Editor’s Note: Don’t just bet your favorite sports. LIVE YOUR BET LIFE! Get started today at PointsBet with two risk-free bets up to $2,000. Bet now!
The wheel spins and occasionally it lands on a number you didn’t want. Last week, that number was 46 – as in 46 percent attrition. Mostly strong cars were impacted, and ones that normally finish in the back of the pack, climbed into the front half with the multitude of retirements, but that didn’t show up in the points as much as one would expect.
DraftKings is a game of odds. Even though they were caught up in a late-race crash that denied them top-10 finishes, Ross Chastain (102.95) and Kyle Larson (84.65) earned the most points in the Coke 600. In fourth, Kyle Busch (60.65) was equally unsurprising, but moderately priced drivers like Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (61.25), Chase Briscoe (60.5) and Kevin Harvick (56) also were counted among the six-most profitable. A Group C driver, Ty Dillon (45) earned the 10th-most.
Lightening isn’t supposed to strike the same place twice. And an intermediate, flat track should be a little more predictable. Even though the Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway is an inaugural event, the consensus is that it will behave like the 1-mile flat tracks of Phoenix Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway with a little Richmond Raceway thrown in for good measure.
Group A: Most Expensive (>=$10,000)
Ross Chastain ($10,000)
We knew this day was coming. For the first time in his career, Chastain commands a five-figure DraftKings salary cap. He’s now the smallest fish in the big pond, but along with that comes the lowest price tag at this level and that is going to make him easy to showcase as long as he continues to show one of the best points-per-thousand ratios. In the past 45 days, Chastain has earned the most points in this game three times.
Denny Hamlin ($10,600)
Including the All-star race, Hamlin now has three consecutive top-fives. If you believe it’s time to trust him again, flat tracks have been his bread-and-butter throughout his career. Hamlin posted only the 13th fastest lap in Friday’s practice session, but no one at this level was much better with Larson posting the eighth-fastest speed as their high-water mark.
Driver | Top-15 | Top-10s | Top-5s | Most |
6 | 3 | 1 | ||
5 | 5 | 5 | ||
5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | |
5 | 5 | 3 | 1 | |
5 | 4 | 1 | ||
4 | 4 | 4 | ||
4 | 4 | 2 | ||
4 | 3 | 2 | ||
4 | 2 | 1 | ||
4 | 2 | |||
3 | 3 | 2 | ||
3 | 3 | 1 | ||
3 | 2 | 1 | ||
3 | 2 | |||
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
3 | 1 | |||
2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
2 | 1 | 1 | ||
2 | 1 | 1 | ||
2 | 1 | |||
2 | 1 | |||
2 | 1 | |||
2 | 1 | |||
2 | ||||
2 | ||||
2 | ||||
1 | 1 | |||
1 | 1 | |||
1 | 1 | |||
1 | 1 | |||
1 | ||||
1 | ||||
1 |
Group B: (Between $9,900 and $8,000)
Kevin Harvick ($8,500)
In the past 45 days, Harvick has earned top-15 points in this game every week. On three of those six occasions, he was in the top 10 and his best effort came with 71.7 points at Darlington Raceway – a track shaped similarly to this 1.25-mile flat track. Harvick may or may not get into winning contention before the playoffs begin, but this team is making the right moves and are slowly getting faster. So long as Harvick remains under $9k, he’s a solid value.
Joey Logano ($8,900)
We’ve been bit by Logano a few times, but he is rightly-priced this week. The last two times he commanded a cap over $10k, he cost points at Talladega Superspeedway and earned fewer than 10 at Dover Motor Speedway. Last week was the first time he’s been under $9k since May, 2020 as the series returned to action after the COVID-19 break. It’s not just his relatively low cap that makes him attractive, however. Logano posted the fastest single lap and the quickest 10-lap average in Friday’s practice.
The App is Back! Don’t forget to download the NBC Sports EDGE app to receive real-time player news, mobile alerts and track your favorite players. Plus, now you can check out articles and player cards. Get it here!
Group C: (Between $7,900 and $6,500)
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. ($7,700)
Stenhouse has been the hottest driver in the DraftKings game in the last four races. He earned the sixth-most points at Dover and Darlington and the third-most at Kansas Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway. At the risk of jumping on his bandwagon too late, we are compelled by those statistics and his high points-per-thousand ratio. We think he has another top-10 points’ day coming this week.
Erik Jones ($7,300)
Coming off a solid run at Charlotte last week, Jones’ posted a top-five speed in Friday’s practice. He has a little spring in his step because the sponsor is local and his owner, Richard Petty, has been in-market for most of the week touting the Enjoy Illinois 300. Most importantly, he has the third-best price-per-thousand ratio at this level. He’s not a must-have, however, because his 10-lap average is the lowest among those who went that far in practice. Because it is so low, however, we question whether it was a true 10-lap average or if he was preparing to pit on his final circuit.
Group D: (Less than or equal to $6,500)
Michael McDowell ($5,600)
McDowell’s eighth-place finish in the Coke 600 brought with it the 15th-most points (38) in the DraftKings game. That was the sixth time in the last nine races that he was in the top 15 on this chart and four of those were top-10 days. McDowell has also had some disappointing runs, and full disclosure requires us to tell you two of those were on short, flat tracks.
Harrison Burton ($5,300)
To afford a marquee driver, you often have to take some risks, and rookies are the riskiest of all. Burton posted a quick lap early in Friday’s session before he was eventually pushed back to 12th. Even then, he landed above Hamlin, Elliott, and Byron. Burton was midway down the chart in 10-lap average, but a finish in the mid-20s is enough to make him a good value with this low of a cap.
The top-10 points’ earners from the 2022 Ruoff Mortgage 500k were: 1. Ryan Blaney (96.15), 2. Chase Briscoe (93.25), 3. Chase Elliott (68.7), 4. Ross Chastain (64.65), 5. Kevin Harvick (57), 6. Tyler Reddick (56.75), 7. Chris Buescher (50), 8. Kurt Busch (49), 8. Daniel Suarez (49), 10. Kyle Busch (41.9)
PointsBet Sportsbook is our Official Sports Betting Partner and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on PointsBet for the first time after clicking our links. NJ, IA, IN, IL, CO, MI, VA, WV only. 21+. T&C apply. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER
Last 45 Days
Driver | Avg. | Total | Avg. | This | Points |
Group A |
|
|
|
|
|
7.67 | 303.15 | 60.63 | $10,000 | 30.32 | |
8.33 | 254.05 | 50.81 | $10,900 | 23.31 | |
11.17 | 235.10 | 47.02 | $10,200 | 23.05 | |
10.33 | 227.35 | 45.47 | $11,300 | 20.12 | |
12.33 | 198.60 | 39.72 | $10,600 | 18.74 | |
12.67 | 188.80 | 37.76 | $10,400 | 18.15 | |
Group B |
|
|
|
|
|
9.67 | 254.10 | 50.82 | $8,500 | 29.89 | |
12.33 | 201.80 | 40.36 | $9,200 | 21.93 | |
14.17 | 180.65 | 36.13 | $8,700 | 20.76 | |
18.50 | 155.45 | 31.09 | $8,900 | 17.47 | |
23.50 | 111.45 | 22.29 | $8,200 | 13.59 | |
17.33 | 124.90 | 24.98 | $9,800 | 12.74 | |
22.00 | 91.90 | 18.38 | $8,000 | 11.49 | |
20.00 | 95.25 | 19.05 | $9,400 | 10.13 | |
20.83 | 91.45 | 18.29 | $9,600 | 9.53 | |
Group C |
|
|
|
|
|
10.67 | 249.75 | 49.95 | $7,700 | 32.44 | |
15.83 | 168.25 | 33.65 | $7,500 | 22.43 | |
17.67 | 149.10 | 29.82 | $7,300 | 20.42 | |
20.33 | 136.80 | 27.36 | $7,000 | 19.54 | |
23.33 | 98.50 | 19.70 | $6,500 | 15.15 | |
22.33 | 100.15 | 20.03 | $6,700 | 14.95 | |
20.17 | 109.65 | 21.93 | $7,800 | 14.06 | |
23.00 | 95.15 | 19.03 | $7,100 | 13.40 | |
25.67 | 39.35 | 7.87 | $6,800 | 5.79 | |
Group D |
|
|
|
|
|
16.00 | 197.40 | 39.48 | $5,600 | 35.25 | |
20.67 | 145.80 | 29.16 | $4,900 | 29.76 | |
21.17 | 131.90 | 26.38 | $5,300 | 24.89 | |
23.50 | 115.65 | 23.13 | $5,100 | 22.68 | |
21.17 | 135.70 | 27.14 | $6,000 | 22.62 | |
22.67 | 119.45 | 23.89 | $5,500 | 21.72 | |
24.50 | 99.70 | 19.94 | $4,700 | 21.21 | |
22.17 | 112.85 | 22.57 | $6,300 | 17.91 | |
26.50 | 80.50 | 16.10 | $4,600 | 17.50 | |
30.00 | 33.00 | 11.00 | $4,500 | 7.33 | |
28.00 |
|
| $5,800 | - | |
31.00 |
|
| $5,400 | - | |
30.50 | -4.20 | -4.20 | $6,200 | (0.68) |
2022 Ruoff Mortgage 500k [Phoenix 1]
Toyota Owners 400 [Richmond 1]
Blue Emu [Martinsville 1]
