2023 Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond

The NASCAR Cup Series travels to Richmond Raceway this weekend for some action on the Action Track.

Read on for my daily fantasy NASCAR DraftKings picks for the Toyota Owners 400, airing on Sunday, April 2 at 3:30 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1.

Cup’s been going to Richmond since 1953, but the current length of 0.75 miles has been used since 1988. It’s mostly flat compared to ones like Bristol Motor Speedway, so it races a bit differently.

This week will be the third race using the new package for most short tracks; it was first used at Phoenix Raceway, so at least we have something to go off of for daily fantasy. Keep in mind that the caution came out late in that event and changed up the running order (Kevin Harvick, who led from lap 269 until Harrison Burton spun on lap 303, finished fifth).

You can also look at past Richmond races, especially last year’s events, to help you create your DraftKings lineups. Study which ones had speed both early and late.

Additionally, there will be practice and qualifying, as long as neither gets rained out on Saturday. Sessions are set to begin at 10:05 a.m. ET and air on FOX Sports 1.

Before I move on to my picks for Richmond, here’s a look back at what happened at Circuit of the Americas:

Tyler Reddick grabbed his first Cup victory of the season and put up one of the best DraftKings scores. Chris Buescher also did well, surviving the multiple overtimes to finish eighth after starting 32nd. The main low point was Austin Dillon; he didn’t do so well in Austin, Texas.

Here’s a look at the DraftKings scoring rules:

The winner on the racetrack tallies 45 points, while second place gets 42, third 41 and so on. Tenth place scores 34, while 11th gets 32 and decreases by one from there through 20th. This pattern repeats for 21st through 30th and 31st through 40th.

Additionally, drivers can earn or lose a point depending on where they finish. For example, if Joey Logano started third and won, he would gain two points in addition to his finishing position points, totaling 47 fantasy points.

Drivers also can earn .45 points for each fastest lap and .25 for each lap they lead.

NASCAR DraftKings Scoring

Also, I will be hosting a free NASCAR DraftKings league that will run each week for the Cup Series only. It’s free to join, but as of now it’s just for bragging rights. You’ll get to compete against me and some of my colleagues.

Here is the link to the league:

Now, here are my picks!

DraftKings Picks: Top Tier ($9,000-$11,000)

William Byron ($11,000)
Career at Richmond: 9 starts, 0 wins, 1 top five, 2 top 10s
Average finish at Richmond: 14.4

William Byron may have won Phoenix after two late restarts, but he had one of the…