This article is part of our NASCAR DFS series.
GEICO 500
Location: Talladega, Ala.
Course: Talladega Superspeedway
Format: 2.66-mile tri-oval
Laps: 188
Race Preview
Hendrick Motorsports extended their early-season success a week ago at Texas where Chase Elliott joined the list of 2024 race winners, snapping a winless streak that extended over a year. The race was the second NASCAR Cup Series visit to a traditional 1.5-mile oval of the season. This week, the series heads to Talladega Superspeedway. While this will be the third superspeedway race of the season, the track shares more similarities with Daytona than it does Atlanta, namely its size. The drafting style of racing is present at both, but Talladega and Daytona have a significantly larger surface and distance than Atlanta's tighter confines. Talladega is a fan favorite for good reason, though. The track is a little bigger than Daytona, which gives drivers more room to run side by side. It's high speeds and high banking produces some of the most exciting racing of the season. High attrition in these races also opens the possibility for more longshot drivers to get a chance to win, which comes with the spoils of a spot in the playoff field. Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney won the two Talladega visits last season, but both remain winless in 2024. This week's race tends to give more drivers a chance at a win, and it also allows fantasy players to go deeper into the driver selections than a typical race weekend.
Key Stats at Talladega Superspeedway
- Number of races: 109
- Winners from pole: 14
- Winners from top-5 starters: 56
- Winners from top-10 starters: 75
- Winners from 21st or lower starters: 8
- Fastest race: 188.354 mph
Previous 10 Talladega Winners
2023 fall - Ryan Blaney
2023 spring - Kyle Busch
2022 fall - Chase Elliott
2022 spring - Ross Chastain
2021 fall - Bubba Wallace
2021 spring - Brad Keselowski
2020 fall - Denny Hamlin
2020 spring - Ryan Blaney
2019 fall - Ryan Blaney
2019 spring - Chase Elliott
Talladega is NASCAR's biggest superspeedway. The track's high banking and wide lanes enable drafting lines of cars to run four wide from the front to the back, which means any small mistake often collects many drivers by just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. For that reason, luck can be as much of a factor as speed. Recent superspeedway trends have manufacturers working together throughout the race, planning trips to pit road as one as well as pairing together on track to keep competitors out of the lead. Staying out of trouble until the final laps of stages and the race can sometimes be enough to give a driver a chance at the win, but making the right move at the right time will be the difference between a potential win and a poor finish. Given the importance of staying the draft, mistakes on pit road under green are some of the biggest that can be made. Losing the draft means losing laps to the leaders and a long afternoon of hoping to get those laps back. Starting position isn't a huge factor at Talladega, but drivers will need a car that they can make passes with. If not, they could find themselves stuck in traffic with nowhere to go at critical moments.
RotoWire NASCAR DFS Tools
DraftKings Value Picks for the GEICO 500 (Based on Standard $50K Salary Cap)
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
Ryan Blaney - $11,000
William Byron - $10,800
Denny Hamlin - $10,500
Brad Keselowski - $10,000
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
Joey Logano - $9,800
Kyle Busch - $9,500
Bubba Wallace - $9,200
Kyle Larson - $9,000
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
Ross Chastain - $8,700
Christopher Bell - $8,300
Tyler Reddick - $8,000
Alex Bowman - $7,800
DraftKings Long-Shot Values
Austin Cindric - $7,400
Austin Dillon - $7,300
Erik Jones - $7,000
Noah Gragson - $6,800
Todd Gilliland - $6,100
NASCAR DFS Picks for the GEICO 500
Lower-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Ryan Blaney - $11,000
Bubba Wallace - $9,200
Christopher Bell - $8,300
Austin Cindric - $7,400
Austin Dillon - $7,300
Noah Gragson - $6,800
Though Ryan Blaney (DK $11,000, FD $13,000) is winless thus far in 2024, this week's trip to Talladega could be one of his best shots to win yet. He has three prior Talladega victories including last fall. Three straight finishes of second or better at this track show him to be one of the top choices this week. Another strong superspeedway driver to consider is Bubba Wallace (DK $9,200, FD $11,000). His only Talladega top-five was his victory in 2021, but he has led 91 laps through 12 starts. Wallace should view this weekend's race as an opportunity to claim his playoff spot with another win. Christopher Bell (DK 8,300, FD $9,000) may be another worthy consideration this week. He started from pole in both 2022 races and finished eighth and 14th in the two races there last season. He also finished third in the Daytona 500 in February.
The second half of the lower-risk lineup for Talladega includes names fantasy players should always consider at superspeedways. Places like Talladega have been where Austin Cindric (DK $7,400, FD $7,000) has been at his best. Cindric is a Daytona 500 winner and brings two Talladega top-10 finishes from four series starts into this weekend's race. Those top-10s have only came in fall races at the track, though. Austin Dillon (DK $7,300, FD $6,500) is another superspeedway ace. He has multiple wins at Daytona but has yet to visit Victory Lane at Talladega. Unfortunately, he crashed out of both races at the track last season, but he does have two top-fives and five top-10s from 21 track visits. Similar to Cindric and Dillon, Noah Gragson (DK $6,800, FD $5,000) boasts a Talladega win from his days in the Xfinity Series and has proven to be a competent driver in this style of racing. He finished ninth in February's Daytona 500.
Higher-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Brad Keselowski - $10,200
Joey Logano - $9,800
Kyle Larson - $9,000
Alex Bowman - $7,800
Erik Jones - $7,000
Todd Gilliland - $6,100
There may be no driver more confident that they can win this weekend than Brad Keselowski (DK $10,200, FD $12,500). The owner/driver won six prior times at Talladega, and the most recent of those was in 2021. Last season his best finish from the two visits was fifth. Keselowski has been quite competitive in recent weeks, and this week's opportunity could be his to seize. Another driver on the cusp of a win is Joey Logano (DK $9,800, FD $11,500). The Team Penske driver put his early-season stumbles behind him with four consecutive finishes of 11th or better leading up to this weekend. He is a three-time Talladega winner and remains one of the best superspeedway racers in the garage.
Kyle Larson (DK $9,000, FD $10,000) hasn't been as fruitful at these tracks as Logano or Keselowski, but his strength in the early part of this season makes him one to consider this weekend regardless. Larson has three Talladega top-10s from 18 starts, crashed out of this race last year, and finished 15th in the fall return. Larson's teammate, Alex Bowman (DK $7,800, FD $7,500), has been building consistency in 2024. Last year was a challenging one for him, but he turned things around for 2024. The Hendrick driver sits 15th in the standings and has three top-10 finishes from the last five races. Bowman led 21 total laps in last year's Talladega races and has been hanging around the top 10 recently, If he is able to do that this weekend, he could steal another victory to add to his resume.
Finally, Erik Jones (DK $7,000, FD $6,800) and Todd Gilliland (DK $6,100, FD $5,500) should also not be overlooked. Talladega has been a relatively good spot for Jones, he finished inside the top 10 in half of his 14 starts, and he frequently leads there. Prior to last fall's race, he was on a run of four straight top-10 Talladega finishes, and he led 55 total laps in the last five. Gilliland is also making his presence felt at the superspeedways. He spent a good amount of time leading earlier this season at both Daytona and Atlanta and just needs a good finish to go along with that highlight. He also hasn't finished lower than 12th in his last three Talladega visits.
