This article is part of our NASCAR DFS series.
SRS Distribution 250
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Course: Texas Motor Speedway
Format: 1.5-mile quad-oval
Laps: 167
Race Preview
Texas Motor Speedway awaits the NASCAR Xfinity Series after a week off. Justin Allgaier grabbed his first win of the season last time out at Darlington. Allgaier's victory made him the seven different driver to put one foot into the playoffs by visiting Victory Lane. That leaves just five spots open for non-winners with 15 races remaining in the regular season. Sam Mayer tops that population and sits eighth in the standings as Daniel Hemric and Anthony Alfredo straddle the cutoff line with Hemric holding a 22-point advantage. This will be the 43rd time the series has raced at Texas, and the track has produced 22 different races winners. Kyle Busch and John Hunter Nemechek won the two races there last season, but neither will be in the field this week, making a wide open race for a spot in the playoffs.
Key Stats at Texas Motor Speedway
- Number of races: 42
- Winners from pole: 6
- Winners from top-five starters: 25
- Winners from top-10 starters: 34
- Winners from 21st or lower starters: 2
- Fastest race: 151.707 mph
Previous 10 Texas Winners
2021 fall - John Hunter Nemechek
2021 spring - Kyle Busch
2020 fall - Harrison Burton
2020 spring - Austin Cindric
2019 fall - Christopher Bell
2019 spring - Kyle Busch
2018 fall - Cole Custer
2018 spring - Ryan Blaney
2017 fall - Erik Jones
2017 spring - Erik Jones
Texas Motor Speedway is a 1.5-mile quad-oval closely related to Charlotte but with its own unique traits. The track is a high-banked speedway that requires a powerful and well-handling car to stay out front. Texas differentiates itself in having slightly shallower banking in turns 1 and 2. However, both Texas and Charlotte are fast tracks with room for drivers to take different lines. That space allows drivers to have options as they work through traffic or try to climb the running order. It also enables teams that are fast from the get go to separate themselves under long green-flag runs. This type of fast circuit favors positive track position and restarts are golden opportunities for drivers to make up positions. The typical unexpected cautions can instantly jumble the order if they appear at the wrong time. Teams will generally opt to pit under caution, which means two-tire stops could be a viable option for teams to move forward and make up ground.
DRAFTKINGS VALUE PICKS (Based on Standard $50K Salary Cap)
DraftKings Tier 1 Values
William Byron - $11,000
Ty Gibbs - $10,700
Noah Gragson - $10,500
Justin Allgaier - $10,300
DraftKings Tier 2 Values
AJ Allmendinger - $9,700
Josh Berry - $9,600
Brandon Jones - $9,400
Sam Mayer - $9,100
DraftKings Tier 3 Values
Daniel Hemric - $8,900
Riley Herbst - $8,700
Austin Hill - $8,500
Landon Cassill - $8,300
DraftKings Long-Shot Values
Ryan Sieg - $7,700
Anthony Alfredo - $7,600
Myatt Snider - $7,100
Alex Labbe - $6,800
MY PICKS THIS WEEK
Lower-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Ty Gibbs - $10,700
AJ Allmendinger - $9,700
Riley Herbst - $8,700
Anthony Alfredo - $7,600
Alex Labbe - $6,800
J.J. Yeley - $6,500
Ty Gibbs continues to be one of the most likely options to win each week. He has three victories already this season, one of which was on the Las Vegas 1.5-mile oval. This will be his first Xfinity Series start at Texas, though. Veteran AJ Allmendinger has two series starts at Texas with two top-10 finishes. He also has a 2022 win under his belt. More importantly, though, he has yet to finish lower than ninth in an Xfinity race this season. Riley Herbst sits ninth in the standings ahead of this week's race. He has four prior Texas starts and will be aiming to better his two 12th-place finishes at the track last season. Anthony Alfredo is working his way into the playoff battle. He is first below the cutline and finished 15th in the last two races. This will be his third Texas start and his best prior finish was third last fall. Alex Labbe has turned himself into a top-20 machine. He enters this week's race on a string of five in a row with two top-15s in there. He should be seen as a reliable top-20 option this week, too. Rounding out the lower-risk lineup is J.J. Yeley. The veteran driver has 23 series starts at Texas with a best finish of sixth, but did retire from both races there last year.
Higher-Risk Lineup ($50K Salary Cap)
Noah Gragson - $10,500
Sam Mayer - $9,100
Daniel Hemric - $8,900
Landon Cassill - $8,300
Jeb Burton - $7,200
Joe Graf Jr. - $6,000
Noah Gragson will be going for his third win of the season this week. He has been consistently fast and usually finishes in the top five. He has six prior Texas starts with two top-five and three top-10 finishes. Sam Mayer has also been a consistent top-five finisher and is searching for a 2022 victory. He made his only Texas Xfinity start last season with a 13th-place showing. Defending champion Daniel Hemric should be one of the top selections this week. He was the runner up in the fall Texas race last season and has three top-five finishes from six series starts there. Landon Cassill also finds himself in playoff contention with three top-fives and six top-10s so far this season. Continued finishes in that range might open the door for a possible victory. He has 10 prior Xfinity starts at this track with a best finish of 15th last spring. Jeb Burton isn't too far out of the playoff fight either. He finished 16th or better in four of the last five races and would be a good value for fantasy players if he brings that form into this week's race. He has three top-10s from eight Texas appearances. Our final selection in the higher-risk lineup is Joe Graf Jr., who is typically a top-30 driver with some potential to move down into the top 15 if things fall his way. He was 15th earlier this season at California and has a top Texas result of 21st.
