With plenty of drama and excitement to keep fans interested, last weekend’s night race at Bristol did not disappoint. Following the round of 16, the focus now turns to the round of 12 and the first of three races at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Looking at the track specs for Las Vegas Motor Speedway, it is a 1.5-mile tri-oval track. It will be a return to the low HP, high downforce rules package for this event.
In the wake of back-to-back short track races, the laps led will shrink a bit at Las Vegas. There are 267 laps in this event, which is still solid value when looking at dominating potential. In using DraftKings, 267 laps is equal to 186.9 dominator points. To have the best chance of winning, one needs at least two drivers who can each lead a good portion of the laps (and fastest laps). In addition, you will want to ensure that you have a dark horse option in your arsenal.
Kyle Larson led 107 of the laps at the Las Vegas race in March, by far the most of anyone. The remaining laps, however, were mainly shared by four other drivers who led at least twenty laps each. Although I still expect two dominant drivers to control the laps led, a repeat of March is always possible.
This week, the Money Train delves into the DFS options for Sunday’s Cup Series event in Las Vegas, NV. The selections are broken down between high salary, mid-range, and value play. Included are player salaries from both FanDuel (FD) and DraftKings (DK). Best of luck to everyone with lineups this weekend.
High Salary
Joey Logano (10,500 FD | 9,900 DK)
While many playoff drivers had troubles at Bristol, Logano’s performance was low-key as he did what was required to get into the round of 12. With a victory this weekend, he protects himself against any possible misfortune at Talladega. The outcome of this race will likely hinge on a late pit stop, which would shake up the entire field. As you may recall, he won here in 2020 after gambling with old tires for a two-lap shootout. Logano beat back a hungry Matt DiBenedetto which took a great deal of fortitude, but he managed it. In addition, he currently sits second in laps led at Las Vegas over the last six meets. For a potential dominator, the price makes him an attractive pivot option if you don’t want to go heavy on a more expensive option.
Kyle Busch (13,500 FD | 10,800 DK)
After surviving a late-race scare last weekend at Bristol, Busch returns home in a bid to punch his early entry into the round of eight. Although it has been 10 years since his last Las Vegas Cup victory, Busch has continued to put up very respectable finishes at the bullring. At the March race, he was able to pass 11 cars to place third, adding nine stage points in the second stage.
As the season has rolled by, he has continuously run well on the 1.5-mile Intermediate tracks. In Atlanta, he set a season-best record of 91 laps led en route to a runner-up finish. Additionally, he has an average speed rank of 6.33 (which holds as second-best among drivers). If this race ends up going to overtime which I expect it to do, you’re going to want a driver who can pass cars rapidly, and Busch can do that for you. This season he is ranked second both in quality passes and quality passes percentage.
Mid-Range
Christopher Bell (9,500 FD | 8,500 DK)
With a flat tire late in the race at Bristol, Bell was very close to not making it out of the first round. Even though Bell dropped to 29th, he managed to make the cut and keep his playoff hopes alive. Having the disadvantage of starting second last in playoff points ahead of only Kevin Harvick, Bell will want to grab as many early-stage points as he can. He did not excel here as a rookie, finishing no higher than 24th in two appearances with Leavine Racing, but since joining Gibbs, he has shown plenty of improvement.
Despite starting 16th in March’s race, he was able to gain nine positions to finish seventh. Starting 12th on Sunday, he should be able to crack that top 10 rather quickly. While he hasn’t yet been able to dominate a race, Bell has consistently challenged the front runners. He’s led laps in four of the last five races. If you’re looking for a mid-range driver that may sprinkle in some dominator value, he’s an intriguing dark horse.
Value Play
Ryan Newman (5,500 FD | 7,500 DK)
I’ll admit it was a little frustrating to see Newman crash out early last weekend due to a cut tire. You also have to remember that Newman had run a pretty clean schedule ahead of Bristol. Pocono and Daytona are the only other races he failed to finish this season. Despite Newman’s lack of wins at Las Vegas, this is his second-best track behind only Talladega in terms of average finish since 2018. In the March race, he struggled with early handling issues but rebounded to finish 18th.
With just a single finish outside of the top 18 in 10 previous visits to Vegas, I would be surprised if he failed to continue that steady trend. Starting as deep as 29th, Newman has the opportunity to advance 15 or more positions depending on how he utilizes late-race pit strategy.
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