Fantasy Fastlane: Build around the Busch brothers, Harvick at Bristol

Editor's note: Fantasy Fastlane will look at each race from a fantasy perspective, examining the top plays, sleepers and plays to avoid for NASCAR Fantasy Live. NASCAR.com's Pat DeCola is filling in for fantasy guru RJ Kraft this week. Garage driver will lock at end of Stage 2. Odds come from Westgate Sports Book.


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Kyle Busch | View stats

Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 18 Toyota

Odds: 5-2

Fastlane forecast: Even if you're down to one use on Kyle Busch -- and who could blame you, he's been playable almost every week -- this is the week to deploy him one last time in the regular season. Point blank: no driver is better at Bristol. Put him in, coach.

Kurt Busch | View stats

Chip Ganassi Racing, No. 1 Chevrolet

Odds: 20-1

Fastlane forecast: If you're out of uses on Kyle, luckily for you there's another Busch to roll with. Kurt is the next best thing at Bristol, and as the defending race winner he's absolutely worth starting this weekend.

Kevin Harvick | View stats

Stewart-Haas Racing, No. 4 Ford

Odds: 7-1

Fastlane forecast: Outside of the Busch brothers, Harvick likely offers the best chance of a stellar run at Bristol. His 13.2 average finish there is fourth among active drivers, he's tied for a series-best 12 top fives and has finished in the top 10 in more than half his whopping 37 starts. You should feel good about using him, but if you only have one start left maybe save it for Indy.

Chase Elliott | View stats

Hendrick Motorsports, No. 9 Chevrolet

Odds: 20-1

Fastlane forecast: Elliott is projected to get the seventh-most points at Bristol (32) with five of the six drivers ahead of him being Cup champions and the other being Denny Hamlin. He's in good company, and for good reason -- his 12.4 average Bristol finish is best in the series. Start.

Denny Hamlin | View stats

Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 11 Toyota

Odds: 12-1

Fastlane forecast: Hamlin hasn't won at Bristol since 2012 but has earned three poles since and has led multiple laps in all but four of the 13 races since. When in doubt, roll the dice on a driver who sees the front of the field much more often than not.

Joey Logano | View stats

Team Penske, No. 22 Ford

Odds: 7-1

Fastlane forecast: When a driver's worst finish over eight races at a track is 13th (and that was the only non-top-10) it makes it easy to recommend that driver for a particular weekend. It makes it even easier when it's the defending Cup champion. Start Logano.

Ryan Blaney | View stats

Team Penske, No. 12 Ford

Odds: 18-1

Fastlane forecast: Blaney has a pretty strong projection for the weekend at 31 points for eighth overall -- outpacing his two-time Bristol-winning teammate Brad Keselowski. He's somewhat sneakily led 100 or more laps in each of the last three Bristol races despite an average finish of 15.33 in those events.

Clint Bowyer | View stats

Stewart-Haas Racing, No. 14 Ford

Odds: 20-1

Fastlane forecast: Is this the weekend Bowyer finally turns things around? It could be -- and it could save your season, too, if other owners have been scared off by his rough patch. Bowyer has finished eighth or better at Bristol in six of the last eight races with a runner-up showing in 2017, but he's projected to score just the 20th-most points. That screams value to me for the short track ace.

Erik Jones | View stats

Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 20 Toyota

Odds: 20-1

Fastlane forecast: All four Gibbs drivers have a shot to win any weekend, but Jones might have one of the best of the bunch on Saturday. He started from the pole in this race in 2017 and led a ridiculous 260 laps as a rookie. With Kyle Busch's guidance, Jones will likely be a Bristol threat for years to come.

Jimmie Johnson | View stats

Hendrick Motorsports, No. 48 Chevrolet

Odds: 40-1

Fastlane forecast: Johnson is projected to net a modest 24 points at Bristol, 15th overall and last of the four Hendrick drivers. Pounce on that value, as Johnson is racing with fire and has been pretty exceptional at Bristol since 2014.

SLEEPER PICK: Kyle Larson | View stats

Chip Ganassi Racing, No. 42 Chevrolet

Odds: 8-1

Fastlane forecast: Larson, a sleeper at 8-1? When his projected points are less than -- no offense, Matt -- Matt DiBenedetto's, yes. Larson was last year's runner-up in both Bristol races and has two poles in the last five races there. Use him wisely.

SLEEPER PICK: Daniel Suarez | View stats

Hendrick Motorsports, No. 88 Chevrolet

Odds: 40-1

Fastlane forecast: What makes Suarez a sleeper is the fact that he has just one top 10 in five Bristol starts. What makes him a smart play for you is that he's never finished worse than 18th there and has improved upon his starting position in four of those five races for a rather respectable 14.0 average finish culminating in this spring's top 10.

SLEEPER PICK: Alex Bowman | View stats

Hendrick Motorsports, No. 88 Chevrolet

Odds: 40-1

Fastlane forecast: Bowman hit a slight rough patch after his Chicago win and several players may have jumped off the bandwagon. I'm saying, "All aboard!" as a top 10 this weekend seems feasible after his first two Bristol runs in the Hendrick No. 88 netted a top five and top eight, respectively.

STAY AWAY FROM: Brad Keselowski | View stats

Team Penske, No. 2 Ford

Odds: 12-1

Fastlane forecast: Same goes for the next driver on this list, as well -- Keselowski can win any weekend, any where ... but Bristol just doesn't mark one of the most likely the 2012 champ will do so at. He's landed in the top 10 at Bristol just five times in 19 tries. If you can't spare the use, let Kes sit this one out. Safer options are available.

STAY AWAY FROM: Martin Truex Jr. | View stats

Joe Gibbs Racing, No. 19 Toyota

Odds: 8-1

Fastlane forecast: Look, if you somehow managed to make it to this part of the season and still have three or more uses on Truex, 1. Why? and 2. You probably have to use him this weekend to maximize potential for one of the sport's top drivers regardless of the track history. If you're at two or less, definitely bench him -- he bafflingly hasn't averaged a finish inside the top 20 at Bristol (20.9) with just three career top 10s.

Pat DeCola's lineup heading into the weekend: Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Chase Elliott, Joey Logano; Garage: Ryan Blaney.

Watch the race on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN/NBC Sports App.