The 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season unofficially kicks off this Sunday, Feb. 6, in Los Angeles at The Coliseum. Thus, let’s review an intriguing structure that will formulate the starting lineup for Sunday and how that should affect the NASCAR DFS process for this event.
NASCAR DFS: Busch Clash at the Los Angeles Coliseum
A Clash Unlike Any Other
In years past, preparing for the Busch Clash was a simple task. The day before the race, always held at Daytona, the starting lineup would be picked via random draw. In order to qualify for the Busch Clash, drivers had to meet certain criteria (pole-winner from the previous season, past champion, past Clash winner, etc…) and with no points on the line, anywhere from 18-25 drivers would compete for a cash prize.
However, for 2022, NASCAR has moved the event to the Los Angeles Coliseum, on a track that had to be built within the confines of the stadium. The track is a minimally banked, quarter-mile asphalt oval with no room for a pit lane, garages, or the Trucks that brought the competitors. Furthermore, NASCAR is compelling all chartered teams to compete in this event. Obviously, all 36 chartered cars can’t fit on the track at the same time. Well, in theory, they could but that race would become a rolling game of Follow the Leader. To solve this conundrum, NASCAR will whittle down the field from 36 down to 23 drivers with six different heat races establishing the main field.
On Saturday, the fifth, single-car qualifying (three laps) will be held that will set the field for the four main heat races on Sunday. In these heat races, comprised of ten drivers (25 laps in length), the top four drivers will advance to the main event. Following the fourth heat race, with 16 drivers locked in, there will be another 50-lap heat race that will see three more competitors advance. Following this, a final 50-lap heat race will be held with three more drivers earning their way into the main feature. After all of this, the driver with the highest finish in last season’s points standing, who has not yet already advanced to the main feature, will be given the final spot to the Busch Clash.
Thus, according to NASCAR’s tentative schedule, two hours before the race starts and lineups lock, the 23-driver field will be established. Thus, keeping track of who is in and who is out will be of utmost importance. For those who can’t remain glued to the television, and or radio, be sure to keep a tab open with the Busch Clash Race Sheets as they will be updated as the heat races go on. Just like with previous All-Star Races, a shocking amount of lineups will be dead out of the gate as people refuse to keep track of the field and will enter dead lineups with drivers who failed to qualify for the event.
Busch Clash Cash Game Theory
With a smaller field, combined with a race that could see monumental amounts of attrition, cash is going to be reminiscent of a superspeedway race – “stack in the back”. Cash game lineups in NASCAR are often about combining safety with floor production, the easiest path to that in a race with just 150 laps, on a quarter-mile track, with no point implications on the line is to pick drivers who will accumulate fantasy points via finishing position and place differential. Drivers starting upfront will have immediate access to dominator points but with so few available, chances are they negate whatever they may game in fastest laps and laps led points just by simply losing position compared to where they started.
This said, be mindful that not all drivers starting in the second half of the field are automatic plays. One of the shocking aspects of this new car is that not all teams have a full set of vehicles going into this season. For the smaller teams, it makes no sense for them to beat and bang up a brand new car that would be better utilized for an actual points-paying race down the road. For these squads, the Clash could present an opportunity to get 150 laps worth of real racing data under their belts, all the while not being competitive whatsoever.
For those who want to grind out cash games, the preferred method is to post or pick up head-to-head games so as to avoid duplicate lineups and a one versus one decision in double-ups.
Busch Clash GPP Game Theory
Dominators, dominators, dominators…
With just 150 laps on tap, tons of potential wrecks, and no real expectations for how the Generation Seven car is going to drive; most people are going to forge on without giving dominators a second thought. Yet, it can’t be overstated how important those 150 laps are going to be in terms of bonus points. On FanDuel, those laps equate to just an extra 15 points for laps led (0.1 points for every lap led), however, on DraftKings those dominator points break down to 37.5 laps led points, and 67.5 fastest laps points. What’s unclear is just who “should” be earning these points; it’s conceivable the driver out front should be knocking down both sets of dominator points in clean air but once that driver gets entangled in traffic, the fastest lap points could end up being fairly random.
This is all to say, don’t disregard the drivers starting up front who could be potential leaders – especially whoever earns the pole. In terms of real-life racing, being out in front of the crowd on such a congested track is where a driver should want to be instead of intermingled with the crowd. It would not be shocking whatsoever to see the driver who starts first lead every lap until the half-time break, and potentially the rest of the race once racing resumes.
Do not forget, this will be the first race ever using this new car with this aero and horsepower package. NASCAR fans could witness a bummer of a race up front as it’s tough to pass the leader while all the action is in the middle of the field as everyone beats and bangs off one another. Don’t forget what happened to Martinsville in 2019 when NASCAR came in with the high horsepower/ high downforce package. The leader was impossible to pass and anything worth talking about happened elsewhere.
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