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NASCAR Fantasy: Best 2018 Daytona 500 drivers for your lineup

By Tyler Callaway

DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 15: Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards/Peak Ford, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Can-Am Duel 1 at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2018 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)
DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 15: Ryan Blaney, driver of the #12 Menards/Peak Ford, celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Can-Am Duel 1 at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2018 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images) /
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Set your perfect NASCAR fantasy lineup for the 2018 Daytona 500 with this list of top drivers expected to go big this Sunday.

Daytona is a plague to fantasy NASCAR players, as the unpredictability makes it near impossible to set a perfect lineup. But it’s still possible to win big if your drivers can avoid the”Big One.”

Here I’ll be giving you all the names that should be on your radar as you hop over to DraftKings to set your lineup for this week. These drivers are broken down based on their price tags.

Five Big Money Drivers:

  1. Joey Logano: $9,600
  2. Denny Hamlin: $9,800
  3. Ryan Blaney: $8,600
  4. Kevin Harvick: $9,900
  5. Chase Elliott: $10,200

Five Bargain Drivers:

  1. Daniel Suarez: $7,200
  2. Austin Dillon: $7,900
  3. Aric Almirola: $7,700
  4. Ryan Newman: $6,600
  5. Darrell Wallace Jr.: $6,800

Five Lineup Fillers:

  1. David Ragan: $6,200
  2. Michael McDowell: $5,800
  3. A.J. Allmendinger: $5,900
  4. Danica Patrick: $5,600
  5. Brendan Gaughan: $5,200

Best Lineup:

  1. Joey Logano
  2. Denny Hamlin
  3. Ryan Blaney
  4. Chase Elliott
  5. Ryan Newman
  6. Brendan Gaughan

Logano: WIth an average finish of 12.75, Logano has been the fifth best current driver at Daytona in the last four races, only being beaten by Almirola, Allmendinger, McDowell, and Gaughan. So as far as top drivers go, he’s the most consistent finisher. A breakout season is expected with a breakout win here.

Hamlin: Hamlin finished second in qualifying and in practices 1 and 3 with a fourth place finish in the second practice. He is running fast at Daytona and is a former winner of the race.

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Blaney: Winning one of the Can-Am Duels and has a lot of hype surrounding Blaney going into this race. He is cheap compared to most big-name drivers, so the value is too good to pass up.

Elliott: Elliott is the winner of the other Can-Am Duel and placed fourth in qualifying. His price tag is expensive for a driver who has never won a race, but nobody will be surprised if the 2018 Daytona 500 is his first win.

Newman: Newman is a bargain driver who has the seventh best average finish in the last four races at Daytona and is always a great discount option in fantasy. As a former winner of the Daytona 500 in 2008, he is an experienced presence in such a young field.

Gaughan: Gaughan finished 7th and 11th last year at Daytona for Beard Motorsports and ran 8th in the last practice session. He is a risk, but at his price and the ability to include him in a stacked lineup like this, he’s a risk worth taking.

Next: Top 10 NASCAR drivers of all-time

Make sure to get your lineup set for the Daytona 500 by February 18th at 2:30 pm ET, only on DraftKings.

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