Darlington Fantasy NASCAR Confidence Ranking Picks

1) Kyle Busch (Starting – 5th)
Darlington Fantasy Spin – Kyle Busch will be a factor at Darlington and on Sunday night I would look for him to finish in the top five and compete for the win. Darlington has been a phenomenal track for him. He’s a past champion and over the last six races he has a 6.0 average finish, a 6.2 average running position and he’s led the 2nd most laps (319). He’s also been extremely consistent and since 2010 he’s finished in the top 11 every race. In practice, Busch had a strong car and in Happy Hour his ten lap average ranked as the best. One variable you have to love about Busch is how well his team is performing. In 10 of the last 12 races this year he’s finished in the top five, in the two he finished outside of that range he wrecked.
Darlington Track History – Darlington has been a great track for Kyle Busch and he’s unquestionably one of the best drivers. Last year he had a strong showing. He finished 2nd, earned the 3rd best driver rating and had a 5th place average running position. Additionally, he finished 9th in Stage #1 and 5th in Stage #2. In 2016 he had a solid performance. He finished 11th, earned the 9th best driver rating and had an 8th place average running position. In the four races prior to that he had results of 7th, 6th, 6th and 4th. His 6th in 2013 is very notable. In that race he had the dominant car but victory lane eluded him after having a tire going flat in the closing laps. In that race he had a 1st place average running position, earned the best driver rating and led 265 laps.
DraftKings $12,400 / FanDuel $14,000

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2) Martin Truex Jr. (Starting – 3rd)
Darlington Fantasy Spin – Martin Truex Jr. will be a favorite to win at Darlington. He won in 2016, and nearly raced his way to victory lane again last year. At Darlington he’s consistently performed at a high-level. Since 2011 minus 2014 when he had problems he has a 7.5 average finish and a 7.8 average running position. On Sunday night I think he’ll be very competitive. I think he’ll finish in the top five and be a factor to win.
Darlington Track History – Darlington has been a great track for Martin Truex Jr. His average finish is 11.3 and since 2011 he’s only once finished lower than 12th. Last year he had a great car and nearly raced his way to victory lane. Unfortunately, he had a flat tire while leading with 3 laps to go, got into the wall, and then made an unexpected pit stop. In the race he won Stage #1, won Stage #2, earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 3rd place average running position and led 76 laps. In 2016 Truex Jr. had a great car and raced his way to victory lane. In addition to winning he earned the 2nd best driver rating, had a 5th place average running position and led 28 laps. I will note Harvick was better than him in that event. In 2015 when the checkered flag waved he finished 9th, earned the 6th best driver rating and had a 6th place average running position.
DraftKings $10,900 / FanDuel $12,200

3) Denny Hamlin (Starting – 1st)
Darlington Fantasy Spin – Denny Hamlin is the defending champion at Darlington and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he repeats. On Sunday night I think he’ll finish in the top five and of the drivers outside the “Big Three” I think he’s the most likely to win. Darlington ranks as one of Hamlin’s best tracks. He’s won twice, has a 5.8 average finish and it’s home to his best top five (58%) and top ten (83%) finish percentages. In practice, Hamlin had a good car. In practice #1 he had the best ten lap average, in Happy Hour his ten lap average ranks as the 5th best.
Darlington Track History – Last year at Darlington nobody was better than Denny Hamlin. He finished 1st, earned the best driver rating, had a 3rd place average running position, led 124 laps (tied for the most), finished 3rd in Stage #1 and 2nd in Stage #2. In 2016 Hamlin had a very strong showing. He finished 4th, earned the 6th best driver rating and had a 7th place average running position. In 2015, Hamlin had a great car and was one of the strongest competitors. He finished 3rd, earned the 5th best driver rating and led 57 laps.
DraftKings $9,900 / FanDuel $11,600