He would build upon that strong bounce back, fighting off a last-lap charge from the No. 66, to earn himself a second-place finish at virtual Bristol. Nemechek should be a strong contender this weekend, as he looks to get things rolling again and challenge for that coveted first win.
Value Selections
Eric Jones (6,900 DK and 5,000 FD) – Brandon
Jones was very good in the first race at Homestead. He finished tenth and scored 49 fantasy points. He followed that up at Texas with a 21st place finish and only scored 24 fantasy points. Last week at Bristol, he was having internet issues which forced him to start in the back. Starting in the back was a nightmare last week having to come through the field with all the wrecks. He ended up finishing 31st. I expect him to bounce back this week at Richmond. Considering his price, he will have a good shot to end up being the best value on the slate.
Matt Dibenedetto (8,300 DK and 9,300 FD) – Dale
Dibenedetto has run a rather solid Pro Invitational campaign, in the early going. He would end up just one position shy of a top ten finish, in the series opener at Homestead-Miami. Over the course of the next two Invitational races, Dibenedetto has collected 15th and fifth-place finishes. As you consider your options for a value driver this weekend, you could do worse than the No. 21 car.
Parker Kligerman (8,900 DK and 8,400 FD) – Brandon
Kligerman has run very well in the first three races. He has finished 13th, 12th, and seventh while averaging 30.8 fantasy points. Kligerman is also a broadcaster for NBCSN and is looking to get his name out there more for his racing skills. He has struggled with sponsorship throughout his NASCAR career. He has driven some good equipment for Brad Keselowski and Kyle Busch in the trucks and has even driven some races for Penske in the Xfinity series. Look for him to continue his strong runs and continue to show he has more skill than just broadcasting.
Kyle Busch (8,500 DK and 6,000 FD) – Dale
At this price, how can you not at least give Busch a little bit of consideration as that potential lottery ticket for virtual Richmond. While it is true Busch is much more green in comparison to some of the field when it comes to iRacing, he does seem to be getting a better handle of this style of racing. In the next couple of races following the 29th place result at Homestead-Miami, Busch would rack up 17th and 18th place results respectively. Busch has the top 15 potential this Sunday, as he continues to get better situated into the series.
Good Luck with your lineups! Make sure to check them during qualifying and after the qualifying races. Go win that money!
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