This article is part of our NASCAR DFS series.
NASCAR Hall of Fame 200
Location: Martinsville, Va.
Course: Martinsville Speedway
Format: 0.53-mile oval
Laps: 200
Race Preview
Sheldon Creed won a week ago at Texas Motor Speedway to advance to the Championship 4 two weeks from now at Phoenix. Teammate Brett Moffitt, who already advanced to the championship finale, pushed Creed to the front in an overtime restart in the race after Ben Rhodes and Christian Eckes tangled on the second-to-last scheduled lap. Ultimately, Creed led 131 of the 152 laps run in his fourth win of the season. That victory means two spaces among the Championship 4 remain to be claimed this week at Martinsville Speedway. The two drivers above the cutoff for the finale heading into this weekend are Austin Hill and Zane Smith. Matt Crafton is first outside of that zone and is 12 points behind Smith. The remainder of the championship contenders face must-win situations with a steep drop back to sixth and lower in the standings.
Key Stats at Martinsville Speedway
- Number of races: 42
- Winners from pole: 9
- Winners from top-5 starters: 27
- Winners from top-10 starters: 35
- Winners from 21st or lower starters: 1
- Fastest race: 75.296 mph
Previous 10 Martinsville Winners
2019 fall - Todd Gilliland
2019 spring - Kyle Busch
2018 fall - Johnny Sauter
2018 spring - John Hunter Nemechek
2017 fall - Noah Gragson
2017 spring - Chase Elliott
2016 fall - Johnny Sauter
2016 spring - Kyle Busch
2015 fall - Matt Crafton
2015 spring - Joey Logano
Martinsville Speedway is a flat short track that requires heavy braking and requires drivers to move swiftly through traffic. Aerodynamics will be replaced by mechanical grip as the focus this week. The preferred line will be toward the inside of the turns with a focus on getting back to full throttle as early as possible to outdrive others into the next turn. As with any short track, track position and grip are sometimes a tradeoff. As the stages and race draws to a close, the win could come down to teams making the decision to pit or not. Fresh tires will undoubtedly be faster, but the time it takes to pass cars ahead may negate that advantage. No Trucks Series driver has started outside of the top 15 and won at Martinsville since Jamie McMurray started 18th and won in 2004.
DRAFTKINGS VALUE PICKS (Based on Standard $50K Salary Cap)
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
Parker Kligerman - $12,000
Brett Moffitt - $11,400
Austin Hill - $11,000
Sheldon Creed - $10,400
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
Christian Eckes - $9,800
Brandon Jones - $9,600
Matt Crafton - $9,400
Grant Enfinger - $9,200
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
Todd Gilliland - $8,900
Johnny Sauter - $8,600
Tyler Ankrum - $8,200
Spencer Davis - $8,000
DraftKings Long-Shot Values
Derek Kraus - $7,800
Ben Rhodes - $7,500
Ryan Truex - $7,300
Raphael Lessard - $7,100
My Picks
Parker Kligerman - $12,000
Brandon Jones - $9,600
Johnny Sauter - $8,600
Raphael Lessard - $7,100
Trevor Bayne - $6,600
Timmy Hill - $5,900
Starting from last place, Parker Kligerman presents a good opportunity for fantasy players to scoop up some finish differential points. His price reflects that, too. The farthest back he has ever started at Martinsville in the Trucks Series was 30th. He finished 13th in that race. He also started 25th there in 2016 and picked up an eighth-place finish. Brandon Jones scored his best Martinsville finish in the Trucks last time he visited the track in the series. He finished seventh that day and will start ninth this week. Four-time Martinsville winner Johnny Sauter will start this week's race 15th. He finished ninth on Bristol's short track earlier this season. Raphael Lessard only has one Martinsville start in the series. He finished 14th last spring. He was fourth last week at Texas and won at Talladega three weeks ago. Trevor Bayne will start his seventh series race this weekend. He has a best finish this year of second at Talladega and then was 10th a week later at Kansas. He finished sixth at Martinsville in the Cup Series in 2017. Finishing off the selections is Timmy Hill. He finished fifth in this race last season from the 22nd starting spot and will start 23rd this week.
