Written by @joejets19

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NASCAR Busch Clash at Daytona 🏁

Welcome back everyone, after an offseason that lasted a blink of eye, NASCAR returns with an appetizer of sorts. The Busch Clash at Daytona takes place at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, FL. The Clash kicks off an entire week of festivities including: the Duels on Thursday night, a Truck race on Friday night, an XFINITY race on Saturday and then the granddaddy of them all the Daytona 500 on Sunday. Only 75 laps will be run on the 2.5 mile tri-oval track and the action will be split up into two stages (25 laps and 50 laps respectively.)

Scoring Breakdown

At this point, we know how the DK scoring system works, so let's see how many points are available this week:

Laps Led Points = 0.25 points per lap led. This week, 75 laps will be run and 18.75 points will be awarded (plus any overtime laps).

Place Differential Points = 1 point per position gained or -1 point per position lost.

Fastest Lap Points = 0.5 points per lap not run under caution (roughly 70 laps should run under the green flag for a total of 35 possible points).

Finishing Position Points: The 40th place driver receives 4 points, and for each position gained, another point is awarded (39th=5, 38th=6…) and the winner gets 46 points.

How do you qualify for The Clash?

The field consists of drivers that:

1. Made the playoffs in 2019

2. Won a pole in 2019

3. Previously won the Daytona 500 AND competed full time in 2019

4. Won a pole for a previous Daytona 500s AND competed full time in 2019

5. Won a previous Clash AND that competed full times in 2019

20 drivers met the qualifications for the race this year but only 18 drivers will be competing.

I always considered this the true All-Star race, but with only pride to race for it might just be me that thinks that.

Lineup Construction 🏗️

Lineup construction can be kind of tricky for the Clash because of the tiny player pool and volatility of the track. All of these drivers come from well funded teams and usually bring a special car just for this race (aka they aren't afraid to wreck). I expect there to be a ton of drafting which is typical for Superspeedway races and the slate will all come down to who survives the final few laps and limps to the finish.

Just like all the other Superspeedway races, I will look to the rear of the field to solidify the floor of my lineup. Each of the last two perfect lineups featured four drivers starting 13th or worse. This will be a fun slate for low dollar MME and in that case I will be heavy of drivers starting in this range and then try to differentiate my lineups by sprinkling in drivers starting in the top 10. Speaking on drivers starting in the top 10, I don't suggest going over 10% ownership on any driver starting in the top 5 and will probably fade the front row entirely. Cash games seem to be a waste of time for this slate but if that is something you are interested in, I would pick the drivers starting 14-19 and make the other players make a mistake. That will be a popular cash lineup on Sunday so that is part of the reason I will be avoiding those contests this weekend.

Tournament Targets

Joey Logano ($9,800 DK, $12,000 FD)

Logano is the most expensive driver on DK but I am not worried about salary this weekend. He is starting 13th and has an average finish of 6.4 in his last 10 Clash appearances. He has finished 6th or better in his last seven Clashes and even has a win. There is really no bad choice between Logano, Hamlin and Kurt Busch (Hamlin is actually the better cash play) but on a slate like this I would prefer the go big or go home mentality.

Austin Dillon ($5,500 DK, $8,000 FD)

I expect Dillon to go slightly underowned due to the bigger names starting around him and the soft pricing. While an average Clash finish of 9.6 may not be flashy, he has shown top 5 potential and a 15th place starting position provides a solid floor. Historically he does better during the Daytona 500 than the July race and I am looking for him to continue his early season success. Overall I believe Austin will be a nice tournament piece to any lineup.

William Byron ($6,600 DK , $8,500 FD)

If we are looking to take down a tournament, we are going to need exposure to drivers starting further forward. Byron will be making his Clash debut on Sunday after having a great 2019 campaign. He is a fairly competent Superspeedway driver despite his two crashes in the last three races at Daytona. Byron is another leverage play considering his relative lack of name recognition and his middle of nowhere starting position of 7th.

Top Driver to Avoid

Ryan Newman ($5,600 DK, $8,000 FD)

Going to play it safe to start the season, almost everything has to go right for Newman to make it into a perfect lineup. He was a bottom third car in practice and one has one top 10 finish in his last four Clashes. Almost anything can happen in this race, but I'm not going to put a ton of faith in Newman pulling off a miracle.

Thanks for reading and good luck this weekend! Be sure to join me in the LineStar NASCAR chat!

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