Stock car racing’s premiere series makes its way to the Music City of Nashville, Tenn. Make the most of the 2024 Ally 40 with our NASCAR DFS picks and tiers.
We reveal our “Tire Tiers” and betting cards live every Thursday at 8:30 p.m. EST on our YouTube series, “The Backroad.” Be sure to tune in, enjoy the race and reach out if you have any questions.
(DFS prices are courtesy of DraftKings and Fantrax)
NASCAR DFS Picks, Tiers & Rankings: 2024 Ally 400
Driver As | The Elites
We’re back on the intermediates, so Kyle Larson returns to the consensus 1.01 for NASCAR DFS lineups this week. Larson is No. 2 in the Dover + high-speed intermediate total speed rankings, courtesy of ifantasyrace.com, and has impressive wins at comp tracks like Las Vegas and Kansas this season. It doesn’t matter the price ($10,500 on DraftKings and $27.29 on Fantrax); he belongs in lineups. Both he and Ross Chastain are the only drivers who have a 100% T5 rate at Nashville in the Next-Gen total speed rankings. The driver of the No. 1 car hasn’t been a standout this year on the comp tracks – scoring just two T10s in five races – but he nearly won at Texas before getting dumped by William Byron late in the race. At just $9,000 on DraftKings and $22.91 on Fantrax, the reigning Music City champion is a must-play on most platforms.
Denny Hamlin sits atop the Dover + high-speed intermediate total speed rankings and scored a win in Deleware, plus two other T5s in the five comp races. Don’t fix it if it’s not broken with him or his Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) Christopher Bell. The driver of the No. 20 car has five straight T10s this season and joins Larson and Chastain as the only drivers with a perfect T10 rate at Nashville.
Driver Bs | Point-Getters
In a B-Tier more based on speed at comp tracks, Martin Truex Jr. stands out specifically at Nashville, having the No. 1 total speed ranking the past two trips to NashVegas. Still, given his recent retirement announcement, I’m apprehensive to rely on the 43-year-old for NASCAR DFS purposes. William Byron hasn’t been as strong the past few months, but he’s still sixth in our comp-track total speed rankings. The Charlotte, N.C., native also finished both stages inside the top five and ultimately finished sixth at Nashville a year ago. That sticks out in a lukewarm grouping, especially at an approachable price of $9,500 on DraftKings and $24.04 on Fantrax.
I feel similar about Ty Gibbs in the No. 54 car, but more because of his fifth position in the Dover + high-speed intermediate total speed rankings rather than his P14 finish at Nashville from last season. Still, $8,400 on DraftKings and $22.25 on Fantrax is a fine price for a driver in top-tier equipment that has eight T10s in 18 points-paying Cup Series races this season.
Driver Cs | In the Mix
This is a rare opportunity to back the other Trackhouse Racing driver, Daniel Suarez. The recently named U.S. citizen has finished no worse than P15 in his sponsor Tootisies’ backyard. The upside might be capped for “Mi Amigo,” but he offers safety after scoring no finish worse than P24 in the past six points-paying races. I can get behind Saurez for the fair price of $7,500 on DraftKings and $17.16 on Fantrax this week.
I also am increasingly interested in getting Alex Bowman into some NASCAR DFS lineups. Sure, the Ally-backed driver’s finishes at Nashville are nothing to write home about, but he has finished T10 in four of five comp races this season and is ninth in the total speed rankings at those tracks. Chris Buescher is right behind him at 10th in the Dover + high-speed intermediate total speed rankings. Buescher’s best finish of P18 at Nashville will probably throw others off the scent, offering some leverage if the Roush Fenway Keselowski (RFK) driver can score a back-to-back T5 this week after a late-race surge at New Hampshire. He does love racing on concrete surfaces, after all.
Driver Ds | Could Do Worse
It’s hard to trust Kyle Busch and Richard Childress Racing (RCR) as a whole right now. However, “Rowdy” won the pole at our closest comp track of Dover and finished P9 in Music City last season. He’s another driver who could provide leverage because of the public’s perception. If you’re willing to stomach $8,200 for him on DraftKings and $18.22 on Fantrax, I don’t hate rolling out the veteran in NASCAR DFS lineups this week.
Whether it be late-race incidents or mechanical issues, Justin Haley is not getting the finishes he deserves after running much of recent races inside the T10. If he can just get across the line in one piece, he should return value as a pay-down option at $5,600 on DraftKings and $12.16 on Fantrax. He hasn’t had a ton of success down at the honkey-tonk, but he’s at least found speed, qualifying fourth last year in Kauilg Racing equipment.
After an average finish of 23.5 in his first two Cup Series starts, Corey Heim will get a lot of chalk thrown his way this week now that he’s in a third 23XI Racing car. I’ll bite on Fantrax for the $5 minimum, but I prefer to pivot to Austin Cindric on DraftKings for $200 less. The Gateway winner actually finished P7 here in 2022 as a rookie and is 18th in the comp total speed rankings.
Driver Fs | The Junk Drawer
You’ll need some dart throws if you’re trying to fit several A-Tier drivers in your NASCAR DFS lineups like I am this week. Can I interest you in A.J. Allmendinger? The part-time Cup Series driver finished P10 last year at Nashville while also scoring stage points each opportunity. “Dinger” was running T10 most of the day at his one comp race in a Cup car this year (Dover) and ranked 13th in the total speed rankings. It’s hard to do much better for just $6,500 on DraftKings and $6.49 on Fantrax.
I am also weirdly inclined to give Riley Herbst a look this week, as he has a 100% T10 rate at Nashville in the Xfinity Series, with recent finishes here of second and third. If you don’t think that transfers, how about Zane Smith, who is three for three finishing T5 at Nashville in the Truck Series? You’ll pay no more than $5,400 on DraftKings for either of these young guns.
Check out all of our content for the 2024 Ally 400:
- PropKings: 2024 Ally 400
- Between Bets: 2024 Ally 400 Outrights
- NASCAR DFS Picks, Tiers & Rankings: 2024 Ally 400
Thanks for reading our NASCAR DFS picks and tiers for the 2024 Ally 400. Check out more of our racing content and other written work here at In-Between Media, or head over to our YouTube channel to get your fix via video.
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*Photo Credit: Mike Dinovo – USA TODAY Sports*