This article is part of our NASCAR DFS series.
Coke Zero Sugar 400
Location: Daytona Beach, Fla.
Course: Daytona International Speedway
Format: 2.5-mile tri-oval
Laps: 160
Race Preview
Alex Bowman raced to his first series victory at Chicagoland Speedway last week, earning Hendrick Motorsports their second win of the season. The last win the team got was with Chase Elliott at Talladega Superspeedway. Teamwork has become the order of the day at the superspeedways and not many have done it better than Chevrolet and Toyota. The new tactics have grown from the changes in regulations and have ended Ford's domination in the format. Ford teams won't be locked out for long, though. Both Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano have been very strong at these circuits and have been this season, too. This will be the first visit to Daytona under the new rules package since the Daytona 500 in February still used the old restrictor-plate rules package. While the characteristics of running at the track won't be drastically different, fantasy owners should expect to see a race more similar to what we saw in Talladega versus the race here last February. Chevrolet-powered cars made up five of the top six finishers and six of the top 10.
Key Stats at Daytona International Speedway
• Number of previous races: 144
• Winners from pole: 26
• Winners from top-5 starters: 74
• Winners from top-10 starters: 111
• Winners from 21st or lower starters: 10
• Fastest race: 183.295 mph
Last 10 Daytona Winners
2019 spring - Denny Hamlin
2018 fall - Erik Jones
2018 spring - Austin Dillon
2017 fall - Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
2017 spring - Kurt Busch
2016 fall - Brad Keselowski
2016 spring - Denny Hamlin
2015 fall - Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2015 spring - Joey Logano
2014 fall - Aric Almirola
Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch combined to lead 67 laps and finished first and second in a Joe Gibbs Racing one-two-three finish with Erik Jones at Daytona earlier this year. William Byron and Matt DiBenedetto also spent significant time out front in a race that went seven laps beyond the scheduled distance. While handling and tire wear are bigger factors at Daytona than Talladega teamwork is arguably more important. Manufacturers have started teaming up to keep other marques out of the top positions and drivers will typically look to pair up with others with the same engine. Side drafting has also become a more powerful tool for drivers to use to slow down cars in front to make passes. Disrupting air along the side of the leading car by pulling to the rear fender can slow down the car ahead. That makes passing more prevalent and doesn't always require help to make a move stick. Despite these characteristics, passing for the lead can still be a challenge. Saturday night's race is sure to see drivers jockey for position in the pack while hunting for friends to make moves toward the front with.
DRAFTKINGS VALUE PICKS (Based on Standard $50K Salary Cap)
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
Kyle Busch - $11,000
Brad Keselowski - $10,500
Joey Logano - $10,200
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
Chase Elliott - $9,900
Kyle Larson - $9,700
Kurt Busch - $9,500
Denny Hamlin - $9,000
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
Erik Jones - $8,800
Alex Bowman - $8,600
Aric Almirola - $8,400
Ryan Blaney - $8,300
DraftKings Long-Shot Values
Ryan Newman - $7,700
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - $7,400
Chris Buescher - $6,800
Austin Dillon - $6,600
Matt DiBenedetto - $6,400
MY PICKS THIS WEEK
Lower-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Joey Logano - $10,200
Chase Elliott - $9,900
Alex Bowman - $8,600
Ryan Blaney - $8,300
Austin Dillon - $6,600
Matt DiBenedetto - $6,400
Driver prices for Daytona leave plenty of room for creativity in fantasy rosters. Joey Logano is one of the best superspeedway racers in the field and is only the fifth-highest priced selection. He won the Daytona 500 in 2015 and has five finishes of sixth of better at the track in the last seven races. Chase Elliott won earlier this season at Talladega, has a teammate that won last week, and has started on the front row here five times out of seven. With teamwork expected to play a major role in determining Saturday night's winner fantasy owners should also pick up Alex Bowman. It will be hard for him to win two weeks in a row, but he has three top-15 Daytona finishes from six career starts. He also finished second to Elliott at Talladega earlier this season. Adding Ryan Blaney gives this lineup some Penske Racing Ford power at another bargain price. He led 13 laps in the Daytona 500 before crashing but has two top-10s at the track from eight career starts. Richard Childress Racing has consistently fielded fast cars at superspeedways and Austin Dillon is a good way for fantasy owners to take advantage of that. He is a former Daytona 500 champion and has seven total top-10s at the track from 12 starts, including ninth in this race last season. Finally, Matt DiBenedetto may be the bargain of the week. He is a very good driver on superspeedways. He led 49 laps in the Daytona 500 and finished seventh in last year's Coke Zero Sugar 400.
Higher-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Kyle Busch - $11,000
Kurt Busch - $9,500
Aric Almirola - $8,400
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. - $7,400
Chris Buescher - $6,800
Daniel Hemric - $6,100
Kyle Busch has been dominant this season and should be a contender again this week at Daytona. He finished second in the Daytona 500 and could be the one to beat if the Joe Gibbs Racing Toyotas can work together to stay out front. Kyle's brother Kurt is usually a very good fantasy play on superspeedways. He is one of the best in the draft and finished sixth at Talladega earlier this season. Stewart-Haas Racing has had its share of problems this season, but Daytona is a place Aric Almirola could turn that around. He was ninth at Talladega and won this race in 2014. He would love to be the one to push that team forward. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was the king of superspeedways in 2017 and consistently leads laps at Daytona. He led more than 10 in each of the last four races here and should be expected to lead more again Saturday night. Chris Buescher has two Daytona top fives should be in line for a top finish again this week if he can avoid trouble. Again, Richard Childress Racing fields very competitive cars at the two superspeedway circuits and Daniel Hemric is an inexpensive way to grab someone with horsepower and upside potential. Hemric started and finished fifth at Talladega this season and can use the experience he gained from February's Daytona 500 to repeat that type of finish this week.
