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Welcome to RotoBaller's Tiered Rankings for the ninth race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond Raceway. For those that are viewing these rankings for the first time, here is how the sheet works.
There are two sets of DFS tiered rankings featured below, with one set of rankings focused on DraftKings DFS contests while the other is focused on FanDuel. Every driver that will officially be starting in this week's race will be listed in a particular tier based on their salary for each site. The tiers feature drivers that have similar price ranges and are ranked based on their final outlook, which is determined by a combination of a driver's expected performance for this week's race as well as their salary.
These ranks will help you make tough lineup calls, telling you which drivers must be started over others in each tier. DFS players from any skill level can use these rankings in order to create a lineup that will cash out.
Richmond, like last week's track Martinsville, is one of the few short tracks in the Cup Series. Fantasy players for this week's race must include both dominators, who are drivers expected to lead a large portion of laps in the race, and multiple diverse lineups with differing driver combinations. As one of the smaller tracks in NASCAR, racers tend to make contact more often at Richmond in comparison to most courses leading to a higher frequency of crashes. By diversifying lineups, fantasy players will maximize their chances of being able to cash out in case of drivers wrecking early. This week's rankings are based on a combination of each driver's past history at Richmond as well as their 2021 season-wide performance and expected results for this weekend's Cup event. Good luck RotoBallers!
Premium Tiered Rankings - NASCAR DFS
Normally, you can expect these rankings to be published on Thursdays or Fridays for every week that there is a Cup Series race, depending on the schedule of pre-race events. These rankings will also be updated as pre-race events progress throughout the week when applicable and also will include an analysis of each tier of drivers at the conclusion of all pre-race events.
* = This driver will be starting from the rear in this week's race
DraftKings Rankings Analysis
DraftKings Tier 1: Many of the favorites to win this week’s race at Richmond are in this tier. Brad Keselowski leads this tier as the most recent winner at the site in 2020 where he also led 192 laps, the most of all drivers there. Keselowski has finished 11th or better in the last 10 races at Richmond including top-10 finishes in each of the last five. The driver of the No. 2 Ford starts 20th, providing the most PD upside of all in this tier. Martin Truex Jr won two of the last three Richmond races and placed in the Top 3 in each of the last four Cup events at the site. The driver of the No. 19 Toyota leads in most loop data categories at Richmond Raceway since 2018 including Laps in the Top 15 (1,957), Laps Led (579), Average Running Position (3.9), and Driver Rating (125.9). Truex starts first, meaning he will lead multiple laps from the start and is one of the favorites to win this weekend’s race. Kyle Busch has the most wins at Richmond of active drivers (6) and ranks first in Fastest Laps (212) at the track since 2018. Busch starts 10th, providing decent Place Differential upside, and is one of the better picks to build around this week for lineups as Richmond is one of his best tracks historically. Denny Hamlin is a three-time winner at Richmond who also has eight finishes of sixth or better in the last 10 races at the site. Hamlin is the most consistent driver of 2021 currently with seven top-10 finishes in eight races including five consecutive finishes of fourth or better leading to this week’s race. The driver of the No. 11 Toyota will start second and based on history as well as his 2021 momentum, he will finish in the Top 5 with a chance of winning at Richmond.
DraftKings Tier 2: Only two drivers are recommended to start from this tier for Richmond. Ranked first in this tier is Kevin Harvick, a three-time Richmond winner who placed in the Top 10 in each of the last five Cup events at the site. Since 2018 at RR, Harvick is second of active drivers in Fastest Laps (172) while he is third in Laps in the Top 15 (1,913), Average Running Position (5.7), and Driver Rating (114.1). The driver of the No. 4 Ford starts ninth, offering decent PD upside as he will compete for a top-5 finish based on history and equipment. Chase Elliott is the other driver to consider for Richmond this weekend. In ten starts at Richmond, Elliott has four top-10 finishes while scoring positive PD seven times. Elliott will start third this week and based on his equipment and overall performance this season, expect him to compete for a Top-5 finish.
DraftKings Tier 3: Hendrick Motorsports driver Alex Bowman is the first driver to recommend from this tier at Richmond. Bowman picked up his best career finish in his last start at the Virginia track (ninth). This season, Bowman has four top-15 finishes in eight races and he will start 24th, presenting great PD upside for this week’s race at Richmond. Austin Cindric is making his third career Cup Series start at Richmond this weekend. Cindric placed 15th and 22nd in his previous two starts at Daytona and Atlanta in 2021. In the Xfinity Series at Richmond, Cindric has five top-10 finishes in six starts including each of his last four at the course. The driver of the No. 33 Ford starts in the last position this weekend (38th), providing more upside than all drivers as well as no risk of losing PD. Kurt Busch is the next driver to greatly consider for Richmond. Since 2018 at RR, Busch ranks fifth in Laps in the Top 15 (1,753), and in 39 career starts there, Busch has two wins and 15 top-10 finishes. The driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet will start 17th, offering adequate PD upside as his equipment with Chip Ganassi Racing is capable of competing for a top-10 finish. The last three drivers in this tier, William Byron, Aric Almirola, and Matt DiBenedetto, are other options that will not collect much PD, but based on equipment, history, and their 2021 performances so far, they will likely place around their starting positions.
DraftKings Tier 4: A couple of drivers in this tier are great choices for Richmond to procure positive PD. Erik Jones starts 30th and in seven starts at Richmond, he has four top-15 finishes. The driver of the No. 43 Chevrolet provides great PD upside and has equipment capable of placing inside the Top 20. Daniel Suarez provides strong PD upside as well from his starting position (27th). In seven starts at Richmond, Suarez has six top-20 finishes while gaining positive PD five times. The driver of the No. 99 Chevrolet has scored positive PD five times this season and he will finish with positive PD this week at Richmond in the Top 20 based on history and equipment. Richard Childress Racing teammates Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon are solid choices for Richmond lineups. Reddick scored positive PD and finished 11th in his only start at the site last season. The driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet also has three top-10 finishes this season including last week’s race at Martinsville. Reddick will start 13th and is a driver that can compete for a top-10 finish like last year’s race at RR. Dillon secured his career-best finish of fourth in last year’s race at Richmond while leading 55 laps, which is second-most of all drivers. The driver of the No. 3 Chevrolet also has three finishes of sixth or better in his last four starts at the Virginia track while he has five top-15 finishes in 2021 so far. Ryan Newman is another driver that should be considered for lineups at Richmond. In 37 starts at the site, Newman has 32 top-20 finishes, which includes placing in the top-10 four times in his last seven races there. The driver of the No. 6 Ford will start 19th, offering a sufficient amount of PD upside at Richmond this week where he will compete for a top-15 finish.
DraftKings Tier 5: Most of the drivers in this tier are starting in higher positions this week at Richmond, making them risks for losing positions based on PD. Ryan Preece is the best driver to start here based on his starting position (25th) and history at Richmond. In three starts at the Virginia track, Preece has two top-20 finishes while obtaining positive PD in his last start. Preece is having his best Cup Series season to date with four top-20 finishes and he is expected to place in the Top 20 this week at Richmond. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Michael McDowell are the other favorable options to consider here. Stenhouse has 10 top-20 finishes in his Cup Series career at Richmond including each of his last four starts. McDowell has three top-20 finishes at RR while having his best season yet in 2021 with six top-20 finishes in eight races. McDowell will start 23rd this week while Stenhouse will start 14th. Based on their equipment and history at Richmond, watch for both drivers to finish around their starting positions, but not lose PD this week.
DraftKings Tier 6: Fantasy players should avoid rostering drivers from this tier as much as possible at Richmond. All of the drivers here have inferior equipment in comparison to the rest of the field and will finish multiple laps down. If you need to choose a driver here for the cap flexibility, Anthony Alfredo is the best choice since his equipment is superior to all others in this tier.
FanDuel Rankings Analysis
FanDuel Tier 1: Similar to DraftKings, Many of the favorites to win this week’s race at Richmond are in this tier. Brad Keselowski leads this tier as the most recent winner at the site in 2020 where he also led 192 laps, the most of all drivers there. Keselowski has finished 11th or better in the last 10 races at Richmond including top-10 finishes in each of the last five. The driver of the No. 2 Ford starts 20th, providing the most PD upside of all in this tier. Martin Truex Jr won two of the last three Richmond races and placed in the Top 3 in each of the last four Cup events at the site. The driver of the No. 19 Toyota leads in most loop data categories at Richmond Raceway since 2018 including Laps in the Top 15 (1,957), Laps Led (579), Average Running Position (3.9), and Driver Rating (125.9). Truex starts first, meaning he will lead multiple laps from the start and is one of the favorites to win this weekend’s race. Kyle Busch has the most wins at Richmond of active drivers (6) and ranks first in Fastest Laps (212) at the track since 2018. Busch starts 10th, providing decent Place Differential upside, and is one of the better picks to build around this week for lineups as Richmond is one of his best tracks historically. Denny Hamlin is a three-time winner at Richmond who also has eight finishes of sixth or better in the last 10 races at the site. Hamlin is the most consistent driver of 2021 currently with seven top-10 finishes in eight races including five consecutive finishes of fourth or better leading to this week’s race. The driver of the No. 11 Toyota will start second and based on history as well as his 2021 momentum, he will finish in the Top 5 with a chance of winning at Richmond.
FanDuel Tier 2: Unlike Draftkings, multiple drivers are quality recommendations to start from this tier for Richmond. Kyle Larson is the first driver that must be greatly considered for lineups at Richmond. In 12 starts at the course, Larson has one win and five top-10 finishes, which he collected in his last seven races there. Larson’s first season with Hendrick Motorsports is one of his best so far with six top-10 finishes in eight races. The driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet will start sixth at Richmond this week and based on his history as well as equipment, he will place in the Top 5 with a chance of a podium finish. Ranked second in this tier is Kevin Harvick, a three-time Richmond winner who placed in the Top 10 in each of the last five Cup events at the site. Since 2018 at RR, Harvick is second of active drivers in Fastest Laps (172) while he is third in Laps in the Top 15 (1,913), Average Running Position (5.7), and Driver Rating (114.1). The driver of the No. 4 Ford starts ninth, offering decent PD upside as he will compete for a top-5 finish based on history and equipment. Chase Elliott is the last driver to consider for Richmond this weekend. In ten starts at Richmond, Elliott has four top-10 finishes while scoring positive PD seven times. Elliott will start third this week and based on his equipment and overall performance this season, expect him to compete for a Top-5 finish.
FanDuel Tier 3: Alex Bowman of Hendrick Motorsports is the first driver to recommend from this tier at Richmond. Bowman picked up his best career finish in his last start at the Virginia track (ninth). This season, Bowman has four top-15 finishes in eight races and he will start 24th, presenting great PD upside for this week’s race at Richmond. Kurt Busch is the next driver to greatly consider for Richmond. Since 2018 at RR, Busch ranks fifth in Laps in the Top 15 (1,753), and in 39 career starts there, Busch has two wins and 15 top-10 finishes. The driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet will start 17th, offering adequate PD upside as his equipment with Chip Ganassi Racing is capable of competing for a top-10 finish. Richard Childress Racing teammates Tyler Reddick and Austin Dillon are solid choices for Richmond lineups. Reddick scored positive PD and finished 11th in his only start at the site last season. The driver of the No. 8 Chevrolet also has three top-10 finishes this season including last week’s race at Martinsville. Reddick will start 13th and is a driver that can compete for a top-10 finish like last year’s race at RR. Dillon secured his career-best finish of fourth in last year’s race at Richmond while leading 55 laps, which is second-most of all drivers. The driver of the No. 3 Chevrolet also has three finishes of sixth or better in his last four starts at the Virginia track while he has five top-15 finishes in 2021 so far.
FanDuel Tier 4: A few drivers from this tier are worth consideration for lineups at Richmond. Austin Cindric, who is ranked first here, is making his third career Cup Series start at Richmond this weekend. Cindric placed 15th and 22nd in his previous two starts at Daytona and Atlanta in 2021. In the Xfinity Series at Richmond, Cindric has five top-10 finishes in six starts including each of his last four at the course. The driver of the No. 33 Ford starts in the last position this weekend (38th), providing more upside than all drivers as well as no risk of losing PD. Aric Almirola is another driver to consider as an option for Richmond lineups. In 17 starts at the Virginia track, Almirola has 13 top-20 finishes including seven of his last eight races. The driver of the No. 10 Ford will start 22nd, putting forward a small amount of PD upside. Based on his equipment and overall history at Richmond, Almirola is a solid pick for lineups on FanDuel this week. Ryan Newman is another driver that should be considered for lineups at Richmond. In 37 starts at the site, Newman has 32 top-20 finishes, which includes placing in the top-10 four times in his last seven races there. The driver of the No. 6 Ford will start 19th, offering a sufficient amount of PD upside at Richmond this week where he will compete for a top-15 finish.
FanDuel Tier 5: This tier features a few strong value options for lineups at Richmond. Erik Jones starts 30th and in seven starts at Richmond, he has four top-15 finishes. The driver of the No. 43 Chevrolet provides great PD upside and has equipment capable of placing inside the Top 20. Daniel Suarez provides strong PD upside as well from his starting position (27th). In seven starts at Richmond, Suarez has six top-20 finishes while gaining positive PD five times. The driver of the No. 99 Chevrolet has scored positive PD five times this season and he will finish with positive PD this week at Richmond in the Top 20 based on history and equipment. Ryan Preece is another driver to start here based on his starting position (25th) and history at Richmond. In three starts at the Virginia track, Preece has two top-20 finishes while obtaining positive PD in his last start. Preece is having his best Cup Series season to date with four top-20 finishes and he is expected to place in the Top 20 this week at Richmond. Michael McDowell is the last driver to consider from this tier. McDowell has three top-20 finishes at RR while having his best season yet in 2021 with six top-20 finishes in eight races. He will start 23rd this week at Richmond and based on his equipment and season-wide performance in 2021, he will finish around his starting position with a chance of placing in the Top 20.
FanDuel Tier 6: Just like DraftKings Fantasy players should avoid rostering drivers from this tier as much as possible at Richmond. All of the drivers here have inferior equipment in comparison to the rest of the field and will finish multiple laps down. If you need to choose a driver here for the cap flexibility, Corey LaJoie is the best choice due to his PD upside and experience or Anthony Alfredo since his equipment is better than most here.
