This article is part of our NASCAR DFS series.
Food City 300
Location: Bristol, Tenn.
Course: Bristol Motor Speedway
Format: 0.53-mile oval
Laps: 300
Race Preview
This week's NASCAR Xfinity Series Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway will finalize the playoff field that will contend for the 2020 Xfinity title. Austin Cindric clinched the regular-season championship last week in the Richmond double-header weekend that was swept by Justin Allgaier. The series raced once this season already at Bristol where Noah Gragson came out on top. Just one playoff spot remains to be claimed this week, and it looks likely that Brandon Brown will be the one to transfer, barring a new winner that hasn't already clinched on points. Jeremy Clements is the driver trying to track him down, but his 49-point deficit to Brown appears to be nearly insurmountable. All could be overturned by pulling into Victory Lane, however.
Key Stats at Bristol Motor Speedway
- Number of races: 76
- Winners from pole: 11
- Winners from top-5 starters: 41
- Winners from top-10 starters: 54
- Winners from 21st or lower starters: 7
- Fastest race: 94.740 mph
Previous 10 Bristol Winners
2020 spring - Noah Gragson
2019 fall - Tyler Reddick
2019 spring - Christopher Bell
2018 fall - Kyle Larson
2018 spring - Ryan Preece
2017 fall - Kyle Busch
2017 spring - Erik Jones
2016 fall - Austin Dillon
2016 spring - Erik Jones
2015 fall - Kyle Busch
Bristol Motor Speedway is another short track race where track position will play a key role in determining the outcome. The preferred line will either be right against the bottom of the turns or high against the wall. Tire wear could allow cars to make up ground like we saw at Richmond, but may not have as big of an impact given Bristol's shorter lap length and potentially narrower grooves. Those factors may make moving forward in the field more difficult than last week. The spring race feature 12 cautions, and a high number of cautions could serve to spoil team strategies. Pitting early in a pit window with an untimely caution could trap fast cars laps down to the race leaders. Fantasy owners should also consider the amount of laps potential leaders are able to spend out front at Bristol. Three drivers combined to lead 292 of the 303 total laps in the spring race, and all three started inside the top 10.
DRAFTKINGS VALUE PICKS (Based on Standard $50K Salary Cap)
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
Chase Briscoe - $11,800
Austin Cindric - $11,400
Justin Allgaier - $11,000
Ross Chastain - $10,600
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
Harrison Burton - $9,900
Justin Haley - $9,600
Brandon Jones - $9,400
Myatt Snider - $8,900
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
Riley Herbst - $8,300
Michael Annett - $8,000
Ryan Sieg - $7,800
Alex Labbe - $7,700
DraftKings Long-Shot Values
Vinnie Miller - $7,100
Joe Graf Jr. - $6,700
Chad Finchum - $6,100
Stephen Leicht - $5,900
MY PICKS THIS WEEK
Lower-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Austin Cindric - $11,400
Justin Haley - $9,600
Brett Moffitt - $8,700
Brandon Brown - $7,200
Joe Graf Jr. - $6,700
B.J. McLeod - $6,300
Austin Cindric will start this week's race from fourth position. He finished 36th after a crash here earlier this season but finished sixth and fifth in the two Bristol races before that. Justin Haley's best Bristol finish came in his first time out last season when he finished seventh. He led one lap on his way to a 17th-place finish this spring and has three finishes of sixth or better (including a win) in the last five races. The truck series winner at Bristol last season was Brett Moffitt. He didn't race the Xfinity series race at the track earlier this season but should be expected to move forward from his 14th-place starting spot. Brandon Brown was seventh in that spring race and starts 12th this time. Brown is 12th in the standings and finished 11th in the second race of last week's Richmond double-header weekend. Joe Graf Jr. is a top-20 contender this week with a bargain price tag. He finished 13th after starting 36th in his first series start at Bristol earlier this year. He will start 23rd this week. B.J. McLeod's 21st starting position should also pave the way for him to score another Bristol top-20. Three of his last four Bristol appearances in the series have produced top-20 finishes.
Higher-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Noah Gragson - $10,200
Harrison Burton - $9,900
Myatt Snider - $8,900
Michael Annett - $8,000
Vinnie Miller - $7,100
Stephen Leicht - $5,900
Noah Gragson won an overtime race at this track in the spring, leading a total of 55 laps. He finished ninth in the spring race last season and will start third this week. Harrison Burton will start this race sixth and has two top-10 finishes from two series starts at the track. He finished fourth here in the spring. Starting much deeper in the field is Myatt Snider. Sitting 14th in the standings, Snider is in a must-win situation in a bid to get into the playoffs. While that may be a stretch, Snider is perfectly capable of a top-15 and managed to finish fifth here in the spring. Michael Annett has 16 series starts at Bristol with a best result of sixth. His average finish in that span is 14.4, which should be enough for fantasy players to sweep him into their lineups. Vinnie Miller is a driver fantasy players can select when looking for finish differential points. He starts 35th this week but hasn't finished outside of the top 25 at Bristol in the last three races. Finally, Stephen Leicht offers similar potential. Leicht will start Friday night's race 36th but hasn't finished lower than that in eight track starts, including DNFs.
