Overview
It’s All Star Race weekend at Texas Motor Speedway and the Camping World Truck Series will kick off the weekend under the lights on Friday. The drivers will go 220.5 miles turning 147 laps on the 1.5-mile asphalt oval located in Fort Worth, Texas. The trucks have been racing here since 1997 and the pole-sitter has won this race each of the last two years – John Hunter Nemechek last year and Sheldon Creed the year prior. I’d be lying if I told you to expect an exciting race here, I would expect quite the contrary although there were six cautions in this race last year so you never know. There’s still money to be won in DFS but with qualifying taking place a few hours before the green flag, the info below could vary slightly. Be sure to check Discord for updates after qualifying for any updates.
Most comparable tracks: Charlotte, Kansas, Las Vegas
*Note: all pricing is DraftKings focused
Top Drivers
John Hunter Nemechek ($10,900)
The first three races for JHN were anything but easy as he placed 24th, 25th, and 24th to start the season but since then he’s finished second, fourth, third, first, and sixth with the most recent coming last week at Kansas. As mentioned above, JHN won this race last year and it wasn’t a weak field as he had to hold off plenty of good trucks including Chase Elliott. Nevertheless, JHN went on to lead over 60 laps before finding victory lane. Assuming he qualifies within the top five, JHN will be a dominator contender.
Ross Chastain ($10,400)
This will be Chastain’s third truck race this season and the first two have gone terribly wrong as far as finishing position goes. With that said, Chastain blew a tire late in the Atlanta race and despite leading 46 laps at Darlington finished 26th. In the Cup series, Chastain has been one of the more consistent drivers this season and it seems that he has a ton of confidence. In a good truck, Chastain will be a contender to win this race barring any unforeseen issues, of course.
Derek Kraus ($7,800)
Not necessarily a household name, but in three races at Texas Kraus has an average finish of 11th including a ninth-place finish in 2020. While his salary sits in the mid-tier range, Kraus could be an affordable place differential play depending on qualifying of course. We’ll have to see how that shakes out for the youngster who finished eighth at Kansas last year and last week, a very similar track to Texas.
Carson Hocevar ($9,400)
A dark horse to win is Hocevar who’s finished second in two of his last three races and has four top-10’s this season. The 19-year-old finished 11th at Texas last season but has made tremendous progress in becoming a more suited driver in this series. His salary is creeping up week by week which may scare some people off of him. He’s a good sneaky play driving with a ton of confidence right now.
Tyler Ankrum ($8,400)
Considering Ankrum under any circumstances scares the shit out of me but the talent is there despite the inconsistent results. He seems to make a lot of idiotic mistakes which come with the territory at this level but he’s finished in the top-10 three times this season including a ninth-place finish at Darlington two weeks ago, a very challenging track. The play of Ankrum is dependent on where he qualifies. In his career at Texas, he’s finished sixth, third, sixth, sixteenth, and eighth.
Also Consider:
Zane Smith ($10,600)
- Speaking of driving with a ton of confidence, Smith has three wins on the season including last week at Kansas. In his last two races at Texas, he’s finished sixth and third.
Chandler Smith ($10,000)
- I continue to be impressed with Smith driving the number 51 truck for Kyle Busch Motorsports. Before last week Smith had finished sixth or better in four consecutive races. Another thing that bodes well for his chances to win here is that he’s qualified sixth or better in six of eight races this season. The last eight winners of this race have qualified sixth or better.
Note: Be sure to check Discord for updates after qualifying including value and mid-range options!
GOOD LUCK!!