The rankings below are based on a mixture of expected output and DraftKings NASCAR salaries for Sunday. The order is not based on the highest projected fantasy totals, but rather by the DFS value of each driver.
The DraftKings NASCAR Cup Series United Rentals Work United 500 at Phoenix slate locks at 3:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.
Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $500K ENGINEER [$100K TO 1ST] (CUP)
1. Joey Logano ($10,800) — DFS NASCAR is all about Hog Points (fast-lap and lap-led points). Logano is averaging 34 hog points per race over the last seven Phoenix races, and he’s scored over 50 hog points in three of the last five. Also, he won the fall Phoenix race.
2. Ryan Blaney ($10,300) — Team Penske clearly has figured out Phoenix. Blaney scored 53 hog points in the fall Phoenix race and 59 hog points in the spring race.
3. Kyle Larson ($11,100) — The No. 5 Chevy has shown a lot of speed in the last two weeks. This is a different track and a different setup, but crew chief Cliff Daniels and Kyle Larson have proven that they can adapt to any track and any racing package.
4. Kyle Busch ($10,600) — Las Vegas was last week but his recent Phoenix finishes look like a slot machine — three seventh-place finishes in a row. It’s been awhile, but in the four races at Phoenix from 2018 to 2019, Busch scored the most DKFP three times and was the runner-up in the other contest.
5. Martin Truex Jr ($9,200) — The 2021 racing package was more sporty at the short tracks. The cars were more powerful and harder to control at short tracks. Truex scored 43 and 39 hog points in the two Phoenix races. In a weaker package in 2022, Truex scored 0 and 6 hog points at Phoenix. The new 2023 short-track package is closer to 2021 than 2022.
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6. Denny Hamlin ($9,600) — The JGR veteran has yet to put his stamp on 2023. Other drivers have hogged the spotlight so far, but Hamlin is waiting in the wings. He’s been a top-5 driver this season. He just needs a pinch more speed.
7. William Byron ($9,800) — Hendrick is looking pretty good to start the season. Their Las Vegas success means very little going into Phoenix where a radically different and untested package will be in use. That being said, Byron and crew chief Rudy Fugle were strong at short, flat tracks last season.
8. Ross Chastain ($10,000) — His Dietrich Data score ranked in the top 10 at the short, flat tracks last season but he ranked 13th in terms of top-5 laps. Trackhouse Racing can compete at plate tracks, intermediate tracks and road courses. Short, flat tracks are not a strength, yet.
9. Kevin Harvick ($9,000) — Could this weekend mark the return of the king? Harvick was once the king of the desert. He was unstoppable at Phoenix. Those days have long since vanished. However, the new package could see a return of Harvick’s dominance.
10. Christopher Bell ($8,800) — JGR is split. There are two veterans and two future stars. One thing they all have in common is short-track superiority. And they all have collected wins at Phoenix from K&N to Cup.
11. Chase Briscoe ($8,400) — This has been a rough season for the young Stewart-Haas driver, but the package change could bring Briscoe back to life. Shifting will be en vogue at Phoenix and no one has been better than Briscoe at dropping down and finding a gear. Briscoe won at Phoenix last spring and he finished fourth in the fall.
12. Ty Gibbs ($6,700) — The JGR Toyotas may not have much of an advantage at the intermediate tracks in the current racing package. With the racing package changing this week, there might be an advantage for the big teams with more resources. Also, Gibbs has won at Phoenix in the K&N, ARCA and Xfinity Series, and he’s led a ton of laps in those races.
13. Austin Cindric ($7,100) — Team Penske drivers are killers at Phoenix. The rookie wasn’t great last spring but he figured it out by the fall (11th). Cindric won for Penske at Phoenix in the Xfinity Series in 2020 and 2021.
14. AJ Allmendinger ($6,200) — Even in inferior equipment early in his career, Allmendinger was decent at Phoenix. He finished 12th at Phoenix in one of his final races with JTG Daugherty Racing in 2018, and he finished 12th last fall with Kaulig Racing.
15. Aric Almirola ($6,900) — Phoenix has been one of Almirola’s best tracks. Over the last eight Phoenix races, Almirola ranks inside the top 10 in driver rating and fantasy points per race. Almirola has a top-5 fantasy score in four of those eight races.
Set your DraftKings fantasy NASCAR lineups here: NAS $500K ENGINEER [$100K TO 1ST] (CUP)
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