This article is part of our NASCAR DFS series.
Explore the Pocono Mountains 225
Location: Long Pond, PA
Course: Pocono Raceway
Format: 2.5-mile tri-oval
Laps: 90
NASCAR Xfinity Explore the Pocono Mountains 225
It shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone that Shane van Gisbergen came away with the win at the Chicago Street Race last weekend, though it was still impressive that he held off both Kyle Larson and Ty Gibbs. That also vaulted him to the top of playoff picture as he leads the series with three wins on the season, with the two previous coming at Portland and Sonoma. Heading back to a more traditional track at Pocono, he isn't among the favorites and still shouldn't be viewed as a championship favorite due to his pretty specific strengths at road/street circuits. qe
Van Gisbergen wasn't the only driver to enjoy a good weekend in Chicago. Both Jesse Love and Parker Kligerman finished inside the top five, a particularly important result for Kligerman who pushed himself a bit further away from the points bubble to reach the playoffs.
Key Stats at Pocono Raceway
- Number of Races: 8
- Winners From Pole: 1
- Winners from top-five starters: 4
- Winners from top-10 starters: 6
- Winners from 21st or lower starters: 0
Previous Eight Pocono Winners
- 2023 – Austin Hill
- 2022- Noah Gragson
- 2021 – Austin Cindric
- 2020 – Chase Briscoe
- 2019 – Cole Custer
- 2018- Kyle Busch
- 2017- Brad Keselowski
- 2016 – Kyle Larson
Pocono Raceway, AKA the Tricky Triangle, is a unique track in many different ways. The first is that it's not owned by either NASCAR or Speedway Motorsports. Perhaps for that reason, the track has maintained a number of different unique characteristics. The three turns on the track are all different in terms of both baking and length, which causes to set up their cars differently and typically interesting races.
The most comparable tracks are Indianapolis and Michigan, both of which come later in the season. This weekend will provide good information for those weekends, but track history will be a primary factor to consider.
Finally, there aren't many Cup Series drivers in the race, though William Byron stands out.
NASCAR Xfinity DFS Tools
DraftKings Value Picks for the Explore the Pocono Mountains 225
Based on a Standard $50K Salary Cap
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
William Byron - $12,000
Justin Allgaier- $11,000
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
Sam Mayer - $10,500
Sheldon Creed - $9,700
Sammy Smith - $9,000
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
AJ Allmendinger - $8,500
Jesse Love- $8,300
DraftKings Tier 4 Values
Brandon Jones - $7,700
Josh Berry - $7,500
Parker Kligerman - $7,200
DraftKings Tier 5 Values
Jeremy Clements - $5,900
Brennan Poole - $5,500
NASCAR Xfinity DFS Picks for Explore the Pocono Mountains 225
Justin Allgaier - $11,000
Sheldon Creed - $9,700
AJ Allmendinger - $8,500
Josh Berry - $7,500
Parker Kligerman - $7,200
Jeremy Clements - $5,900
The first choice that will dictate the rest of the build is whether or not to use Byron. He's had an okay history at Pocono in the Cup Series, including two top-five finishes and five top-10 finishes in 10 chances. However, he's been in bad form – presumably the reason he elected to drive in the Xfinity Series this weekend – so I wouldn't be inclined to pay the premium.
That's particularly true given the strong track record of a lot of the best drivers at the Xfinity Level. Allmendinger has run twice and both started and finished inside the top five on each occasion. Meanwhile, Allgaier has started inside the top-10 in four straight races at Pocono, which should give him a strong chance to convert a good finish.
Creed can't get a win, but he does have strong finishes. He's qualified excellently in his two races at Pocono, starting sixth and third. He slipped to 11th in last year's race but still has an overall strong record at the course.
Moving down into the middle tiers of pricing, there are trio of good options in the $7k range. Josh Berry is another good reason to fade Byron. He's yet to race at Pocono at the Cup level, but was very strong while in Xfinity. Berry showed speed at different times of the race weekend, qualifying on pole last year and leading 51 laps before slipping down the field. He's also shown the ability to work through the field, qualifying 33 and finishing ninth in 2021. Having the ability to be fast in all phases of the weekend is obviously a positive. Jones is perhaps the surprise of the Tier 4, but he has a 101.7 driver rating at Pocono.
The punts are interesting. Poole is arguably underpriced for his results this season. He's 16th in the point standings but is among the cheapest options Saturday. There's nothing particularly notable about rostering him, just that he offers some value. Lastly, Clements is more of a Pocono specific play. He's finished right around the top 15 at the track consistently and spiked a third-place finish in 2020.
