Articles
Brad Keselowski Contended But Settles For Fourth At Phoenix
Brad Keselowski was close again but not close enough on Sunday. The Roger Penske Ford driver just could not get into the top-3 on Sunday after the final restart. He did manage to lead 19 laps earlier in the race. Keselowski finished third in Stage 1 and fourth in Stage 2. He consistently contended throughout […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoDenny Hamlin Finishes Third At Instacart 500 on Sunday
Denny Hamlin had a very fast race car, led 33 laps, and had a chance at a run on the final restart. However, his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota just did not quite have the power to stay with Martin Truex Jr. or Joey Logano. By the end of the race, Hamlin got within a second […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoJoey Logano Comes Up Just Short, Finishes Second At Phoenix
Joey Logano could have made a case he had the best car on Sunday during the Instacart 500. In the end, he was done in by a bold outside move by Martin Truex Jr. Logano in the final 25 laps admitted his car was not tuned like the Truex Jr.'s Toyota. The best the Roger […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoMartin Truex Jr. Pulls Away On Restart, Wins Instacart 500
Martin Truex Jr. brushed the wall early on Sunday. He rose through the pack and took the lead on the final restart. Just 25 laps separated Truex Jr. from victory. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver held off Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin to win his first race of 2021. He took the outside line, grabbed […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoMichael McDowell Carries Some Risk At Phoenix
Michael McDowell slipped a bit at Vegas. He started fifth and ended up 17th in what was a rough afternoon and evening. The Front Row Motorsports driver led nine laps but wound up a lap down after some unforced errors after Stage 2 last Sunday. McDowell has zero top-ten finishes in 20 races on the […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoChase Briscoe's Has A Little Value For Instacart 500
Chase Briscoe is learning life at the top level of NASCAR is full of bumps and hard knocks. The Stewart-Haas driver improved a few positions on the Vegas track but showed a hair more promise at Homestead. That is encouraging. Briscoe improved by 12 positions at Daytona and 11 in Homestead. Could he do that […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoAric Almirola Rough Season Expected To Continue
Aric Almirola is buried so far down the leaderboard on Sunday for the Instacart 500. He starts from the 32nd spot. Worse, the Stewart-Hass Racing driver has not performed well at all with an average place differential of -11 per race. After four straight results in the top-ten, Almirola has lost spots during his last […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoTyler Reddick Has Chance To Improve Track Position at Instacart 500
Tyler Reddick has the car to move up position-wise on Sunday at Phoenix. He improved two spots in last year's race and had a chance to get near the top-ten but made a few tactical errors which kept him outside the top-15. This year, the Richard Childress Racing driver has taken a few steps forward. […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoAustin Dillon Another Driver To Avoid Sunday At Phoenix
Austin Dillon has not shown enough with the Richard Childress Racing car to inspire confidence for Sunday's Instacart 500. Though he starts up at the 13th position, Dillon has shown little ability to move up in track position on the track when all is said and done. His last four results as far as place […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoRoss Chastain Offers Little Upside At Phoenix
Ross Chastain is again in the middle of the pack on Sunday at the Instacart 500. The Chip Ganassi driver begins in 22nd but place differential is likely to be minimal. In five races, Chastain has finished outside the top-20 every single time. Last year was the first time the racer ended the race on […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoAlex Bowman Not Recommended For Phoenix
Alex Bowman does not expect to be much of a factor at Phoenix on Sunday. The Instacart 500 has not been kind to the Hendrick Motorsports driver. He begins from the 21st position and likely will not figure in the top-ten or even 15 for that matter. His place differential has been negative on the […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoWilliam Byron Has Some DFS Potential On Sunday
William Byron lucked out because of his early-season victory. As a result, he starts from the 10th position in Phoenix. The Hendrick Motorsports driver has shown nice improvement in the two previous races (10th and 9th place finishes). That place differential, if it even translates some, could mean Byron possibly contends again at the Instacart […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoKurt Busch Likely To Finish Near Top Ten But Not Contend
Kurt Busch starts in the 12th position and will likely move into the top-ten early on Sunday at the Instacart 500. The question becomes can he contend in Phoenix. This answer appears to be no. Busch's best finish since 2010 is 5th. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver has led just eight laps since coming over […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoRyan Newman Could Lurk Around Top-Ten Sunday
Ryan Newman is a longtime veteran and has raced at the Phoenix track for 21 years. Even without the best of cars, the Jack Roush Racing driver can improve his position by at least several spots on Sunday. The 2017 winner of this race has the know-how to get some points on place differential alone. […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoNASCAR DFS Prop Picks: Instacart 500 - Monkey Knife Fight
Sunday features the Instacart 500 presented by Instacart from Phoenix. Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Christopher Bell, and Martin Truex Jr. will make up the top five to start the race. Monkey Knife Fight has an extremely easy fantasy point system: 0.1 points for each lap led and then a set amount of points […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoRyan Blaney Getting Overlooked At Phoenix A Bit
One driver that could deliver a steady result is Ryan Blaney. He has only led one lap the entire season but did race to a top-five finish last week in Vegas. His car is getting better and better. The Team Penske driver starts from the eighth spot on Sunday for the Instacart 500. There is […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoJoey Logano Should Be Excellent DFS Choice Sunday
Joey Logano is just inside the top 10 for his start on Sunday in the Instacart 500. That may suit him rather well. Logano and this raceway set up well together. Last year, the Team Penske driver finished on the podium both times and won the spring race with ease. He had led at least […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoKyle Busch Has Track Record To Contend At Phoenix
Kyle Busch has shown the ability to win races at Phoenix. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has won three times in 31 appearances. That includes a string of nine top-five finishes in his previous 11 results. Last season, Busch had a few issues but still managed a third in the Spring race. The Instacart 500 […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoChristopher Bell Has Little Upside At Phoenix
The good news is that Christopher Bell gets a top-five start on Sunday for the Instacart 500. The bad news is that the Joe Gibbs Racing driver just may not fare quite as well. He finished outside the top-15 in both races last season. The expectation is that Bell will fall out of the top-five […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoMartin Truex Jr. Enjoys Some DFS Upside Sunday
Martin Truex Jr. represents a risky DFS pick for the Instacart 500. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver has had some car issues throughout the season. It has kept him from winning at least one race and maybe two. Starting fifth this week may be helpful. He has been in contention in six of the previous […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoDon't Expect Kyle Larson To Win In Phoenix
Kyle Larson does start from the second spot on Sunday for the Instacart 500. Last week, the Hendrick Motorsports driver found a way to not only win in Vegas but he won convincingly at the end. Could he do it again this week? The answer seems to be no based on the numbers but a […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoChase Elliott Another Favorite At Phoenix on Sunday
Can Chase Elliott put it all together? The Hendrick Motorsports driver had a nice run going in Vegas until a spin-out ruined his day. Elliott has +600 odds to win the Instacart 500 on Sunday and one of the big reasons is he can rack up laps led. Elliott led a total of 246 laps […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoKevin Harvick Should Improve Track Position At Phoenix
Stewart-Haas Racing driver Kevin Harvick should be able to improve position-wise at Phoenix. Harvick starts from the 18th spot for the Instacart 500. This is a track he excels at, winning nine times in 36 races. He has ended up in the top 10 15 consecutive times, including a dozen top-five results. Does he have […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoDenny Hamlin The Favorite To Win In Phoenix
Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin is a very slight favorite (+500) to grab the checkered flag on Sunday in Phoenix. Hamlin starts in the third position and has enjoyed a mostly solid car all season. With four different winners on the season, could Hamlin be the fifth? He has the finishes at the track […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoBrad Keselowski Expected To Contend In Phoenix
Team Penske driver Brad Keselowski raced very well at Phoenix last year. In the spring race, Keselowski led 82 laps before a self-inflicted error got in the way. Keselowski nearly won the fall edition, as he finished in second after starting in third place. This time around, he starts from the pole. That means he […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoCBB DFS Prop Picks for Saturday (3/13/21) - Monkey Knife Fight
With the college basketball slate featuring some afternoon games of note, naturally, the Monkey Knife Fight column again takes a look at two more Saturday evening games. Remember, Selection Sunday is tomorrow. With the evening games, there are a few that were just destined to get some coverage. The Conference Tournament games are ones to […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoCBB DFS Prop Picks for Friday (3/12/21) - Monkey Knife Fight
With the college basketball slate featuring some afternoon games of note, naturally, the Monkey Knife Fight column again takes a look at two more Friday evening games. With the evening games, there are a few that were just destined to get some coverage. The Conference Tournament games are ones to get prepped and get ready […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoCBB DFS Prop Picks for Thursday (3/11/21) - Monkey Knife Fight
With the college basketball slate featuring some afternoon games of note, naturally, the Monkey Knife Fight column takes a look at two evening games. With the evening games, there are a few that were just destined to get some coverage. The Conference Tournament games are ones to get prepped and get ready for when March […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoNHL DFS Lineup Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings (3/10): Value Plays, Goalies, Stacks
Welcome, RotoBallers. Hockey season is back and I am thrilled to be covering this sport over at RotoBaller! As always, I will do my best to give you the stats and info you need to build the best lineups possible for your GPP and cash game NHL contests on DraftKings and FanDuel. If you are […]
Chris Wassel 4 years agoCBB DFS Prop Picks for Wednesday (3/10/21) - Monkey Knife Fight
With the college basketball slate featuring some afternoon games of note, naturally, the Monkey Knife Fight column takes a look at two evening games. With the evening games, there are a few that were just destined to get some coverage. The Conference Tournament games are ones to get prepped and get ready for when March […]
Chris Wassel 4 years ago