Ryan Blaney secured his second win of the season last week at Atlanta with an absolutely dominant performance from the pole where he led 171 laps. It marked the eighth straight top 10 finish for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Champion. And he only has FOUR finishes outside the top 15 during the 2026 season. And two of those were because he wrecked at Daytona and Talladega. Blaney has been very consistent and keeping the Ford camp on the map during a season where the Toyota’s have dominated.

This weekend, NASCAR heads back to North Wilkesboro Speedway. This track hosted the NASCAR All-Star Race from 2023-2025 but this weekend marks the first points-paying race for the Cup Series in 30 years! The track still offers the same small town, short track charm while looming large on the schedule as we slowly inch closer and closer to the Chase. 

We have all your coverage with the NASCAR DFS Playbook for DraftKings and FanDuel in addition to the NASCAR DFS Projections and the NASCAR DFS Ownership outlook. Let’s dive in and take a look at the top NASCAR DFS picks and lineup building strategies on DraftKings and FanDuel as we get ready for the Window World 450!

 

 

 

North Wilkesboro Speedway

So I’ll kick the analysis for this race off by openly admitting I didn’t want to bother with a trends table for this week. Moreover, there will not be any DraftKings/FanDuel Scoring Trends in the next section. This track was brought back onto the NASCAR schedule for the last three years but that was in an exhibition fashion where the field was trimmed, and they didn’t run as many laps for the annual All-Star race.

This is going to be a race that’s tough to read. We did get practice Saturday afternoon/evening but there was no qualifying session. There will be a practice-to-qualifying table available below but just make note that qualifying was canceled. But at least we were given a practice session that’ll be run in similar conditions to what we should expect for Sunday night’s race.

North Wilkesboro Speedway measures in at five-eighths of a mile (0.625 miles) hence why we have 450 laps for Sunday night’s race. The front stretch is at a slight downslope while the back stretch is on a slight upslope. There are three degrees of banking on the front-and-back stretch while there’s some gradual banking in the turns up to 14 degrees.

Overall if you’re looking for comparable tracks we should be looking at the other short, flat tracks that appear on the schedule: Phoenix, New Hampshire, Martinsville, Iowa, and Richmond. The downside is that we’ve only seen two other comparable tracks on the schedule so far this year and the last one was over three months ago.

 

 

 

NASCAR DraftKings and FanDuel Scoring Trends with DFS Strategy

As mentioned above we do not have the scoring trends this week simply because the three previous races at North Wilkesboro were run for the annual NASCAR All-Star races from 2023-2025. Those races were much shorter in length and didn’t feature a full field. So it doesn’t seem logical to compare those three races to what we’ll expect Sunday night.

But we should still know what to expect especially when trying to identify the top plays among our NASCAR DFS picks. We have 450 laps for this race. That means we likely end up with 280-300 dominator points when you account for cautions.

Because of that we want to spend up for dominator points. This is a race where you likely want a minimum of two dominators. There is always the outlier possibility that one driver (possibly Ryan Blaney) leads 350+ laps. But across my five lineups for this race, I’m aiming for at least two dominators and leaving the door open for three.

The good news for this race is that the mid-range is kind of a barren wasteland that you don’t need to live in. That should allow you to spend up for two-to-three dominator candidates. Sure, Chase Briscoe offers a lot of position differential, but you shouldn’t feel forced to play him. There are more affordable drivers available for this race offering position differential. And there are some value plays starting inside the top 20 that can pay up if they just manage to finish on the lead lap.

 

 

 

NASCAR DFS Picks & Strategy: Window World 450

Once again, just a friendly reminder that qualifying was canceled and the starting lineup was set by the metric.

 

 

 

NASCAR Window World 450 Top Tier DFS Picks

Denny Hamlin (Starting P7) – DraftKings: $11,000 | FanDuel: $14,000

He’s the most expensive driver on both sites and it shouldn’t be too surprising. He’s having a great year and when we come to a low-variance, non-road course track then Hamlin has a strong chance to win each week. But we’re also coming to a short, flat track this weekend and we’ve arguably seen just two comparable tracks so far this year: Phoenix and Martinsville. And both those races were months ago before Hamlin started hitting his stride this season.

Hamlin’s the kind of driver that can lead 100+ laps on this kind of track and be in position to win. In two of the last three Martinsville races, he’s led 200+ laps. And in general, we know that Joe Gibbs Racing absolutely thrives as a team on this track type. So while we’re grasping at the low hanging fruit, it’s for good reason. There’s win equity and dominator potential with this play even if he doesn’t have the track position the next driver has.

Ryan Blaney (Starting P1) – DraftKings: $10,700 | FanDuel: $13,500

In a race that could potentially have 300 dominator points available to us, it’s going to be awfully difficult to lay off the polesitter. Qualifying was canceled due to weather but with Blaney winning last week’s race, the metric puts him on the pole. And track position on a short track is paramount.

Blaney has been very strong on the short, flat tracks in the NextGen era. Two years ago at Iowa he led over 200 laps on his way to a win. He won both playoff races at Martinsville in 2023 and 2024 with a combined 177 laps led. Even in the 2025 playoff race he finished as the runner-up but still led 177 laps. And he did that after starting P31!

While we tend to upgrade Blaney at tracks like Daytona, Talladega, and Atlanta we can’t discount how consistent and strong he’s been on this track type. He starts on the pole with an easy path to 30+ dominator points and that feels like a rather conservative projection.

Kyle Larson (Starting P27) – DraftKings: $10,500 | FanDuel: $12,500

Normally at this point in the article I’d preach about spending up for dominator points, but we also just mentioned how Ryan Blaney led 150+ laps after starting P31 at Martinsville last year. Larson’s in a similar boat where he starts deep in the field so he’s a great position differential play, but he can certainly lead laps later on, especially if he makes a strategy decision to gain significant track position.

Does Larson get a mild downgrade on short, flat tracks? Perhaps. But that’s because his “short track” results and data can be heavily skewed by his performances at Bristol, which is a half-mile track that does not compare at all to tracks like North Wilkesboro, Richmond, Martinsville, Iowa, Phoenix, or New Hampshire. But keep in mind, Larson did win one of the All-Star races (2023) at North Wilkesboro.

Larson has a pretty clear path to 50+ fantasy points just with the PD available to him. But if he gets up front and can lead laps later on and still finish well, then he’s likely landing in the optimal lineup for our NASCAR DFS picks on DraftKings and FanDuel.

Christopher Bell (Starting P3) – DraftKings: $10,200 | FanDuel: $13,000

Bell might be a bit of an unsung option heading into this race which feels a bit odd, for sure. But he did register some extra laps this weekend after he ran the Truck Series race Saturday afternoon. And overall, this is a driver who thrives on short, flat tracks and he’s in a JGR car at the end of the day.

Bell won the spring races at Phoenix in 2024 and 2025 while finishing as the runner-up earlier this year. All told, between those three races he led 331 laps and that’s not including the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Championship race where he finished in the top five with 143 laps led. We also know he’s been elite at New Hampshire at various levels throughout his career. Specifically in the NASCAR Cup Series, he has two wins at NHMS (2022 and 2024).

Bell, like Larson, is also a previous winner at North Wilkesboro from one of the three iterations of the NASCAR All-Star Race and he has much better track position than Larson. Bell rolls off P3 and doesn’t have the easiest path to the front. But it’s a race with 450 laps so there will be plenty of laps led to go around and he looked rather sporty in practice on Saturday.

 

 

 

NASCAR DFS Picks: Mid-Tier Drivers

Chase Briscoe (Starting P31) – DraftKings: $8,900 | FanDuel: $10,500

Briscoe, similar to Kyle Larson, is a driver you can easily plug into your cash game lineups and plenty of your tournament builds. Briscoe, like Hamlin, comes from the JGR camp where they’re expected to compete on the short, flat tracks. For our NASCAR DFS picks, Briscoe is a great play because the lineup was set by the metric and he starts outside the top 30. He returns nearly 5X value if he finishes 15th with no dominator points.

Briscoe got his first win of the season two weeks ago at Chicagoland but he’s also a previous winner at Phoenix with Stewart-Haas Racing. Even at New Hampshire, he’s finished top 10 in three straight races while serving as the runner-up in 2024 during his last year with SHR.

On the surface he jumps off the page as a safe play because of where he starts. He’s not exempt from losing the lead lap but we should expect him to gain track position early and he’s a driver with equipment capable of a top 10 finish any given week.

Ty Gibbs (Starting P2) – DraftKings: $8,500 | FanDuel: $9,500

In the interest of transparency, I like the track position for Gibbs more than I like the actual outlook for Gibbs. Obviously starting on the front row, Gibbs has a chance to collect dominator points early and if he collects enough and still finishes in the top 10, then he can score very well. He just has to worry about beating Blaney on the first green flag.

But despite being a Joe Gibbs Racing driver, Gibbs isn’t a slam dunk. He’s certainly had his struggles on the short, flat tracks. He did finish fourth at Martinsville earlier this year but he didn’t lead any laps and that’s actually his only top 10 finish at Martinsville in eight career Cup Series starts. He has one top 10 finish in six starts at Richmond. He has two top five finishes in seven starts at Phoenix, but he also has five finishes outside the top 20. He’s also never finished top 15 at New Hampshire.

So all this is to say that he’s worth some exposure in tournaments because there’s upside. He starts on the front row and there are plenty of dominator points available for this race. Even if he doesn’t get them early on, he can get them later. So he’s certainly a mid-range NASCAR DFS picks option with upside starting on the front row.

Bubba Wallace (Starting P26) – DraftKings: $7,900 | FanDuel: $9,000

Bubba’s a bit of a tough read for this race. And it’s only because we don’t associate him with being a great short track racer. But there’s been some gradual progress in recent years with Bubba on this type of track. Is every result great? No, there will always be variance with Bubba Wallace. But we also shouldn’t ignore that there’s been some growth.

Last year at Iowa he started P15 and finished sixth. In two of the last five Martinsville races he’s finished top four. Even last year at Richmond, he led 123 laps and won stage two but he ultimately finished 28th. But the summer prior he finished fourth. Overall, he’s led 200+ laps combined in the last four Richmond races and he’s been in contention late in the race. Earlier this year at Phoenix he started P28 and finished sixth.

Given that he starts outside the top 20 for this race, I want to at least keep him in mind. Because the Toyota’s are having a phenomenal year and Bubba is showing upside on these tracks even if there’s a lack of consistency. But we have to keep him in mind for our NASCAR DFS picks because the starting spot gives him a good floor/ceiling combination so long as he maintains the lead lap.

Ryan Preece (Starting P21) – DraftKings: $7,700 | FanDuel: $7,800

You can certainly look to Preece’s teammate (and boss), Brad Keselowski, who starts just behind Preece. But Brad’s on a bit of a cold streak and Preece tends to use these short, flat tracks as a “get right” spot.

Over his last five races at Martinsville, Preece has three finishes of ninth or better and has not finished worse than 14th. He even managed a top five finish at Iowa last year despite starting P33. Earlier this year he was 13th at Phoenix and last year he finished 14th at New Hampshire. These flatter tracks certainly cater to his strengths.

 

 

 

NASCAR DFS Picks: Value Drivers

Alex Bowman (Starting P25) – DraftKings: $7,000 | FanDuel: $7,200

I’m going to keep it rather simple with the value drivers for our NASCAR DFS picks this week. I’ll offer up a handful in the driver pool but based on Saturday’s lengthy practice session, I’ll highlight three drivers for our value options. We kick it off with Alex Bowman.

Bowman’s clearly in good equipment and he offers PD starting P25 without the risk of losing a lap early. But Bowman has a particularly strong resume on the short, flat tracks. He’s finished top eight in both Iowa races. He’s always been solid at Phoenix (his home track). And he was the runner-up at Richmond last year. The big knock in him is that he missed this year’s races at Phoenix and Martinsville because of the lingering concussion symptoms sustained last year.

But the practice speeds look pretty strong. He was top 10 in the mid-run metrics and arguably top three in the longer run metrics as shown above in the practice-to-qualifying table. So there’s value to be had here and the equipment should certainly hold up.

Connor Zilisch (Staring P32) – DraftKings: $6,000 | FanDuel: $4,800

I get it. I really do. Connor Zilisch mentioned in the Playbook? With only three names featured in the value section? He’s finished dead last in five of the last eight races. So yes, I understand this may be a little unconventional. This is still a driver that gets priced up on road courses. The raw talent is there. The downside is that Trackhouse Racing has taken a step back this season and Zilisch has had his ego checked.

And it’s not even the starting spot that intrigues me. There are plenty of value plays offering position differential. There are more expensive drivers offering PD that I feel confident in. But Zilisch’s practice results weren’t awful. He was 13th or better in the shorter run metrics while he was 23rd in the 20-lap run which signals to me he was powering down and saving the car. And if you’re of the superstitious sort, we have Nascarcasm employing the likes of WWE Superstar, Danhausen, to uncurse Zilisch ahead of this weekend’s race.

Sure, it’s a bit silly but I’m leaning more into the practice results and hoping this kid can maintain the lead lap, which might be a little bit easier assuming Ross Chastain loses the lead lap while serving his penalty. Zilisch is a high-upside GPP play for Sunday’s race.

Riley Herbst (Starting P34) – DraftKings: $5,800 | FanDuel: $4,200

Herbst is another driver that really stood out in practice. And it shouldn’t come off as a surprise. The starting spot is dictated by the metric but Herbst looks to have a pretty fast hot rod for Sunday night’s race for our NASCAR DFS picks. 

While Zilisch showed promise in the short run, it was Herbst who showcased good long-run speed and Herbst has easily been more consistent this year while even providing the higher upside finishes. In 36 races a year ago, his average finish was 26.4 with zero top 10 finishes. Halfway through the 2026 season, his average finish has improved to 21.1 and he has three top 10 finishes and nine top 20 finishes.

Now he’ll definitely have his hands full Sunday night. North Wilkesboro is not an easy track to pass at. But he is driving a Toyota for 23XI Racing and the Toyota’s looked very sporty in practice. Herbst is also on a bit of a revenge tour as he’s losing his seat to Corey Heim next year so there’s some added motivation for this driver recommendation.

 

 

 

NASCAR DFS Optimizer & Lineups Picks This Week

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