The rankings below are based on a mixture of expected output and DraftKings’ NASCAR salaries for that day. The ordering is not based on the highest projected fantasy totals, but rather by value of each driver.
DraftKings’ Buckle Up In Your Truck 225 slate locks at 6:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 11. Set your lineups here: NTS $125K Octane [$20K to 1st, 2x Min Cash] (Trucks)
1. Christian Eckes ($8,500) - Rudy Fugle set up the best truck last year, but that truck driven by Brandon Jones got wrecked by Grant Enfinger. Eckes was on his way to his first career win at Pocono two weeks ago, but a blown tire handed the win to Brandon Jones.
2. Brett Moffitt ($10,500) - His GMS truck was a top 5 truck at Kentucky last year. Moffitt took the lead in stage 3 via a fuel only pit strategy. He built a massive 8 second lead, but it disappeared with two laps left when he ran out of fuel.
3. Chandler Smith ($10,000) - Ladies and Gentlemen, Chandler Smith has arrived. David Smith of Motorsports Analytics has labeled Chanler Smith the most promising prospect in years. The 18 year old has 8 ARCA wins in 23 races. He did not win in his handful of KBM races last season, but at 17 years of age, he looked like a veteran.
4. Tanner Gray ($6,800) - The DGR Crosley truck won the 2019 Kentucky race with Tyler Ankrum behind the wheel. The victory was aided by strategy and good fortune, but it was still a fast truck. Kentucky is Crosley’s hometrack, and they will likely put extra resources into the truck this weekend.
5. Austin Hill ($10,800) - A mechanical failure took Hill out of contention last year at Kentucky. That seems to be the only way to keep the #16 Hattori truck from running up front. Hill isn’t flashy, but he has a fast truck and he knows how to drive it.
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6. Grant Enfinger ($7,800) - The #98 Thor Sports truck was one of the fastest trucks at Kentucky last year, but it wasn’t the fastest. Enfinger lost the lead on a restart towards the end of stage 2, and he foolishly attempted an aggressive move to regain the lead, and wrecked.
7. Brennan Poole ($7,400) - The underdog truck finished 15th last year at Kentucky, but his average running position was 9th. Poole ran into the wall while battling with Ben Rhodes near the end of the race.
8. Ty Majeski ($7,000) - At Pocono, Majeski had a race winning truck. He immediately surged to the front of the field at a track where passing doesn’t come easy. Unfortunately, on his way to the front, Grant Enfinger decided to dump Majeski and sent him into the wall.
9. Derek Kraus ($7,300) - In each of the last three races, Kraus had a top 10 driver rating. Before Kraus turned 18 years old, he had already won 13 K&N races driving for Bill McAnally. The 18 year old might win a Truck race for Bill McAnally this season.
10. Todd Gilliland ($10,200) - Excessive pressure and bad luck ruined his time with Kyle Busch Motorsports. Kentucky was not an exception. He raced down a cylinder and finished several laps down.
11. Matt Crafton ($9,700) - He battled all race long last July. Crafton never had a great truck, but the veteran got everything out of it, and was on his way to top 5. That was until he ran out of fuel.
12. Parker Kligerman ($9,400) - This is the same as the Pocono play. Kligerman is a top 10 driver in a top 10 truck, and he’s starting in the back because of owner’s points. The only thing preventing Kligrerman from being a lock is the fact that other drivers aren’t that good and can collect him in a wreck.
13. Tyler Ankrum ($9,000) - Everything went right for Ankrum at Kentucky last year. He had a top 5 truck, his team played the strategy perfectly going into stage 3, and then again, his team’s decision to concede time on pit road by taking two cans of fuel resulted in a fuel mileage win.
14. Ben Rhodes ($8,700) - Kentucky is his hometown track, and he won the 2018 race with a no tire pit stop strategy in stage 3. Last year, he battled a poorly handling truck for the first two stages. Rhodes hit pit road multiple times to make major set up changes. Eventually, he dialed the truck in and ran near the top 5, but wrecked with Brennan Poole late in stage 3.
15. Sheldon Creed ($8,000) - He won the lead on the initial start and led all of stage 1. Later in the race, he hit the wall multiple times and went to the garage. That’s Creed in a nutshell. He’s an aggressive driver that can lead a race and wreck out with ease.
16. Stewart Friesen ($9,500) - His truck was confiscated last year for an illegal modification prior to the race. In his backup, Friesen raced from last to second, but that finish was aided by wrecks, failures, and other drivers running out of gas. His average running position ranked 11th in that race.
17. Zane Smith ($8,400) - After his hot start, he has cooled off. Smith made a mistake and wrecked at Homestead. In the next race at Pocono, Smith had motor issues with eight laps remaining. If he doesn’t make a mistake and his equipment holds up, then he can be a top 5 driver.
18. Johnny Sauter ($11,200) - The 2019 season was forgettable for Sauter, and Kentucky wasn’t any different. Every Time there was a wreck, Sauter was there. He got caught in the Natalie Decker wreck, and then later the Harrison Burton wreck
19. Ryan Truex ($7,500) - In his one race for Niece Motorsports this season, Truex finished 13th at Charlotte. It’s unlikely that Truex will have race winning speed, but he can legitimately earn a top 10. He can also steal a top 10 via pit strategy.
20. Dawson Cram ($6,300) - His debut for Long Motorsports at Homestead did not go as planned. A caution lap driver error prevented Cram from earning the lucky dog, and the subsequent penalty resulted in Cram being three laps down. Matters only got worse when the truck lost a rear gear. Misfortune aside, the team believed that they had a top 20 truck at Homestead.
Set your DraftKings lineups here: NTS $125K Octane [$20K to 1st, 2x Min Cash] (Trucks)
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